WHITE PAPER

Synchronization for Next Generation

NetworksThe PTP Telecom Profile

Abstract This paper is one of a series of White

This paper is designed to help network Papers and Application Guidelines
engineers, network planners, and network produced by Symmetricom as part of an
operations understand how to deploy overall Framework for Synchronization and
Precision Time Protocol (PTP, or IEEE Timing in the Next Generation Network
1588). PTP is a next generation, packet- (NGN). These papers are intended to
based timing protocol targeted for use in help service provider network architects,
asynchronous network infrastructures planners, and engineers design and deploy
based on packet transport technologies. stable, robust Synchronization and Timing
architectures to support applications and
IEEE 1588-2008 introduces the concept of services that will be deployed on the NGN.
profiles to specify particular combinations
of options and attribute values to support a The Precision Time Protocol defined in
given application. This document describes IEEE 1588-2008 introduces the concept of
the Telecom Profile, recently released by profiles to specify particular combinations
the ITU-T as recommendation G.8265.1. of options and attribute values to support
This profile addresses the application a given application. The ITU-T recently
of the PTP to the frequency synchronization released the Telecom Profile
of GSM, UMTS and LTE-FDD base stations. (recommendation G.8265.1), designed
to address the application of PTP
to the frequency synchronization of
telecommunication systems, primarily
cellular basestations. This document
describes the Telecom Profile, covering
both the main features of the profile, and
the detailed operation of its more complex
elements.

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Synchronization for Next Generation Networks The PTP Telecom Profile

The Telecom Profile These aims led to some important decisions about how the profile
The Precision Time Protocol defined in IEEE 1588-2008 is a works:
complex protocol designed to be used in a number of different
applications and environments. Some parts of the protocol are It was decided not to use on-path support, such as boundary
aimed specifically at certain applications and are not applicable clocks and transparent clocks, because this is not available in
to others, making it difficult to understand which sections of the existing networks.
protocol should be used in a particular environment.
IPv4 was adopted as the network layer due to its ubiquity, rather
Therefore IEEE 1588-2008 introduces the concept of a PTP profile. than operation directly over Ethernet or other lower-layer
The idea of a profile is to specify particular combinations of options protocols
and attribute values to support a given application, with the goal of
Unicast transmission was adopted over multicast, since it could
inter-operability between equipment designed for that application.
be guaranteed to work over wide-area telecoms networks.
The purpose of the profile is outlined in IEEE 1588-2008, clause
19.3.1.1 [1]: The default BMCA (Best Master Clock Algorithm) described in
IEEE 1588-2008 was replaced by static provisioning. This allows
The purpose of a PTP profile is to allow organizations to specify
the synchronization flow to be planned, rather than dynamically
specific selections of attribute values and optional features of PTP
adjusting itself.
that, when using the same transport protocol, inter-work and achieve
a performance that meets the requirements of a particular application. The clockClass indication was adapted to carry the Quality Level
(QL) indications defined in G.781 [3], for continuity with SDH and
A PTP profile is a set of required options, prohibited options, and the
SyncE synchronization status messaging.
ranges and defaults of configurable attributes.
Profile Features
ITU-T Recommendation G.8265.1 [2] defines a profile, colloquially
One-way and Two-way Operation
known as the Telecom Profile, aimed at distribution of accurate
Frequency can be delivered by sending messages in just one
frequency over packet networks. This is primarily intended for
direction (e.g. from master to slave). Time distribution requires
use with synchronization of cellular base stations, where the
messages in both directions, to allow compensation for the
main requirement is to operate the radio interface at a frequency
propagation delay of the messages through the network. Some
accuracy of within 50 parts per billion.
frequency recovery algorithms in the slave make use of both
Aims of the Telecom Profile directions in order to deliver a more accurate and stable result.
The Telecom Profile was created to ensure that PTP can be used Therefore the Telecom Profile permits both one-way and two-way
in accordance with existing telecom sync practices. The key aims of operation.
the profile included:
A PTP master compliant with the profile must be capable of
1. To permit operation over existing managed, wide-area, packet- supporting both one-way and two-way operation (i.e. PTP Sync and
based telecoms networks. Delay Request/Response messages). A slave use either one-way or
two-way operation, but is not required to support both methods.
2. To define message rates and parameter values consistent
with frequency distribution to the required performance for One-step and Two-step Clocks
telecom applications. PTP defines two types of clock behaviors: the "one-step clock" and
the "two-step clock". In a one-step clock, the precise timestamp
3. To allow interoperability with existing synchronization is transported directly in the Sync message. In a two-step clock, a
networks (such as SyncE and SDH). Follow_Up message is used to carry the precise timestamp of the
corresponding Sync message.
4. To allow the synchronization network to be designed and
configured in a fixed arrangement. Follow_Up messages were invented to facilitate timestamping at the
hardware level, improving the accuracy of the timestamp. Their use
5. To enable protection schemes to be constructed in accordance means that the master does not have to modify the timestamp in the
with standard telecom network practices. Sync message on the fly as the packet is being transmitted, but can
send it in a separate, non-time-critical packet later.

[1] IEEE Standard for a Precision Clock Synchronization Protocol for Networked Measurement and Control Systems, IEEE Std.1588TM-2008, 24 July 2008
[2] Precision time protocol telecom profile for frequency synchronization, ITU-T Recommendation G.8265.1, October 2010
Page 2 of 12
[3] Synchronization Layer Functions, ITU-T Recommendation G.781, September 2008
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Synchronization for Next Generation Networks The PTP Telecom Profile

If the master is capable of implementing a one-step clock, this Announce messages

significantly reduces the number of PTP messages it has to send.
However, some security mechanisms or architectural features in o Minimum rate: 1 packet every 16 seconds
the master might require the two-clock approach.
o Maximum rate: 8 packets-per-second
Therefore both one-step and two-step clocks are allowed in the
Signaling messages rate will be governed largely by the
profile. A PTP master compliant with the profile may use either
duration of unicast service requests
a one-step clock or a two-step clock or both. A slave must be
capable of accepting both one-step and two-step clocks. Domains
According to PTP, a domain is a group of clocks synchronized
Unicast Transmission
together using the protocol, acting independently from any other
PTP allows the use of both unicast and multicast modes for the
PTP clocks. In the context of unicast messaging without on-path
transmission of the PTP messages; however the Telecom Profile
support, each communication path from a grandmaster to a slave
is restricted to unicast only. The main reasons for this are that
therefore represents a domain, because the protocol operates
multicast is more complex to provision, and upstream multicast is
independently over this path.
often not permitted for security reasons. The use of a hybrid model,
with downstream multicast and upstream unicast, was considered Therefore the domain number can be chosen independently
but left for future definition. for each grandmaster-slave pair, and could in fact be the same
for every path although each forms a unique PTP domain. The
The slave must request unicast service from the master for each of
recommendation is to choose a number in the range 4 to 23. Any
the message types required, i.e. Announce, Sync and Delay_Request/
differentiation between domain numbers on separate paths is
Response. The standard unicast request mechanism is used
down to operator preference. One consequence of this is that the
(defined in clause 16 of IEEE 1588-2008), with the address
standard BMCA cannot be used, since each domain contains only
of the master taken from a pre-configured list held by the slave.
a single grandmaster and single slave. Therefore each element is
Network Layer Protocol statically configured as either a grandmaster or a slave.
The profile adopts transmission of PTP over UDP, running on the
Synchronization Traceability
IPv4 network layer, as defined in Annex D of IEEE 1588-2008. This
In order to provide traceability in the same way as for existing SDH
is because IPv4 is universally supported, while other possible
and SyncE-based synchronization, the Quality Level (QL) indicators
transport layers such as Ethernet or MPLS may not always be
defined in G.781 must be carried over the PTP path. These indicators
present, or exist for the full span of the master-slave transmission
are carried in the SSM field of SONET/SDH systems, and the ESMC
path.
messages of SyncE.
Transmission rates
Similar information is carried in the clockClass field of the PTP
The transmission rates were chosen to allow stable
Announce messages, and various ranges of clockClass values have
synchronization over most wide-area networks without the need
been designated for use by alternate profiles. Therefore the profile
for on-path support, such as boundary or transparent clocks. The
encodes the QL indicators in the clockClass values 80 to 110.
rates are therefore higher than in most PTP applications, where
the network reach is smaller and on-path support may be present. Redundancy and Protection
The exact rate to be used may vary with the type and size of the The profile is intended to work with planned redundancy schemes,
network, and on the equipment chosen. similar to how existing synchronization systems work. The slave
is pre-programmed with a list of grandmasters, each with an
Sync messages (if used, Follow_Up messages will have
associated priority, and selects one of the grandmasters using
the same rate)
a procedure based on the QL-enabled process defined in G.781.
o Minimum rate: 1 packet every 16 seconds The slave selects the grandmaster on the basis of QL value first,
then priority, provided that the protocol doesnt indicate any kind
o Maximum rate: 128 packets-per-second of signal failure.

Delay_Request/Delay_Response messages

o Minimum rate: 1 packet every 16 seconds

o Maximum rate: 128 packets-per-second

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Synchronization for Next Generation Networks The PTP Telecom Profile

Detailed Operation Packet Packet

Slave Master
The operation of the Telecom Profile is different in some aspects
to the normal behavior of PTP systems. This section describes in Signaling (Announce request)

more detail the operation of some of the key aspects of the profile.
Signaling (Announce grant)

Unicast Service Negotiation Announce

Since the Telecom profile is based on unicast messaging, unicast
Signaling (Sync request)
service negotiation is enabled by default in profile-compliant
devices. The slave initiates the communication to the grandmaster
Unicast Signaling (Sync grant)
by making a request for service using the process described in Renewal Announce
clause 16 of G.8265.1. This consists of sending Signaling messages Interval Sync Duration
Interval
containing a REQUEST_UNICAST_TRANSMISSION TLV to the IP Sync
address of the grandmaster. If the master has sufficient capacity
Announce
to handle the slaves request, it responds with a signaling message
containing a GRANT_UNICAST_TRANSMISSION TLV.
Sync
Signaling (Announce request) Duration
The REQUEST_UNICAST_TRANSMISSION TLV contains several Interval
parameters: Signaling (Announce grant)

Announce
messageType the type of service being requested (i.e.
Announce, Sync or Delay_Response). Signaling (Sync request)

durationField the duration of the requested service. This has Signaling (Sync grant)
a default initialization value of 300 seconds and a configurable
range of 60 to 1000 seconds.

logInterMessagePeriod the transmission rate of the requested Figure 1: Unicast Negotiation Example (Figure 1 from G.8265.1)
messages ........................ ...............................
When initiating unicast negotiation with a grandmaster, the slave message type to the same master. This prevents the master from
should use all 1s as the initial value for the targetPortIdentity of being saturated with repeated requests that it cannot service. If a
the Signaling message. The correct value should be learnt from slave has issued three service requests for the same message type
the grandmasters response, and used in subsequent signaling with either no response or a grant denied response, it should wait
messages. another 60s before retrying the request to the same master.

The GRANT_UNICAST_TRANSMISSION TLV contains the same Continuity of Service

list of parameters as the request. The values of these parameters As unicast service is only granted for a limited time, the slave
should be the same as those in the request. If the master denies must re-request service periodically, before the expiration of the
the request, e.g. because it has no remaining capacity, this is current grant. It is recommended that the slave reissue the request
indicated by setting the durationField value to zero. The R flag sufficiently far in advance of the expiration to allow the request
(Renewal Invited) is not used in the Telecom Profile. to be repeated at least twice if no grant is received. For example,
the packets containing the request or the grant may be lost in
Denial of Unicast Service transmission. This shorter interval is known as the unicast renewal
While it is permitted in IEEE 1588-2008 for the master to reduce interval, and should help to ensure continuity of service.
either the duration or transmission rate of the granted service, the
Telecom Profile states that the master should deny the request Order of Service Requests
altogether rather than offering reduced service to the slave. This The timing diagram in Figure 1 shows the order of a typical
prevents the slave being granted a rate that is too low for it to meet message exchange between a slave and a master. Firstly, the
the performance constraints. If the slave is capable of operating slave requests unicast Announce message service. When this has
with a reduced service (e.g. at a lower transmission rate), it may been granted and the first Announce message received, the slave
repeat the request with the reduced rate. can check the QL value conveyed in the clockClass field of the
message. If this is acceptable, the slave can then request service
In the event of being denied service by a master, or receiving no for Sync and Delay Request messages. As the end of the duration
response to the service request, a slave should wait a minimum of interval approaches, the service requests should be reissued to
one second before issuing a new unicast service request for that ensure continuity of service.

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Synchronization for Next Generation Networks The PTP Telecom Profile

The exact order of messages and message requests will depend PTP Traceability
on type of service the slave requires. It is also possible for a slave In PTP systems, traceability is carried by the clockClass attribute
to include multiple TLVs in a service request. This may reduce in the header field of Announce messages sent by the grandmaster.
the possibility that a master will grant one request but deny other Since PTP was designed as a protocol to carry time rather than
requests for different types of message. frequency, traceability is normally defined in terms of the timescale
to which the grandmaster is referenced to. For example, clockClass
Traceability 6 is defined as a PTP clock that is synchronized to a primary
reference time source (e.g. UTC time), while clockClass 13 is
SONET/SDH Traceability
defined as a PTP clock that is synchronized to an arbitrary source
In SONET/SDH and SyncE synchronization networks, the ultimate
of time.
source of the timing signal frequency or the traceability of the
signal is conveyed by means of the QL value carried in the SSM. Telecom Profile Traceability
These QL values are defined in G.781. For example, if a timing The Telecom Profile is not concerned with time, but frequency.
signal is traceable to a primary reference clock, the QL value is set Therefore the distinction between a primary reference timescale
to QL-PRC. This signal will be conveyed all the way down the chain and an arbitrary timescale is irrelevant to the purpose of the
to the end node in the four-bit SSM code. profile. Secondly, the clockClass values defined in IEEE 1588-2008
dont indicate the accuracy of the frequency reference, merely the
If the chain is broken immediately before an SDH or SyncE clock
traceability of time.
(i.e. and SEC or EEC), the downstream timing signal is now driven
from that clock, and the QL value is set to QL-SEC or QL-EEC1. The clockClass parameter has the range
A subsequent higher quality timing element downstream of the 0 ~ 255, and there are several sections within this range of values
chain such as an SSU will then decide that it can generate a higher that are designated for use by alternative profiles. In order to
quality timing signal than the SEC or EEC, and go into holdover, maintain consistency between various methods of frequency
free-running on its own clock. It will then set its own QL value to distribution, it was decided to use one of these sections to encode
QL-SSU_A or QL-SSU_B accordingly. the QL values, rather than attempt to use the existing clockClass
definitions. This use of QL values allows interworking between
Therefore, at any point in the synchronization chain, the SSM value
SONET/SDH, SyncE and PTP frequency distribution, and for the
reflects the QL value of the synchronization element driving that
end nodes to view consistent traceability information regardless
segment of the synchronization chain.
of the means of delivery, as shown in Figure 2.

.............................................................................

End-to-end Traceability

SSM: QL-PRC [0010] clockClass: QL-PRC [84]

~
PRC

Grandmaster
Grandmaster PTP
SHD Network
SHD Network Network
Packet Network
Packet Slave
Clock
Clock
Clock

Figure 2: Interworking with existing SDH synchronization systems

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The mapping between QL and clockClass is shown in the table Packet Timing Signal Fail
below (copy of Table 1, G.8265.1). The Telecom Profile defines the notion of Packet Timing Signal
Fail (PTSF), which is not included in IEE1588-2008. It defines three
If the grandmaster is slaved to a primary reference frequency, types of PTSF:
regardless of the traceability of time information, then the
clockClass value should be set to QL-PRC [84] (or QL-PRS [80] PTSF-lossAnnounce loss of reception of PTP Announce
for Option II). If the primary reference frequency fails, then the messages from a master, carrying the traceability information
clockClass should be degraded to a value consistent with the
grandmasters own internal oscillator. For example, if the internal PTSF-lossSync loss of reception of PTP timing messages from
oscillator is classed as suitable for an SSU type A, then the a master (e.g. Sync or Delay_Response messages)
clockClass should be set to QL-SSU-A [90]. Similarly, if it is Stratum
PTSF-unusable unusable packet timing signal received by the
2 quality (Option II), then it should be set to QL-ST2 [86].
slave, e.g. where the packet delay variation is excessive, resulting
in the slave being unable to meet the output clock performance
requirements

.............................................................................

G.781 QL Values
SSM QL PTP clockClass
Option I Option II Option III
0001 QL-PRS 80
0000 QL-STU QL-UNK 82
0010 QL-PRC 84
0111 QL-ST2 86
0011 88
0100 QL-SSU-A QL-TNC 90
0101 92
0110 94
1000 QL-SSU-B 96
1001 98
1101 QL-ST3E 100
1010 QL-ST3/ 102
QL-EEC2
1011 QL-SEC/ QL-SEC 104
QL-EEC1
1100 QL-SMC 106
1110 QL-PROV 108
1111 QL-DNU QL-DUS 110

Table 1/G.8265.1: Mapping of Quality Levels to PTP clockClass values

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Loss of the Announce messages means that there is no longer Grandmaster Selection and Protection
any traceability information available to qualify the accuracy IEE1588-2008 defines a method for a slave clock to determine
of the signal from the grandmaster. Therefore the slave should the best master to synchronize to, as part of the Best Master
switch to an alternative grandmaster that has valid traceability Clock Algorithm (BMCA). This is based first on the priority value,
information. If no alternative master is available, the slave should then on the clockClass and the clockAccuracy parameters.
go into holdover, and set its output QL value consistent with the
accuracy of its own local oscillator. However, G.781 defines a selection procedure for SONET/SDH
and SyncE in the opposite order, based first on QL values, then
Similarly, in the case of loss of timing messages, traceability of on priority. Secondly, since the unicast PTP communication paths
frequency to the master is lost, and the slave should switch to an between the slave and each grandmaster are considered as
alternative grandmaster or go into holdover if none is available. independent domains, the BMCA cannot be used because this
would mean one domain is affecting the operation of the other
The time taken to recognize these two failures is implementation domain.
dependent. If the slave has a very good quality local oscillator,
it may be able to implement longer timeouts before declaring Telecom Slave Clock
a signal fail than if it has a cheaper, more unstable oscillator. The Telecom Profile defines a new selection procedure based on
The benefit of being able to wait through possible temporary G.781. This procedure functions outside of the PTP protocol itself.
interruptions in service perhaps due to congestion must be The result of this is that, logically speaking, the slave consists
balanced against the possible degradation in performance of multiple instances of the protocol operating independently.
of the slaves output signal due to the interruption. Each of these instances feeds into the selection process, and the
synchronization algorithm operates on the selected instance.
The durations of the timeouts are defined by the parameters The protocol instances obtain the address and priority of each
announceReceiptTimeout, syncReceiptTimeout and grandmaster from a list of grandmasters. This list is similar to the
delayRespReceiptTimeout. The announceReceiptTimeout Acceptable Master Table defined in IEEE 1588-2008 in that it contains
parameter is already defined in IEEE15888-2008, while the other both addresses and priority information, but since it operates outside
two parameters are new in the Telecom Profile. of the protocol it must be considered a separate table.

For PTSF-unusable, the action to be taken is undefined by the The collection of protocol instances, selection process,
profile. If the network is congested, it may mean that signals from synchronization function and the list of grandmasters is called
other grandmasters are also unusable, but it may not be possible the Telecom Slave Clock, shown in Figure 3.
to determine that without attempting to synchronized to them.
In that case, it may be preferable to go into holdover for a short
period until the congestion has passed.
.............................................................................
Telecom
Slave Clock
Slave
Grandmaster Protocol
Clock 1 Instance 1

G.781-Based
Packet Slave Master
Grandmaster Protocol Sync
Clock 2 Network Selection Function
Instance 2 Process

Slave
Grandmaster Protocol
Clock N Instance N List of N
Grandmasters

Separate PTP
domains

Figure 3: Telecom Slave Clock

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Initial Master Selection Process Protection and Restoration

On start-up, the process to establish the grandmaster follows The Telecom Slave must trigger the selection process for an
a series of steps: alternative grandmaster if any of the following events happen:

The list of grandmasters is populated with N entries, each The selected grandmaster declines or terminates a unicast
containing the protocol address (i.e. IPv4 address) of an service request from the slave instance
acceptable grandmaster, and an associated priority. The Telecom
Profile does not describe how the information for this list is The QL value of the grandmaster is degraded for any reason
obtained or entered. The table could be manually populated,
A PTSF-lossAnnounce or PTSF-lossSync condition occurs
or entered via some kind of management system; the means
is outside the scope of the profile itself. The QL value of a higher priority grandmaster becomes equal
or higher to that of the currently selected grandmaster, providing
The Telecom Slave establishes a protocol instance for each
it is not exhibiting a PTSF condition
of the N entries in the grandmaster list.
By default, the switch process is revertive. This means that when
Each protocol instance requests unicast Announce service from
the condition that caused the change has cleared, the Telecom
its respective grandmaster. If service is granted, the protocol
Slave should re-synchronize to the originally selected grandmaster.
instance must obtain the clockClass of the grandmaster, and
The reversion function may be disabled if required
pass this information to the selection process. The means by
by a configuration option on the Telecom Slave.
which the protocol instance communicates with the selection
process is implementation-dependent. When one of the trigger events occurs, the following steps occur:
The selection process determines which grandmaster has the Each of the remaining protocol instances requests unicast
highest QL value. If several grandmasters have the same QL Announce service from its respective grandmaster, passing
value, the priority value is used to select the grandmaster. the clockClass information to the selection process.
The protocol instance associated with the selected grandmaster The selection process determines which grandmaster has
requests Sync and Delay_Response service. If granted, the timing the highest QL and priority value.
information is passed to the synchronization function, and
an output timing signal generated that is synchronized to the The protocol instance associated with the selected grandmaster
selected grandmaster. If service is not granted for the timing requests Sync and Delay_Response service. If granted, the timing
messages, it must either retry the request or the selection information is passed to the synchronization function, and
process must choose another grandmaster. an output timing signal generated that is synchronized to the
selected grandmaster. If service is not granted for the timing
The protocol instances associated with the grandmasters should messages, it must either retry the request or the selection
continue renewing the requests for Announce service, continually process must choose another grandmaster.
monitoring the status of each grandmaster.
The protocol instances associated with the originally selected
If no grandmaster is available, or the QL value of each available grandmaster must periodically request Announce service from
grandmaster is lower than the quality of the Telecom Slave Clocks that grandmaster. When the condition that caused the re-
own oscillator, then the Telecom Slave must go into holdover until selection has cleared, the selection process should operate
the conditions causing unavailability have cleared. again, allowing the reversion to occur.

As before, if no grandmaster is available, or the QL value of each

available grandmaster is lower than the quality of the Telecom
Slave Clocks own oscillator, then the Telecom Slave must go into
holdover until the conditions causing unavailability have cleared.

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There are several parameters associated with the protection and

restoration.

Wait to Restore time this is the time from the clearing of the
condition that caused the original protection switch before the
restoration occurs. If the network is unstable, it may be necessary
to increase this time to avoid switching over too early, before the
network has stabilized again. There is no value recommended in
the Telecom Profile, and the value chosen should represent both
operator preference and vendor guidance

. Non-reversion function it should be possible to disable

the restoration of the original grandmaster. This prevents
unnecessary or too frequent switching between grandmasters.
The disabling of reversion should be under operator control via a
configuration option in the Telecom Slave Clock.

Output Squelch if the QL value of the selected grandmaster is

under a threshold, or the Telecom Slave Clock is in holdover, it
must be possible to squelch (i.e. disable) the output timing signal
from the slave. This prevents the end application equipment from
synchronizing to a timing signal that is not synchronized to a
reference. The squelch function should be associated with a hold-
off time, to allow a re-selection process time to occur in the event
of degradation of the QL value, for instance.

Output QL Hold Off where the Telecom Slave generates an

output timing signal that also carries a QL value, it may be
necessary to delay the transition of the QL value in the output
timing signal. For example, if the QL value from the primary
grandmaster is degraded, time should be allowed for a re-
selection process to occur and a new grandmaster selected
before changing the QL value. This prevents unnecessary
switching of frequency references in any downstream equipment.

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Summary of Telecom Profile Features

The following table summarizes the features and parameter ranges specified in the Telecom Profile.

Range Default G.8265.1

Feature/ Parameter Note
from to Value Clause

Profile Identification:
profileName: ITU-T PTP Profile for Frequency Distribution without timing support from the network
(Unicast mode)
profileVersion: 1.0
Annex A
profileIdentifier: 00-19-A7-00-01-00
Specified by: ITU-T (Study Group 15, Question 13)
Location: www.itu.int

General Features:
Clock Identity EUI-64 (as specified in clause 7.5.2.2.2 of IEEE 1588-2008) Annex A
Permitted Nodes Ordinary clocks (i.e. grandmasters, slave-only clocks) Annex A
Prohibited Nodes Boundary clocks, transparent clocks Annex A
Protocol mapping Both masters and slaves MUST support IEEE 1588-2008 Annex D IPv4/UDP stack 6.4,
Annex A
Path Delay Measurement Uses Delay_Request/Response mechanism, if required (i.e. two-way operation) 6.3.1,
Peer delay mechanism MUST NOT be used. Annex A
One-way and Two-way Masters MUST support both one-way and two-way operation.
6.3.1
Operation Slaves MAY support either one-way or two-way, or both.
One-step and Two-step clock Master MAY support either one-step or two-step clocks, or both.
6.3.2
Slaves MUST support both one-step and two-step clocks, without configuration.
PTP Management Not specified in this version of the profile. Annex A
Range must be supported by both masters 6.2.1,
Domain number 4 23 -
and slaves Annex A
Masters MUST implement static BMCA, with state BMC_MASTER, and state
BMCA 6.7.1,
decision code M1
Annex A
Slaves must implement static BMCA, with state BMC_SLAVE, and state decision code S1

Message Rates:
Sync & Follow-up 1/16 128
6.5,
Delay_Request/Response 1/16 128
Annex A
Announce 1/16 8 1/2
Peer Delay_Request/Response Not used

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Range Default G.8265.1

Feature/ Parameter Note
from to Value Clause

Unicast and Multicast Operation:

Full unicast operation Both masters and slaves MUST support full unicast operation. 6.3.3,
Annex A
Hybrid unicast/multicast For further study; see Appendix I for more details.
Not required in first version of the profile. Appendix
I
Full multicast operation Not required by this profile.
Unicast negotiation process Both masters and slaves MUST support unicast negotiation (IEEE 1588-2008 Clause 16.1).
Masters MUST reject any request it can't completely fulfil, rather than grant less than the
requested message rate or duration.
duration field Duration of unicast service lease 60 1000 300
Masters MUST accept at least the entire ranges specified. 6.6,
Slaves MUST operate within these ranges, but do not have to cover the entire ranges. Annex A

logInterMessagePeriod Sync & Follow-up (from 128 per s to 1 per 16s) -7 4 -

Delay_request/response (from 128 per s to 1 per 16s) -7 4 -
Announce (from 8 per s to 1 per 16s, default 1 per 2s) -3 4 1
Slaves MUST wait a minimum of 1 second before repeating a
unicast negotiation request.
logQueryInterval Note: If three consecutive requests are denied or not 1 6.6
answered, slaves MUST wait 60s before repeating the request
to the same master.
Master MUST accept multiple TLVs in the same unicast
negotiation request.
number of TLVs 1 3 6.6
Slaves MAY include multiple TLVs in the same unicast
negotiation request.

Master Selection Process:

Slaves MUST select a master from a locally-configured list of acceptable masters
according to the following criteria:
master not in PTSF state (Packet Timing Signal Fail),
Master Selection Process e.g. loss of Sync or Announce service, (or optionally, 6.7.3.1
unusable timing signal)
lowest clockClass (SSM QL) value
local priority value
clockClass value is set according to Table 1 of G.8265.1 (derived from G.781 SSM values)
Masters MUST encode clockClass using this table according to the quality of their input
clockClass 6.7.3.2
reference.
Slaves MUST use clockClass to select the master to synchronize to.
A slave MUST set the PTSF-lossAnnounce signal when it has not received any Announce
PTSF-lossAnnounce
messages for a period longer than the announceReceiptTimeout attribute
A slave MUST set the PTSF-lossSync signal when it has not received any sync messages
for a period longer than the syncReceiptTimeout attribute, or has not received any
PTSF-lossSync
Delay_Response Messages for a period longer than the delayRespReceiptTimeout attribute 6.7.3.3
(these are locally-configured attributes, not part of PTP itself)
A slave MUST set the PTSF-unusable signal if it is not able to achieve the required
PTSF-unusable performance target.
The criteria for establishing this are not specified and for further study.

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Range Default G.8265.1

Feature/ Parameter Note
from to Value Clause

Protection switching:
A slave MUST switch to an alternative master under one or more of the following
conditions:
clockClass (QL value) degraded to a higher value
(i.e. lower quality) than an alternative master
PTSF-lossSync or PTSF-lossAnnounce conditions
Protection switching 6.7.3
on the current master
(optional) PTSF-unusable on the current master
(by configuration)
If no master is acceptable (e.g. all in PTSF condition), the slave MUST enter holdover or
free-run.
A slave MUST have the ability to temporarily exclude a master from the list of acceptable
Temporary master exclusion 6.8.1
masters (by configuration)
After a protection switch, when the highest priority master Delay time to be
Wait to Restore time has been restored, a slave MUST wait before switching back configured 6.8.2
to the primary master (not specified in profile)
Non-reversion A slave MAY optionally provide non-revertive switching (by configuration) 6.8.3
A master MUST provide the ability to force the QL value to a specified value (by
Forced traceability 6.8.4
configuration)
A slave MUST be capable of delaying a change in QL value to Delay time to be
QL Hold-off downstream devices configured 6.8.5
(not specified in profile)
A slave MUST be capable of squelching the output timing signal in case all masters are in
Output squelch 6.8.6
PTSF, or QL value of all masters is less than a pre-determined threshold (by configuration)

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Conclusion Abbreviations and Definitions

.............................................................
The Telecom Profile is a key component in delivering reliable
synchronization solutions to applications, such as cellular BMCA Best Master Clock Algorithm
backhaul, that require accurate frequency alignment. It allows ESMC Ethernet Synchronization Message Channel
operators to design packet-based synchronization systems
compatible with existing synchronization solutions, and to maintain IP Internet Protocol
existing best practice. It also facilitates the design of inter-operable ITU-T International Telecommunications Union
systems using equipment from multiple vendors. Telecommunications Standards Bureau

Symmetricom has been active in the development of both IEEE1588- MPLS Multi-Protocol Label Switching
2008 and the G.8265.1 Telecom Profile. The TP5000 is a carrier-class PDV Packet Delay Variation
PTP grandmaster fully compliant with the provisions of the profile1,
PRC Primary Reference Clock
and has been proved interoperable PTP slave devices from many
other vendors. PTP Precision Time Protocol
PTSF Packet Timing Signal Fail
The TP5000 can be deployed with confidence by operators to build
synchronization solutions for mobile backhaul applications. QL Quality Level
SDH Synchronous Digital Hierarchy
For further information please contact Symmetricom at
www.symmetricom.com. SONET Synchronous Optical NETwork
SSM Synchronization Status Messaging
SyncE Synchronous Ethernet
TLV Type Length Value field
UDP User Datagram Protocol

1 Except for clockClass traceability according to Table 1 of G.8265.1. This will be rectified in version 2.0, to be released in late 2011.

2300 Orchard Parkway 2011 Symmetricom. Symmetricom and the Symmetricom logo are registered trademarks
San Jose, California 95131-1017 of Symmetricom, Inc. All specifications subject to change without notice.
tel: 408.433.0910 fax: 408.428.7896
www.symmetricom.com WP/TelecomProfile/061311