Eltex ME-series Routers

Main articles: Routers (global market)

2024: Finalization of ME5210S

On August 12, 2024, Eltex announced that the development of the ME5210S, a trunk router with a fixed number of ports, has been completed, which is a development of the ME5200S model. This device is more compact, has optimized performance, supports time synchronization using the PTPv2 protocol (IEEE 1588v2) and introduces a number of functional changes.

Eltex

According to the company, the ME5210S model received a more powerful Control Plane processor and an increased amount of RAM up to 64 GB - four times more than the ME5200S. Like other routers in the series, ME5210S is equipped with a packet processor that performs high-speed hardware switching and routing, and a TCAM coprocessor for fast work with routing tables. This ensures optimal switching and routing performance. The packet processor has a performance of 720 MPPS and has a large buffer memory with a capacity of 8 GB, which allows you to cope with outbreaks of network traffic.

The form factor of the case is ME5210S-19, "height 1U. The router takes up half the height of the rack compared to its predecessor, while the depth of the case has increased from 500 mm to 560 mm.

Interfaces: 32 10 Gb/s (SFP +) ports with the ability to work in 1 Gb/s mode, 6 100 Gb/s (QSFP28) ports with the ability to work in 40 Gb/s mode. The number of 100 Gb/s ports is increased by two compared to the previous model. Interface splitting and merging modes are supported: dividing the QSFP28 interface into 4x SFP28 or 4x SFP +; combining four SFP + interfaces into one QSFP +.

ME5210S offers an extensive set of functions, MPLS QoS, implements Traffic Engineering technologies to optimize the use of network resources and load balancing, supports a full protocol stack/, IPv4IPv6 accounts for traffic flows and uploads statistics on Netlow/IPFIX protocols. Thanks to these capabilities, the router can effectively solve a wide range of tasks in large corporate and carrier networks.

Eltex

Key features:

• L2VPN/L3VPN Services, EVPN/MPLS, EVPN/VXLAN
• MPLS multi-protocol label switching: LDP, LDP FRR, mLDP, RSVP-TE, RSVP-TE FRR, LDPoRSVP, MPLS VPN (L2, L3), BGP for MPLS VPN, etc.;
• IPv4/IPv6 routing is static, IS-IS, OSPFv2/v3, RIPv2/RIPng, BGP (Route Reflector, FlowSpec for IPv4). Support for ACL, BFD, VRF and Inter-VRF routing functionality, Policy-based routing, etc.;
• Multicast: PIM-SM, PIM-SSM, IGMPv2/v3, MSDP, Anycast RP, NG-MVPN;
• QoS: up to 8 queues per logical interface, queue types - Strict Priority (SP/PQ) and Deficit Weighted Round-Robin (DWRR), support for the WRED algorithm, traffic classification based on Ethernet-, IP-and/or MPLS-headers (802.1p, MPLS TC, IP-based DSCP lists), traffic labeling and HACL traffic processing

The ME5210S supports the PTPv2 protocol (IEEE1588v2) used to synchronize the time of network devices. The availability of this feature is critical for time-sensitive applications such as cellular operator backbone networks, grid management networks, etc.

On the front panel of the device there are connectors for connecting sources and receivers of time and frequency synchronization signals: 1PPS In/Out - input and output of time synchronization signals; 10 MHz In/Out - input and output of frequency synchronization signals; ToD - port for transmitting and receiving Time of Day information.

Time synchronization using the IEEE1588v2 protocol works in conjunction with the SyncE synchronization function, providing service redundancy.

The router hardware is equipped with redundant power supplies and cooling fans, which ensures uninterrupted operation of the device even in the event of a failure of one of the components. Hot-swappable power supplies and fans allow for non-disruptive maintenance. The software also implements fault tolerance tools. These include the Graceful Restart feature for routing protocols and the Non-stop forwarding function. The launch of the device into mass production is planned in IV 2024 quarter.