Multi - Level Multi - Planar Bulk Switching System Architecture Analysis And Design Of Self - Test Scenarios

High performance switching system is one of the most essential equipments in communication networks. With the increase of services scales, the system size and forwarding capability of current switching systems are growing very fast. To support the rising system performance, switching systems have to adopt very complicated intra architectures and contronling mechanisms. However, these complicated architectures and contronling mechanisms, which enable the switch systems to achieve higher performances, also bring significant chanllenges to the switch system testing and render many traditional testing approachs not capable for large scale switch systems any more.This paper analyzes the architectures of current comerical switching systems, particularly the system architechtures and functioning mechanisms of Dune SAND and Cisco CRS-1. Based on the results of these analysises, this paper also does researches on the chanllenges brought about by increasing system complex, which the traditional system testing methods may face.Additionally, this paper proposes a tesing approach for high capacity routing system. Making full use of the various control mechanisms provided by the switch system itself, this approach is able to test the validity of switch system and locate the failure modulars while do not need to make dramatical changes to the system. This proposed approach is of important value in leave-factory-testing of switch systems, as well as in switch system maintenance and falure recovery.Finally, this paper run a series of experriments on the proposed testing approach on an OPNET base platform, which is constructed to simulate a real high performance multi-stage-multi-plane switch systems. The results of these expeiments demonstrate that the proposed testing approach is effective and efficient. In the mean time, these results also provide us enough information for the further analysis on this approach.