Abstract: A system and method of managing subrate paths in an optical network. An example embodiment is a network administration application or component. The application receives a description of a desired service for an optical network through a graphical interface. The application uses the information in the service request to identify and provision paths for the service through the nodes. The application may include varying degrees of interactivity and automation for selecting timeslot configurations and may support line and tributary protection schemes. The application may also support multiple provisioning strategies. Example system configurations, application components, graphical interfaces, and methods are provided.