MNET Services>Telecom Data Networking>Real-Time QoS (Quality of Service)

The MN.IT network places different categories of traffic into diffent service levels and uses the quality of service capabilities of its routers to ensure that traffic is carried smoothly and efficently. Three levels of QoS are implemented throughout the network and are available to all customers:

• Real-time: for MN.IT's voice and video services.
• State applications: for traffic whose from one part of MN.IT's network to another.
• Internet: for traffic being sent to or received from the Internet.

Levels

This document focuses on the real-time level.

Three types of traffic are eligible for going into the real-time level:

• MN.IT video
• MN.IT voice
• Enterprise Real Time Data

The total amount of bandwidth on a link that set aside for priority traffic is configured into the network devices. It can be changed, but not "on-the-fly." A maximum of 70% of the link speed is available for such priority traffic. The division between video calls, voice calls and enterprise traffic must also be made at configuration time and can't vary "on-the-fly."

Video or voice calls that attempt to exceed the configured preset maximum will not be completed (they will receive a "network busy").

MN.IT Video

Video traffic must:

• be part of MN.IT's video service;
• reside in a single MPLS VPN (named "video");
• enter the network from a router interface registered with MN.IT as a video interface;
• carry the source IP address of one of the systems registered with MN.IT for that interface;
• have a source port and protocol from our list of valid system ports and protocols (TCP/UDP 1024 and above), or have call signaling ports and protocols (TCP/UDP 1024 and above); and
• have a destination IP address on MN.IT's video network.

Traffic for calls off of MN.IT's video network - such as Internet2 calls, and IP-dialed calls to other sites - actually terminates on gateways; those gateways have addresses within the MN.IT video network. Thus traffic between MN.IT video sites and the gateways receives the correct QoS level.

Further, the gateways take advantage of quality of service on the external side as well. Where it is supported by the external network, the gateways maintain the quality of service on the external side.

MN.IT Voice

Voice traffic must:

• be part of MN.IT's voice service;
• reside in a single MPLS VPN (named "voice");
• enter the network from a router interface registered with MN.IT as a voice interface;
• have a destination IP address on MN.IT's voice network.

As with video, traffic for calls off of MN.IT's voice network - including calls to the Public Switched Telephone Network - actually terminates on gateways; those gateways have addresses within the MN.IT voice network. Thus traffic between MN.IT voice sites and the gateways receives the correct QoS level. At this time, the only off-network voice path is through the PSTN.

Enterprise Real Time Data

Some portions of the MN.IT network carry traffic for only a single customer. MN.IT can work with that customer to designate some of their data traffic as real-time.