This article provides a perspective on optical layer protection and restora
tion based on the services offered by carriers using the optical layer. Thi
s is different from other viewpoints that provide a taxonomy of protection
techniques in a more abstract fashion for the purposes of standardization.
The latter viewpoints are mostly based on the classification adopted in the
SONET/SDH standards. In contrast, taking a services-based view provides a
way to distinguish between protection schemes based on implementation costs
and the associated services enabled by the protection scheme.