Abstract: A transponder unit which relays signals between a plurality of channels of an optical transport network and a plurality of clients. The interconnections within the transponder unit are reconfigurable for selective connections. A connection between a first client and a first network channel and a connection between a second client and a second network channel is independent of each other and may be selected so that the second client is connected to the first network channel and the first client is connected to the second network channel. Other selected connections are also possible.

Abstract: Systems and methods for reliable and low cost optical connection verification. One application is verification and monitoring of optical cross-connect performance. A connection is verified by splitting off optical signals at both ports of the connection, converting the signals to electrical signals, and then cross-correlating to verify connectivity between the ports. Lowpass filtering applied to the electrical signals may be applied to reduce the complexity of the cross-correlation.