  Energy optimization has become a crucial issue in the realm of ICT. This
paper addresses the problem of energy consumption in a Metro Ethernet network.
Ethernet technology deployments have been increasing tremendously because of
their simplicity and low cost. However, much research remains to be conducted
to address energy efficiency in Ethernet networks. In this paper, we propose a
novel Energy Aware Forwarding Strategy for Metro Ethernet networks based on a
modification of the Internet Energy Aware Routing (EAR) algorithm. Our
contribution identifies the set of links to turn off and maintain links with
minimum energy impact on the active state. Our proposed algorithm could be a
superior choice for use in networks with low saturation, as it involves a
tradeoff between maintaining good network performance and minimizing the active
links in the network. Performance evaluation shows that, at medium load
traffic, energy savings of 60% can be achieved. At high loads, energy savings
of 40% can be achieved without affecting the network performance.

Networking and Internet Architecture