Encapsulation and rate adaptation for Ethernet over SDH

In this article, we provide a one-chip solution of Ethernet transmission over SDH. Ethernet, confined by its own mechanism, only applies to a local area, but the inter-connection of Ethernets located in different regions is becoming a hot topic. Here, we analyze the protocols that can be used in the implementation and compare them to achieve a feasible one. Encapsulation and rate adaptation are two main points that will greatly affect the overall performance of this chip. After analysis, GFP is utilized as the default encapsulation protocol. Virtual concatenation of VC12s, although lacking formal protocols, is also utilized to provide an efficient transmission. Necessary performance analysis and chip architecture are also presented.