Telcos and service providers create open source venture

This article was published in Broadband TV News on April 24, 2020. You can read the original article here   

Network operators, integrators and software vendors have joined forces to create Leitstand, an open-source community that aims to increase the efficiency of developing, buying and running network management systems for next generation carrier networks.

It will provide the tools needed to operate the underlying infrastructure in a disaggregated telecoms network, including zero-touch provisioning of infrastructure, inventory management, operational visibility of network elements, alarm monitoring, fault diagnosis and software version management.

The Leitstand toolset will be provided in an open-source model, freely available to any operator, equipment vendor and systems integrator. Initial contributors to the initiative include Deutsche Telekom, EWE TEL, Reply and RtBrick.

“In the past, equipment providers developed bespoke management systems to assist carriers in operating their networks,” said Hannes Gredler, founder and chief technology officer at RtBrick. “Although common protocols and interfaces emerged, these tools were usually optimised for the vendors’ own equipment. This resulted in inefficient use of development resources within equipment vendors and complex integration challenges for carriers operating multi-vendor networks.”

By providing the operational toolset on an open-source basis, Leitstand intends to increase the efficiency of producing, maintaining and enhancing carriers’ operational tools and processes, for both the vendors and the carriers. Tools will be made available at no charge to other operators and system integrators.

“Now, developers can focus more effort on solving higher-value problems, rather than ‘reinventing the wheel’ for every system element,” said Robert Soukup, senior programme manager at Deutsche Telekom. “A wider pool of developers also means a deeper pool of ideas, with the most innovative solutions bubbling up to the top.”

The Leitstand community welcomes organisations to contribute resources to solving this next generation challenge for carriers.