Without Ethernet our networked world would cease to exist. It’s the ubiquitous standard for local area networks. The internet is probably Ethernet’s greatest triumph. Practically every server that delivers content to the internet is networked via Ethernet. Without Ethernet development the internet will choke. Society is moving to a new level of interconnectedness that’s built solidly upon the Ethernet ecosystem. That’s why Ethernet is developing fast.
Ethernet displaces proprietary field buses. As Ethernet displaces proprietary field buses to facilitate the operation of the digital factory. Ethernet switches are the ubiquitous building block of any intelligent network. Ethernet has also become the de facto networking technology in industrial automation even in mission-critical local networks. Modern Ethernet switches have added significant new functionality to Ethernet while decreasing port prices. Ethernet for Vehicles also becomes reality largely to serve the expected boom of camera-based applications in cars.
Operators’ growth will increasingly depend on their having a cloud computing strategy, an approach for the high-growth IT service market and a clear value proposition for the enterprise market. Data center technologies will be hot topic. 10GBase-T Technology will become technically and economically feasible interface option on data center servers. 10GBase-T Technology allows you to use RJ45 connectors and unshielded twisted pair cabling to provide 10Mbps, 100Mbps, 1Gbps, and 10Gbps data transmission, while being backward-compatible with prior generations.
40/100 Gbit/s Ethernet will be a hot topic. Carriers and datacenters have been clamoring for the technology to expand their core backbone networks. 2012–A Return to Normalcy and Pragmatic, Power Conscious 100G article mentions that in 2010 and 2011, the industry saw the first real roll-outs of 100G transport solutions based on Coherent Detection and FPGA-based Framers. In 2012 we’ll start to see 100G taking a bigger place in the build out of new and existing networks around the world. The initial deployments of 100G are clearly too costly and too power hungry to be widely deployed as the primary transport technology, so optical transport marketplace will move to much lower power and lower cost Direct Detection optical transport solutions. The average WDM link for 10G is dissipating about 3.5W per optical module, the average WDM link per 100G is dissipating about about 100W.
The Ethernet Alliance is thinking fast article tells that terabit Ethernet speeds are round the corner. At a time when the networking world is thinking practical thoughts about 40GbE and 100GbE, it is obvious to Ethernet technologists that, given the rapid data growth we are seeing, these speeds are not enough. The Ethernet Alliance (AT&T, Brocade, Cisco, Dell, NetApp, QLogic and many others) is dedicated to the expansion of the Ethernet ecosystem that makes this networked world work.
Cisco’s Visual Networking Index predicts that in 2015, we’ll see about a zettabyte of information running across the internet. That’s about a billion terabytes. The networking world is entering the ZB era. The storage world is already there, according to IDC’s Digital Universe Study.
Quotations from The Ethernet Alliance is thinking fast article:
“We’re going to need more links at higher speed and we’re expecting 400GbE or Terabit Ethernet to be next.”
“Parallel optics will be stepping stones to tomorrow’s generation of Ethernet speeds.”
A few years ago, 100GbE would have seemed like fantasy. Today it is becoming reality.
Terabit Ethernet will surely go the same route, from technology dream through standardisation and production to everyday reality.
Some of my other related blog posts:
News on very fast Ethernet standards
Ethernet for Vehicles
Ethernet networks for telecom operators
10GBase-T Technology
High power PoE and HDBaseT
42 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
Spain tests live 400G fiber-optic network links
Multiple newspapers in Spain report that Telefónica España has tested DWDM channel speeds of 400 Gbps on a live fiber-optic network. The tests were carried out to check the feasibility of using 400-Gbps channels on systems already carrying live customer traffic, and to demonstrate that Telefónica’s network will be able to support very high-speed traffic needs in the future. However, the reports say the operator doesn’t anticipate installing such links on a commercial basis until 2013 at the earliest.
Source: http://www.cablinginstall.com/index/display/article-display.articles.cabling-installation-maintenance.news.connectivity-technologies.fiber-optic-connectors.2012.january.spain-tests_live_400g.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
“For 2015, we expect the bandwidth that needs to be supported to be 10 times what it was in 2010, and in 2020, 100 times what it was in 2010,” commented John D’Ambrosia, chair of the IEE’s new Higher-Speed Ethernet Consensus group that will lay the groundwork for the actual standard. A major component of that group’s work will be to determine whether 400 Gbps or 1 Tbps is a better approach, said D’Ambrosia.
Source: http://www.cablinginstall.com/index/display/article-display/7476998172/articles/cabling-installation-maintenance/news/cabling-standards/ieee/2012/august/ethernet-bandwidth.html?cmpid=EnlContractorSeptember52012
Tomi Engdahl says:
IEEE approves updated 802.3 Ethernet standard
http://www.cablinginstall.com/index/display/article-display/3009540302/articles/cabling-installation-maintenance/news/cabling-standards/ieee/2012/september/ieee-approves_updated.html?cmpid=EnlCIMSeptember102012
The IEEE has officially approved the IEEE 802.3-2012 “Standard for Ethernet,” which defines wired connectivity for Ethernet local area, access, and metropolitan area networks. The new IEEE 802.3 revision approved by the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA) incorporates various technical updates and enhancements and consolidates a host of amendments to the base standard that were approved since IEEE 802.3’s last full revision, in 2008.
The updated to IEEE 802.3 aim to help Ethernet address additional media types, bandwidth speeds, and protocols. Amendments incorporated into IEEE 802.3-2012 cover 10-Gbps Ethernet Passive Optical Networks (EPONs), energy efficiency, enhanced support for loss-sensitive applications and time synchronization (the latter is particularly important in applications where Ethernet is replacing SONET/SDH, such as mobile backhaul), and extension to 40- and 100-Gbps speeds while maintaining compatibility with previously installed IEEE 802.3 interfaces.
Tomi Engdahl says:
IEEE forms study group to explore next-generation 802.3 BASE-T
http://www.cablinginstall.com/index/display/article-display/4788159467/articles/cabling-installation-maintenance/news/cabling-standards/ieee/2012/july/ieee-forms_study_group.html
“As high-density 10GBASE-T switches become more common in data center and enterprise environments, the approval of this study group to review the next-generation BASE-T technology is timely,” said a representative for IEEE. “A next-generation BASE-T technology will complement the rich and diverse higher-speed Ethernet interfaces, ensuring that next-generation switch and server application requirements are addressed.”
“Because of the ability of current IEEE 802.3 BASE-T technologies to interoperate with legacy versions via the standard’s ‘autonegotiation’ feature and thereby support cost-effective infrastructure upgrades, extension to 40 Gigabit Ethernet and higher speeds will be required in coming years,” comments Bill Woodruff, chair of the IEEE 802.3 Next-Generation BASE-T Study Group and associate product line director with Broadcom.
For more information, please visit
http://www.ieee802.org/3/NGBASET
Tomi Engdahl says:
Pondering the future for balanced twisted-pair cabling
http://www.cablinginstall.com/index/display/article-display/8019723145/articles/cabling-installation-maintenance/news/cabling-standards/ieee/2012/september/white-paper_ponders.html
A recent white paper from CommScope takes on the current discussion within the cabling industry with regard to the future of balanced cabling for data rates beyond 10 Gbit/sec. The document notes that fiber cabling advocates are (happily) predicting the demise of balanced cabling, while some advocates of Category 7/Class F and Category 7A/Class FA balanced (twisted-pair) cabling are claiming to guarantee support for 40 Gbit/sec. The recent announcement by IEEE 802.3 approving the development of a Next Generation BASE-T (NGBASE-T) application over balanced cabling stands to reignite this discussion, asserts CommScope. The white paper attempts to predict the cabling requirements for NGBASE-T applications.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Terabit Ethernet is Dead, for Now
http://slashdot.org/topic/datacenter/terabit-ethernet-is-dead-for-now/
A straw poll of the IEEE’s high-speed Ethernet group finds that 400-Gbits/s is almost unanimously preferred.
The IEEE 802.3 Industry Connections Higher Speed Ethernet Consensus group met this week in Geneva, Switzerland, with attendees concluding—almost to a man—that 400 Gbits/s should be the next step in the evolution of Ethernet. A straw poll at its conclusion found that 61 of the 62 attendees that voted supported 400 Gbits/s as the basis for the near term “call for interest,” or CFI.
The bandwidth call to arms was sounded by a July report by the IEEE, which concluded that, if current trends continue, networks will need to support capacity requirements of 1 terabit per second in 2015 and 10 terabits per second by 2020. In 2015 there will be nearly 15 billion fixed and mobile-networked devices and machine-to-machine connections.
The report goes on to predict that, from 2010 to 2015, global IP traffic will experience a fourfold increase from 20 exabytes per month in 2010 to 81 exabytes per month in 2015, a 32 percent CAGR. Storage growth is expected to grow to 7910 exabytes in 2015, with over half of it accessed via Ethernet. Of course, one of the first places the new, faster Ethernet links will occur will be in the data center.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tips & Trends: 10GBASE-T adoption status and forecast
9/27/2012 1:57 PM EDT
http://www.eetimes.com/design/communications-design/4397286/Tips—Trends–10GBASE-T-adoption-status-and-forecast?Ecosystem=communications-design
10GBASE-T is the standard technology that enables 10 Gigabit Ethernet operations over balanced twisted-pair copper, including Category 6A unshielded and shielded cabling. 10GBASE-T provides great flexibility in network design due to its 100-meter reach capability, and also provides the requisite backward compatibility that allows most end users to transparently upgrade from existing 100/1000-Mbps networks.
New 10GBASE-T physical layers allow lower-cost and lower-power high-density designs. The latency of the 10GBASE-T PHY has also been improved and allows the building of 10GBASE-T networks to support most of today’s applications.
10GBASE-T equipment from multiple vendors is available in the marketplace
The article is a review of progress in removing the technical and economic barriers that prevented broad 10GBASE-T deployment.
With Intel’s March 2012 launch of its Romley generation server platforms with 10GBASE-T LOM connectivity, the 10GBASE-T interconnect market is now seeing an explosive uptick. Intel’s Romley platform is also driving the adoption of 10GbE LOMs as the I/O subsystem will need to catch up to the improved processors.
The cost of 10GBASE-T PHYs in terms of Gbps/port has been dramatically declining and is down approximately 70 percent since 2008, with further decline forecasts for the next year.
PHYs are following Moore’s Law, and new processes have significantly decreased both cost and power use, and subsequent process improvements will continue to enhance these decreases.
A range of products are available today that take advantage of this new technology, and the coming year promises to deliver additional offerings across the server, switch, adapter, and networking appliance, and storage vendor ecosystem. Therefore, vendors should start planning now to integrate 10 Gigabit Ethernet and 10GBASE-T into their next-generation designs.
The 10GBASE-T ecosystem continues to grow and offer a robust number of options in the marketplace
Tomi Engdahl says:
Network boffins say Terabit Ethernet is TOO FAST
Sticking to 400Gb for now
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/28/terabit_ethernet_too_fast/
The IEEE consensus group in charge of developing future networking standards has some words for anyone who was hoping to see Terabit Ethernet in the next few years: not so fast.
Don’t expect to see a 400Gb Ethernet port on your laptop any time soon, though – or even a port running the current maximum of 100Gb/sec, for that matter. Such speeds simply aren’t necessary for individual PCs, or even most servers.
The only practical way to achieve such stratospheric bandwidth rates is through optical links – and therein lies the problem, because today’s top-speed networks are already pushing the envelope of how fast we can push data through fiber optic cable.
According to a presentation given at the IEEE meeting by Kai Cui and Peter Stassar of Huawei, the current 100Gb Ethernet technology has yet to reach a broad market, largely owing to its high cost. Terabit Ethernet would be even more expensive
“The technology needed to implement advanced modulation formats is currently very far from technical and economic feasibility,” Cui and Stassar conclude. “This would suggest that on the short term 1Tb/s would be a too high rate from an engineering perspective and it is unlikely to justify the major R&D cost needed to develop the required technology platform.”
On the other hand, 400Gb Ethernet might just be feasible.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why invest in 10-Gigabit Ethernet cabling?
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/09/why-invest-in-10-gigabit.html
the paper also presents 11 recommendations for cabling installers in answer to the question, “Why [should enterprises] invest in 10-Gigabit cabling now?”
Tomi Engdahl says:
White paper ponders future for balanced twisted-pair cabling
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/09/white-paper-ponders.html
A recent white paper from CommScope takes on the current discussion within the cabling industry with regard to the future of balanced cabling for data rates beyond 10 Gbit/sec. The document notes that fiber cabling advocates are (happily) predicting the demise of balanced cabling, while some advocates of Category 7/Class F and Category 7A/Class FA balanced (twisted-pair) cabling are claiming to guarantee support for 40 Gbit/sec.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Advanced in optical communications:
PIC-based 500 Gbps coherent modem thwarts real-time PMD
http://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/2012/09/pic-infinera-verizon-thwarts-pmd.html
IEEE Journal of Lightwave Technology and Verizon report a record-breaking achievement for real-time polarization mode dispersion (PMD) performance using Infinera’s coherent optical transmission system based on 500 Gigabit per second (Gbps or Gb/s) photonic integrated circuits (PICs).
“Our team, with Verizon, was able to demonstrate a coherent optical transmission that can handle large PMD values with our commercially available 500 Gb/s PIC,”
“System vendors in the industry today are having a difficult time achieving this. Not all coherent systems are the same.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
A white paper authored by cable manufacturer C&M Corporation discusses what it takes for a cable to support Gigabit Ethernet within industrial networks. “Adapting Gigabit Ethernet For The Industrial Manufacturing Environment” discusses construction differences between standard GigE and the performance specifications required for similar cables used in the manufacturing environment, C&M says. The paper also looks at other applications for cables with ruggedized designs.
Adapting Gigabit Ethernet For The Industrial Manufacturing Environment
http://www.cmcorporation.com/Customized/uploads/Images/ImageLibrary/Industrial%20Gigabit%20Ethernet.pdf
Tomi Engdahl says:
Comparison: Splice-on vs. mechanical splice fiber-optic connectors
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/splice-on-vs-mechanical-splice-fo-connectors.html
A new video from Fiber Optics For Sale Co. (FO4SALE.com) compares splice-on vs. mechanical splice fiber-optic connectors. The video thoroughly describes the differences between the two connector types, especially in the areas of mechanical design and labor and tools costs. Reliability concerns are also addressed.
Further, “the main reason that many installers still [elect to] stay with mechanical splice connectors” — according to Colin Yao, the discussion’s presenter — is also revealed.
Comparison betweehn Splice-On and Mechanical Splice Fiber Optic Connectors
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRDbvtszsVI&feature=share&list=UUyU79xPJUNKTyUL-Xcc7Eug
Tomi Engdahl says:
White paper drills down on 40-, 100-GbE parallel optics
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/commscope-parallel-optics-white-paper.html
“New parallel optics applications are upon us,” states the document’s introduction. “The publication of the IEEE 802.3ba standard in the summer of 2010 defined 40 Gb/s and 100Gb/s Ethernet on OM3 and OM4 cabling using parallel fibers. This standard defines one multimode interface for 40GE and three for 100GE.”
The introduction continues, “The existing array connectivity methods in the ANSI/TIA-568-C structured cabling standard address the 40GE interface and two of the 100GE interfaces. The third 100GE interface, called option A, is being delivered to the market in two transceiver forms, the CFP and CXP. It differs from the other two in that it is the first application to define an interface that uses one 24-fiber MPO connection having two rows of twelve fibers in a single plug.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Corning provides fiber-optic network cabling, connectivity for final Presidential debate
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/corning-provides-fiberoptics-for-presidential-debate.html
Corning Cable Systems (NYSE: GLW) is providing the fiber-optic network cabling and connectivity for the final 2012 Presidential debate on October 22 at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla. To meet increased demand for network bandwidth, Corning has installed its LANscape Solutions line.
The new fiber-optic network provided will remain after the debate for the university to use. The network includes the company’s FREEDM One indoor/outdoor fiber-optic cable, newly designed closet connector housings, as well as the UniCam field-installable no-epoxy/no-polish connectors, and the UniCam connector installation toolkit.
“This will permit us to run network equipment at 10GB speed and allow us to take advantage of high-speed networking equipment. We are really excited that this same key infrastructure will get re-used by our students after the debate.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
20 practical cabling tips for network engineers
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/practical-cabling-tips.html
Ethereal Mind, an online journal of “data networking design, analysis and review,” recently published its no-nonsense reckoning of the “top 20 practical cabling tips for network engineers.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Zero-failover Ethernet switches target industrial-grade security networking
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/belden-hirschmann-ethernet-switches-suit-security-networking.html
Belden (NYSE: BDC) has introduced its Hirschmann-brand RSP Ethernet switches, designed to withstand the toughest environmental conditions and ensure high network availability. The RSP switch series supports new IEC-standard redundancy protocols, which makes these industrial data networking products ideal for environments such as electricity distribution, mechanical engineering, production or security, where uninterrupted data communications in environments are a requirement.
Specifically, the RSP switches support the parallel redundancy protocol (PRP) and high-availability seamless redundancy (HSR), which provide failover times of 0ms. These protocols are based on the IEC62439 standard. They also offer extensive security functions that include authentication, RADIUS support, role based access, port security, SSHv2, HTTPS and SFTP. They provide precision time synchronization in accordance with IEEE 1588v2 to comply with stringent real-time requirements of equipment such as sensors, drives and measuring equipment.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Parallel Redundancy Protocol (PRP) is a data communication network standardized by the International Electrotechnical Commission as IEC 62439-3 Clause 4. It allows systems to overcome any single network failure without affecting the data transmission.
It can be applied to most Industrial Ethernet applications since it is independent of the protocols and provides seamless failover.
Under PRP, each network node has two Ethernet ports attached to two different local area networks of arbitrary, but similar topology.
The two LANs are completely separated and are assumed to be fail-independent. A source node sends simultaneously two copies of a frame, one over each port. The two frames travel through their respective LANs until they reach a destination node, in the fault-free case, with a certain time skew. The destination node accepts the first frame of a pair and discards the second, taking advantage of a sequence number in each frame that is incremented for each frame sent.
Therefore, as long as one LAN is operational, the destination always receives one frame. This protocol provides a zero-time recovery and allows to check the redundancy continuously to detect lurking failures.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_Redundancy_Protocol
Tomi Engdahl says:
VIDEO: Is your company ready for Ethernet?
http://www.edn.com/education-training/edntv?bclid=1032340888&bctid=1897092458001&cid=EM_EDNMicro
Here are some tips if you think to add Ethernet to your next Embedded design.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Trick #1: Proprietary cabling for 10G
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/halloween-report-slideshow-01.html
In late 2011 blogger Howard Marks brought to light the fact that some 10G switches function properly only with proprietary cabling attached to them—typically the switch manufacturer’s own branded cabling. That can be viewed as a pretty dirty trick.
Tomi Engdahl says:
White paper explains 40/100-GbE for virtualized data center, campus networks
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/commscope-virtualized-data-center-white-paper.html
A new white paper from CommScope contends that 40/100 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) infrastructure is rapidly gaining traction as a key foundation for building the next generation of virtualized data center and campus environments
Tomi Engdahl says:
MPO connectors are ready for prime time
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/print/volume-18/issue-9/features/mpo-connectors-are-ready-for-prime-time.html
As the industry deploys 40-Gbit/sec optical networks and moves ahead to 100-Gbit/sec data rates, service providers and data center managers may question whether the multi-fiber push-on (MPO) connector can perform reliably at those speeds.
They saw the first-generation MPO as a “weak link” in optical networking, primarily because of its higher optical loss, lack of durability mechanically in more-demanding applications and limited environmental performance.
ADC has gone one step further by combining its radically improved MPO connector with a cable assembly containing a small (3-mm) cable with reduced bend radius fiber (RBRF). The result is a next-generation MPO which, in both laboratory tests and in the field, proves it can satisfy–and in a number of cases exceed–the Telcordia GR-326 requirements for single-fiber connectors.
Capturing a share of the large MDU market is crucial to service providers’ efforts to satisfy the growing demand for fiber-based bandwidth and thereby improve their competitive positions and strengthen their margins. Yet the MDU market segment, with its variety of architectures and its installation time and cost pressures, presents service providers with challenges.
MPO connectors now deliver the optical, mechanical and environmental performance that data center managers and service providers need.
Yes, you can field-terminate MPO connectors
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/mpo-field-termination.html?cmpid=EnlConnectNovember82012
Tomi Engdahl says:
Polishing fiber connectors: Move back to move forward
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/print/volume-20/issue-11/features/polishing-fiber-connectors-move-back-to-move-forward.html
Making the case for human hands rather than machines as the preferred fiber-polishing mechanisms.
Knowing how much to polish at each step, and when to stop, is critical for a low-loss, low-back-reflection connector. It is ridiculous to expect that a machine, on which we set a timer, can do this better than it can be done by hand. Multi-connector polishing machines have their place for high-production facilities, and a price is paid in loss and back reflection. It is not possible to polish 12 or 24, or more, connectors together without having some difference in reflection and loss. For small quantities of connectors, I question their need or cost-effectiveness.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Optical tap module reduces link loss, occupies zero U
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/pretium-edge-optical-tap.html
The Pretium Edge Tap Module from Corning Cable Systems enables passive optical tapping in data centers and storage area networks in a footprint that occupies zero U of rack space because it is integrated into the structured cabling system’s interconnect or crossconnect hardware.
The manufacturer says, “Other passive optical tap devices are separate components that take up rack space, introduce additional loss and limit network-design options. The Pretium Edge Tap Module … combines the functionality of an interconnect, crossconnect and optical tap in one structured cabling module.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Modular plugs stagger pins for conductor isolation
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/hi-lo-modular-plugs.html
Category 5e and Category 6 modular plugs from Platinum Tools feature a staggered pin design the company calls Hi-Lo, which “isolates each conductor at the point of termination,” according to product manager John Phillips. “This allows air, the world’s best insulator, to surround each conductor and thus eliminate NEXT, FEXT and AXT,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Comparison: Splice-on vs. mechanical splice fiber-optic connectors
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/splice-on-vs-mechanical-splice-fo-connectors.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Video demos microscopic visual inspection of fiber-optic connectors
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/fo-connector-visual-inspection.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
EU standardises hamtagonistic powerline network tech
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/11/14/plt_standard/
The second vote on EN50561-1, the EU standard for running Ethernet over mains circuits, has passed, putting the standard on the books, much to the annoyance of the UK amateur radio operator community.
EN50561-1 requires that all Powerline Telecommunication (PLT) kit, which carries networking signals over the mains electrical wires, must avoid the amateur radio frequencies; switch off when not in use; and keep transmission power to a minimum. All powerline networking kit sold in Europe will have to conform to it within the next three years, though it clearly doesn’t go far enough for some.
UK hams, in the body of the Radio Society of Great Britain, have long opposed the standard, arguing that existing requirements that no device generate undue radio interference should be applied to PLT devices, which would make the vast majority of those in use today illegal.
Part of the problem with PLT interference is that no one knows how widespread it is. Existing systems generate interference which pushes up into the AM/FM and even DAB radio bands, and with harmonics could extend down into the ADSL+ frequencies. The latter are only used over phone lines, but as such lines often run alongside mains cables there is potential for interference there too.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Leviton launches small business network design tool
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/leviton-smb-network-design-tool.html
Access Leviton’s Small Business Network Design Tool.
http://www.leviton.com/OA_HTML/SectionDisplay.jsp?section=52078&minisite=10251
Tomi Engdahl says:
White paper: GPON vs. EPON
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/commscope-gpon-vs-epon.html
A new technical white paper from CommScope offers a detailed comparison of GPON and EPON systems. The paper notes that Passive Optical Networking (PON) technology has been available since the mid 1990s; and that significant development activities occurred during the early 2000s to develop Gigabit-rate solutions designed to deliver Ethernet and IP services. Two very different solutions were developed by the IEEE and ITU-T, i.e. EPON and GPON, respectively.
The analysis states that, while general concepts for both systems are the same (PON operation, ODN framework, wavelength plan, and application), their operation is very different, as are the features and services supported by each. EPON is defined as a native Ethernet solution that leverages the features, compatibility and performance of the Ethernet protocol; while GPON is seen leveraging the techniques of SONET/SDH and GFP (Generic Framing Protocol) to transport Ethernet.
Tomi Engdahl says:
White paper: How to measure Ethernet switch latency
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/ethernet-switch-latency.html
“While many people understand the definition of latency, what some do not know is that measuring latency on a switch is not an exact science,” states the document’s introduction.
The discussion contends that “it is important to understand how latency can be measured”
Tomi Engdahl says:
White paper: GPON vs. EPON
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/commscope-gpon-vs-epon.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Reduced-diameter Category 6 cables
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/reduced-diameter-cat6.html
Comtran Cable recently announced that because of improved geometric engineering, the company has been able to reduce the size of two of its highest-performing unshielded twisted-pair cables. Comtran’s Category 6 cable as well as its enhanced Category 6 cable (which it dubs Cat 6e and tests to 550 MHz) have been reduced in outside diameter.
The company explains: “The improved design has allowed Comtran to remove the tape separator in the Cat 6 cable completely, as well as replace the crossweb from the Cat 6e 550MHz cable with a small separator tape.”
The plenum (CMP) rated Category 6 cable now has an outside diameter of 0.190 inches and the riser (CMR) rated Category 6 has a 0.200-inch OD
Tomi Engdahl says:
TIA committee seeking input on link lengths
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/tia-survey.html?cmpid=EnlCIMDecember32012
The Telecommunications Industry Association’s (TIA) TR-42.7 Telecommunications Copper Cabling Systems Subcommittee is seeking input from industry professionals on the planned lengths of specific data center links. The subcommittee will use the data collected in the development of next-generation cabling and application standards.
As we have reported, TR-42.7 recently decided to move forward with a set of Category 8 specifications. From all indications, a Category 8 twisted-pair cabling system will support 40GBase-T links in data center environments. It also is almost assured that the link lengths to which Category 8 will support 40GBase-T will be shorter than 100 meters.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Extreme Networks boosts 40-, 100-GbE data center switch modules
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/extreme-networks-40100-gbe-modules.html
The company says its 100-/40-GbE XL switch modules help to scale networks for a variety of highly virtualized multi-tenant cloud data centers, Internet Exchange Points (IXPs), Virtual Machines (VMs) and data center core deployments. The capability to scale to a million route entries, addresses and flows, and to logically segment multi-tenant networks with L2 broadcast domains are critical elements in building next-generation data center networks, contends the company.
Leveraging its open, modular ExtremeXOS operating system, the company has concurrently announced support of two Software Defined Networking (SDN) applications.
Tomi Engdahl says:
CERN data centers’ superfast particles get superfast 100G transmission
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/11/cern-100g-deutsche-telekom.html
As reported by Cabling Installation & Maintenance’s sister site, Lightwave, Germany’s Deutsche Telekom says it has linked research and education sites in Geneva and Budapest with a high-speed, 100G data connection. The new Ethernet link connects the CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) data center in Geneva and a newly established, remote data center operated by Wigner Research Centre for Physics in the Hungarian capital of Budapest.
Deutsche Telekom began testing its 100-Gbps transmission services in 2010. T-Systems deployed a 100-Gbps link in Germany using gear from Alcatel-Lucent that same year.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Panduit, Avago partner to blast 40Gb/s over 550m multimode fiber reach
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/12/panduit-avago-40g-mmf.html
Using Panduit’s Signature Core fiber-optic cabling system with the Avago QSFP+ eSR4 pluggable, parallel fiber-optics modules, a reach of 550 meters is now guaranteed for 40 Gigabit Ethernet (40GbE) over multimode fiber links by Panduit.
“Avago introduced the 40 Gigabit Ethernet eSR4 modules to provide a migration path for data centers to upgrade from 10G to 40G Ethernet and span longer reaches,”
Avago’s QSFP+ eSR4 is a four-channel, pluggable, parallel, fiber-optic QSFP+ transceiver for 40GbE for extended reach applications
The module iintegrates four data lanes in each direction with each lane operating at 10.3125Gb/s, giving an aggregated bandwidth of 40Gb/s, and also can be used for high density 10 gigabit Ethernet applications.
The QSFP+ eSR4 modules are warranteed by Avago to 400m multimode fiber link distances based upon generic industry fiber standards. With Panduit’s Signature Core system, the reach of certain links has been measured to extend beyond 550 m.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Best Practices for Ensuring Polarity of Array-Based Fiber Optic Channels
http://www.panduit.com/stellent/groups/mpm-op/documents/whitepaper/cmscont_032945.pdf
Data centers are the central location for data interchange and are found in enterprises, government offices, schools, universities, hospitals, and other networked server farms.
The ease of turning nearly any location into an information interchange hub has been enabled by the development of array-based fiber optic cabling systems. Ribbon fiber cables, array-based fiber connectors, and packaged breakout assemblies (i.e., cassettes) provide modular small form factor connectivity and enable fast, reliable interconnection of fiber optic links in high-density data center environments.
Once the decision has been made to deploy array-based fiber connectivity, care must be taken to ensure the integrity of connections between the transmitting optical light source and the receiving photo detector.
The objective of polarity is simple: provide transmit-to-receive connections across the entire fiber optic system in a consistent, standards-based manner.
Ensuring polarity of array-based systems requires careful planning. The end-user is best served by network designs that follow a single method that maintains polarity now over serial fiber channels and can migrate to
parallel optics in support of very high data rates (40-100+ Gb/s) in the future.
This paper describes recently published industry guidelines that address polarity across array-based fiber systems, and discusses the advantages and drawbacks of the three TIA/EIA recommended methods.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Looking beyond 100G toward 400G standardization
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/12/fujitsu-400g.html
Now that 100G optical units are entering volume deployment, 400G is very clearly on the horizon. As recently reported here, the push is now officially “on” for 400-Gigabit Ethernet standard. Additionally, a new white paper from Fujitsu US summarizes the progress and direction of efforts to develop and implement this next generation of high-speed optical networking technology.
“The industry is trying to avoid the mistakes made with 40G optics, which lacked any industry standards,” notes Fujitsu. “As a result, an alphabet soup of five or six different 40G modulation techniques were developed by vendors, resulting in a very fractured 40G component industry, low component volumes, lack of compatible dual sources for 40G components, and few cost reductions or volume efficiencies. Fortunately, these mistakes were avoided at 100G through a common industry approach, standardized within the OIF.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Siemens Adds Ethernet to Sinamics Drives to Enable Single-Plant Network
http://www.designnews.com/document.asp?doc_id=257153&cid=NL_Newsletters+-+DN+Daily
Siemens has bolstered its Sinamics S120 modular drives system with support for industrial Ethernet protocols, providing networking capability that will allow manufacturers to create a single network for factories and plants.
The Sinamics drive family now offers direct connectivity to both Profinet and Ethernet/IP, the two main protocols being used in the manufacturing industry to connect systems and devices across factories and plants, according to Siemens.
Aftermath: Telecom 2012 « Tomi Engdahl’s ePanorama blog says:
[...] + 10GBase-T Technology has become feasible for data centers. [...]
Oliver Mayo says:
Invaluable piece – I was fascinated by the information . Does anyone know if I could possibly get a fillable Copyright PTO/SB/16 version to work with ?