Networking

Good cable management is essential to keep the fiber cables in acceptable condition and ensuring transmission performance with high-density cabling. A 1U detachable horizontal panel is an amazing part in cable management due to its multiple choices for application. This article will introduce the structure of a 1U detachable cable management panel and its diverse applications in network installation. Structure of the 1U Detachable Cable Management Panel This 1U detachable horizontal cable management panel consists of four parts that are held together by screws and can be removed by tools. They are illustrated in the following figure, including horizontal laser bar, horizontal laser panel, D-rings and 1U patch panel. Multiple Application Choices of the Detachable Cable Management Panel This 1U detachable horizontal cable management panel can be used to manage cables for different active or passive network devices because they can be assembled randomly to meet your needs. Here...

Commonly, QSFP+ transceiver designed with LC interface works with single-mode fiber for long distance application, while QSFP+ transceiver with MTP/MPO interface is used over multimode fiber for short distance transmission. For instance, 40GBASE-ER4 QSFP+ is designed with LC duplex interface, and it supports maximum transmission length of 40 km over single-mode LC duplex fiber; 40GBASE-SR4 QSFP+ with MTP/MPO interface supports a transmission distance no more than 150m over multimode fiber. However, in order to meet user’s diverse needs in real applications, some 40G transceivers are designed not following this rule, like 40GBASE-PLRL4 (parallel LR4 Lite). This transceiver is with MTP/MPO interface design but is used over single-mode fiber for long distance transmission. This article will introduce the MTP/MPO specifications for this transceiver and its deployment cases. MTP Specifications for 40GBASE-PLRL4 QSFP+ QSFP-40G-PLRL4 transceiver uses M...

Pre-terminated fiber cabling has become a favorable choice for today’s high speed networks in data centers as this technology enables high bandwidth, high port density, easy management, future data rates migration and security monitoring. And modular system allows for rapid deployment of high density data center infrastructure as well as improved troubleshooting and reconfiguration during moves, adds and changes.  MTP cassette  is such a modular module. Usually it employs configuration of 12 fibers or 24 fibers, containing MTP adapter, LC/SC adapter, MTP-LC or MTP-SC patch cable etc, of which MTP-LC cassette is more widely used. As an assembly of the high density MTP/MPO pre-terminated fiber devices, it is dominant in high-density data centers for its reliable interface, optimized performance and minimized rack space. There are commonly three types of MTP cassettes available in market, including MTP LGX cassette,  MTP HD cassette  and  MTP TAP cassette . This a...

In order to get a bigger share of the market. Transceiver vendors are challenged in how to differentiate their optical transceiver designs and give the products conform to common form factors. To understand the importance of transceiver differentiation, it is worth reviewing the purpose of  multi-source agreement (MSA)  transceiver form factors. Common form factors arose so that optical equipment makers could avoid developing their own interfaces or being locked into a supplier’s proprietary design. Judged in those terms, MSAs have been a roaring success. Equipment makers can now buy optical int erfaces from several sources, all battling for the design win. MSAs have also triggered a near-decade of innovation, resulting in form factors from the 300-pin large form factor transponder MSA to the pluggable SFP+, less than a 60th its size. But MSAs, with their dictated size and electrical interfaces, are earmarked for specific secto...

In the past days, I have talked many about the Ethernet. Actually, there are many other networking protocols used in data transports. Fibre Channel (FC), my topic today, is one of them. Fibre Channel is a set of standard that define a high performance data transport connection technology. It is developed to satisfy the increasing demands for high-speed, high-volume data transfers in storage and network services. So, how does Fibre Channel work to achieve these applications? Physical Components Fibre Channel carries data over many types of electrical and optical cable. To choose the type of overall network interconnection is crucial. The decision usually depends on the distances between the Fibre Channel devices being connected. Generally, copper cabling is cheaper and performs as well as fiber optic cabling when the distance between devices is less than 2.9 meters. But to get higher speed and for longer distance, fiber optic cabling with single-mode or multimode option is the idea...

During data center upgrading or migration to higher data rate like 40G/100G, the network designer is always pursuing for flexibility. This is because devices or cabling components with great flexibility can not only decrease the cost for upgrading, but also provide more possibilities for the data center in the future. Switch has always been the most important device data center. Thus, a flexible switch should support a variety of transmission media and data rates, which could have significant positive influence during data center upgrading on cabling and costs. IBM G8264 switch is such a switch that is specially designed for data center, which is suggested to be used at layer 2 or layer 3, providing non-blocking line-rate, high-bandwidth switching, filtering, and traffic queuing without delaying data. However, to make full use of these switches, you should select proper connection components and cabling plans. This post will take IBM G8264 switch as an example to illustrate how to tak...

As data centers networks are shifting from 10G to 40G and beyond, it is necessary to seek ideal ways to connect 40G high speed switches populated with higher rate transceivers QSFP+, and to connect 40G switch to existing 10G elements populated with SFP+ modules. There are different approaches to connect 40G switches, or to connect 40G switch to 10G switch. However, by using MTP-8 solution, the simplest way to achieve direct 40G connectivity has been proved feasible and favorable in real applications. This article will introduce the deployment of MTP trunk cable in 40G to 40G connection, and MTP harness cable in 10G to 40G connection. Basis of MTP Trunk and Harness Cable MTP trunk cable  has MTP connectors terminated on both ends of the fiber optic cable. It is often used to connect MTP port modules for high density backbone cabling in data centers and other high dense degree environments. Currently, most of the MTP trunk cables for high data rate like 40G and 100G are still 12...

UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair) cables are widely used in most networks of the computer and telecommunications industry, as Ethernet cables or telephone wires. This tutorial aims to describe the knowledge of UTP cabling. UTP Cables & Cabling Characteristics The quality of UTP cables varies from telephone-grade wire to extremely high-speed cable. Most UTP cables used in structured cabling systems today are comprised of carefully twisted pairs of solid copper wire inside the insulated jacket, providing high bandwidth, low attenuation and crosstalk. Several categories of UTP cables are now available in the market. Among them, categories 5e and 6 UTP cables are the most popular types of UTP cabling in today’s networks. For UTP cabling, there are some characteristics, as shown in the following table. Characteristic Value Maximum Cable Length 100 meters Bandwidth Up to 1000 Mbps Bend Radius Minimum four times the cable diameter or 1 inch Installation & Maintenance Easy to ...

The emergence of DWDM is one of the most recent and important phenomena in the development of fiber optic transmission technology. This tutorial will introduce the fundamentals of DWDM technology, such as the components, optical amplifiers used in DWDM system, etc. Components and Operation DWDM is a core technology in an optical transport network. The essential components of DWDM can be classified by their place in the system. On the transmit side, there are lasers with precise, and stable wavelengths. On the link, there is optical fiber that exhibits low loss and transmission performance in the relevant wavelength spectra, in addition to flat-gain optical amplifiers to boost the signal on longer spans. On the receive side, there are photodetectors and demultiplexers using thin film filters or diffractive elements. Besides these components, optical add/drop multiplexers and optical cross-connect components may be used. The main job of optical fibers is to guide lightwaves with a...