H3C AR 46 Series Routers Installation Manual
Chapter 1 Router Overview
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Chapter 1 Router Overview
1.1 Introduction
H3C AR 46 Series Routers are next generation high-performance edge routers that
H3C Technology solely developed. They provide high forwarding performance and a
broad service range. The series supports flexible interface cards (FICs), hot swappable
fan modules and power supply units (PSUs) in 1+1 redundancy. Along with the NE
Series Routers, the AR 46 series provides complete network solutions for service
providers and enterprises.
The following are the major features of the AR 46 series.
I. Abundant FIC options
The H3C AR 46 series are available with a wide range of FICs. This allows for great
flexibility and thus protects user investment.
II. Ethernet access
The electrical and fiber (multi-mode and single-mode) Ethernet FICs support PPPoE
and PPPoEoA, and can offer authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA)
services for Ethernet access. These cards are suitable for providing broadband access,
for example, for government agencies and enterprises.
III. ATM and DSL
Digital subscriber line (DSL) is a simple but highly efficient broadband technology which
achieves great data transmission capacity over existing copper wiring by using the
digital code modulation technology. Installed with an ADSL or G.HSDSL card, the AR 46
series can connect medium-to-small-sized enterprises to digital subscriber line access
multiplexer (DSLAM) equipment across a public switched telephone network (PSTN) to
the Internet.
Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) transmits, multiplexes, and switches information in
cells. In addition to DSL cards, the AR 46 series is available with these ATM cards: 25
Mbps, 155 Mbps, E3/T3, and IMA-E1/T1. The cards support ATM adaptation layer type
5 (AAL5) and offer traffic services such as constant bit rate (CBR), variable bit rate
(VBR) and unspecified bit rate (UBR). They are well-suited to transfer large packets
and provide high-speed data services. A small to medium-sized enterprise can use
them to connect its network to an ATM network.
IV. MPLS
Multiprotocol label switching (MPLS), a combination of IP and ATM technologies,
replaces the IP header with a short and length-fixed label as traffic identifier, based on