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Let’s calculate total 1-year cost for each option using the provided table:
CAPEX = $250,000
OPEX (1 year) = $100,000
Installation fee = $30,000
Total = $250,000 + $100,000 + $30,000 = $380,000
CAPEX = $150,000
OPEX (1 year) = $100,000
Installation fee = $25,000
Total = $150,000 + $100,000 + $25,000 = $275,000
CAPEX = $50,000
OPEX (1 year) = $80,000
Installation fee = $5,000
Total = $50,000 + $80,000 + $5,000 = $135,000
BUT: MPLS does not allow customer-controlled QoS policies as stated in the requirement (cannot run its own varying QoS profiles without SP interaction). Therefore disqualified.
CAPEX = $45,000
OPEX (1 year) = $100,000
Installation fee = $5,000
Total = $45,000 + $100,000 + $5,000 = $150,000
BUT: Metro Ethernet is also typically a service provider-managed solution where customer-controlled QoS is usually limited depending on SP capabilities. May not fully meet the requirement.
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The key technical requirement:
“Be able to run its own varying QoS profiles without service provider interaction.”
This clearly favors dark fiber solutions (CWDM and DWDM), as these give full Layer 1 control to the customer, allowing complete freedom in managing QoS, traffic engineering, and prioritization internally.
Among the two dark fiber options, CWDM over dark fiber is the most cost-effective choice for one year at $275,000.
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Therefore, final correct answer:
