It’s always interesting (and dangerous) to lay out some predictions for the future of technology, so here are a few visions:
The exponential growth of broadband data is driving wireless (and wired) communications systems to more effectively use existing bandwidth. Mobile data traffic continues to grow, driven both by increased smartphone subscriptions and a continued increase in average data volume per subscription, fueled primarily by more viewing of video content. Ericsson forecasts mobile video traffic to grow by around 50% annually through 2022, to account for nearly 75% of all mobile data traffic. Social networking is the second biggest data traffic type. To make effective use of the wireless channel, system operators are moving toward massive-MIMO, multi-antenna systems that transmit multiple wide-bandwidth data streams—geometrically adding to system complexity and power consumption. Total mobile data traffic is expected to grow at 45% CAGR to 2020.
5G cellular technology is still in development, and is far from ready in 2017. As international groups set 2020 deadline to agree on frequencies and standards for the new equipment, anything before that is pre-standard. Expect to see many 5G announcements that might not be what 5G will actually be when standard is ready. The boldest statement is that Nokia & KT plan 2017 launch of world’s first mobile 5G network in South Korea in 2017: commercial trial system to operate in the 28GHz band. Wireless spectrum above 5 GHz will generate solutions for a massive increase in bandwidth and also for a latency of less than 1 ms.
CableLabs is working toward standardization of an AP Coordination protocol to improve In-Home WiFi as one access point (AP) for WiFi often is not enough to allow for reliable connection and ubiquitous speed to multiple devices throughout a large home. The hope is that something will be seen mid-2017. A mesh AP network is a self-healing, self-forming, self-optimizing network of mesh access points (MAPs).
There will be more and more Gigabit Internet connections in 2017. Gigabit Internet is Accelerating on All Fronts. Until recently, FTTH has been the dominant technology for gigabit. Some of the common options available now include fiber-to-the-home (FTTH), DOCSIS 3.0 and 3.1 over cable’s HFC plant, G.Fast over telco DSL networks, 5G cellular, and fiber-to-the-building coupled with point-to-point wireless. AT&T recently launched its AT&T Fiber gigabit service. Cable’s DOCSIS 3.0 and 3.1 are cheaper and less disruptive than FTTH in that they do not require a rip-and-replace of the existing outside plant. DOCSIS 3.1, which has just begun to be deployed at scale, is designed to deliver up to 10 Gbps downstream Internet speeds over existing HFC networks (most deployments to date have featured 1 Gbps speeds). G.Fast is just beginning to come online with a few deployments (typically 500 meters or less distance at MDU). 5G cellular technology is still in development, and standards for it do not yet exist. Another promising wireless technology for delivering gigabit speeds is point-to-point millimeter wave, which uses spectrum between 30 GHz and 300 GHz.
There are also some trials for 10 Gbit/s: For example Altice USA (Euronext:ATC) announced plans to build a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network capable of delivering broadband speeds of up to 10 Gbps across its U.S. footprint. The five-year deployment plan is scheduled to begin in 2017.
Interest to use TV white space increases in 2017 in USA. The major factors driving the growth of the market include providing low-cost broadband to remote and non-line-of-sight regions. Rural Internet access market is expected to grow at a significant rate between 2016 and 2022. According to MarketsandMarkets, the global TV white space market was valued at $1.2 million in 2015 and is expected to reach approximately $53.1 million by 2022, at a CAGR of 74.30% during the forecast period.
The rapid growth of the internet and cloud computing has resulted in bandwidth requirements for data center network. This is in turn expected to increase the demand for optical interconnects in the next-generation data center networks.
Open Ethernet networking platforms will make a noticeable impact in 2017. The availability of full featured, high performance and cost effective open switching platforms combined with open network operating systems such as Cumulus Networks, Microsoft SoNIC, and OpenSwitch will finally see significant volume uptake in 2017.
Network becomes more and more software controlled in 2017.NFV and SDN Will Mature as Automated Networks will become Production systems. Over the next five years, nearly 60 percent of hyperscale facilities are expected to deploy SDN and/or NFV solutions. IoT will force SDN adoption into Campus Networks.
SDN implementations are increasingly taking a platform approach with plug and play support for any VNF, topology, and analytics that are instrumented and automated. Some companies are discovering the security benefits of SDN – virtual segmentation and automation. The importance of specific SDN protocols (OpenFlow, OVSDB, NetConf, etc.) will diminish as many universes of SDN/NFV will solidify into standard models. More vendors are opening up their SDN platforms to third-party VNFs. In Linux based systems eBPF and XDP are delivering flexibility, scale, security, and performance for a broad set of functions beyond networking without bypassing the kernel.
For year 2016 it was predicted that gigabit ethernet sales start to decline as the needle moving away from 1 Gigabit Ethernet towards faster standards (2.5 or 5.0 or 10Gbps; Nbase-T is basically underclocked 10Gbase-T running at 2.5 or 5.0Gbps instead of 10Gbps). I have not yet seen the result from this prediction, but that does not stop from making new ones. So I expect that 10GbE sales will peak in 2017 and start a steady decline after 2017 as it is starts being pushed aside by 25, 50, and 100GbE in data center applications. 25Gbit/s Ethernet is available now from all of the major server vendors. 25 can start to become the new 10 as it offers 2.5x the throughput and only a modest price premium over 10Gbit/s.
100G and 400G Ethernet will still have some implementation challenges in 2017. Data-center customers are demanding a steep downward trajectory in the cost of 100G pluggable transceivers, but existing 100G module multi-source agreements (MSAs) such as PSM4 and CWDM4 have limited capacity for cost reduction due to the cost of the fiber (PSM4) and the large number of components (both PSM4 and CWDM4). It seems that dual-lambda PAM4 and existing 100G Ethernet (100GE) solutions such as PSM4 and CWDM4 will not be able to achieve the overall cost reductions demanded by data-center customers. At OFC 2016, AppliedMicro showcased the world’s first 100G PAM4 single-wavelength solution for 100G and 400G Ethernet. We might be able to see see 400GE in the second half of 2017 or the early part of 2018.
As the shift to the cloud is accelerating in 2017, the traffic routed through cloud-based data centers is expected to quadruple in the next four years according to the results of the sixth annual Global Cloud Index published by Cisco. Public cloud is growing faster than private cloud. An estimated 68 percent of cloud workloads will be deployed in public cloud data centers by 2020, up from 49 percent in 2015. According to Cisco, hyperscale data centers will account for 47 percent of global server fleet and support 53 percent of all data center traffic by 2020.
The modular data center market has experienced a high growth and adoption rate in the last few years, and is anticipated to experience more of this trend in years to come. Those data centers are typically built using standard 20 ft. container module or standard 40 ft. container module. Modular data center market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 24.1% during period 2016 – 2025, to account for US$ 22.41 billion in 2025. Also in 2017 the first cracks will start to appear in Intel’s vaunted CPU dominance.
The future of network neutrality is unsure in 2017 as the Senate failed to reconfirm Democratic pro-net neutrality FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, portending new Trump era leadership and agenda Net neutrality faces extinction under Trump. Also one of Trump’s advisers on FCC, Mark Jamison, argued last month that the agency should only regulate radio spectrum licenses, scale back all other functions. When Chairman Tom Wheeler, the current head of the FCC, steps down, Republicans will hold a majority.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
Facebook open sources Open/R distributed networking software
https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/15/facebook-open-sources-open-r-distributed-networking-software/?utm_source=tcfbpage&sr_share=facebook
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Facebook open sources Open/R distributed networking software
Posted 1 hour ago by Ron Miller (@ron_miller)
Facebook is no stranger when it comes to open sourcing its computing knowledge. Over the years, it has consistently created software and hardware internally, then transferred that wisdom to the open source community to let them have it. Today, it announced it was open sourcing its modular network routing software called Open/R, as the tradition continues.
Facebook obviously has unique scale needs when it comes to running a network. It has billions of users doing real-time messaging and streaming content at a constant clip. As with so many things, Facebook found that running the network traffic using traditional protocols had its limits and it needed a new way to route traffic that didn’t rely on the protocols of the past,
“Open/R is a distributed networking application platform. It runs on different parts of the network. Instead of relying on protocols for networking routing, it gives us flexibility to program and control a large variety of modern networks,”
They are in fact working with other companies in this endeavor including Juniper and Arista networks
“This goes along with movement toward disaggregation of the network. If you open up the hardware and open up the software on top of it, it benefits everyone,” Baldonado said.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A mesh network spontaneously erupts in the US and helps connect Puerto Rico
https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/14/a-mesh-network-spontaneously-erupts-in-the-us-and-helps-connect-puerto-rico/?ncid=rss&utm_source=tcfbpage&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29&utm_content=FaceBook&sr_share=facebook
When goTenna put out their Mesh device earlier this year, I thought the off-grid communication gadgets would be great for an emergency kit or back-country hike. But it turns out that both I and goTenna underestimated how hungry people were for a resilient, user-powered mesh network: thousands of dedicated nodes now populate cities across the country, and volunteers are using them to get Puerto Rico back online after a devastating hurricane season.
https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/28/gotenna-mesh-keeps-people-connected-even-when-theyre-miles-apart-and-off-grid/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Components-and-packaging Design Center > How To Article
QSFP-DD pluggable modules boost data density
https://www.edn.com/design/components-and-packaging/4459022/QSFP-DD-pluggable-modules-boost-data-density?utm_content=bufferd645d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
The QSFP-DD (double density) connector technology will address the density, bandwidth, and thermal issues that arise from bandwidth demands coming first from mobile and IoT devices. Double density refers to the doubling of the number of high-speed electrical interfaces that the QSFP-DD module supports compared with a standard QSFP28 module.
High-speed, high-density pluggable I/O modules provide a highly scalable upgrade path. It all started when SFP pluggable modules ran at 1 Gbps. Then, QSFP optical transceivers added new configuration options and pushed density to aggregate speeds up to 16 Gbps, with four 4 Gbps lanes. QSFP+ takes this to 40 Gbps using four 10 Gbps lanes. Specifically designed for high-density data communications, widely used QSFP+ hot-pluggable transceivers integrate four transmit and four receive channels for greater port density and cost savings over buying higher quantities of traditional SFP+ products.
Next came QSFP28, with increased data rates ranging up to 28 Gbps on each of four lanes, making it popular in datacenter computing, switches, routers, and storage. Supporting next-generation 100 Gbps Ethernet and 100 Gbps InfiniBand Enhanced Data Rate applications
Now, double-density SFP (SFP-DD) is in the works for 400 Gbps Ethernet.
QSFP-DD connectors quadruple speeds
With 400 Gbps Ethernet, connectors can’t become bottlenecks. The missing link is a connector form factor that provides adequate density to support 256 differential lanes in a 1 RU box while managing thermal and signal integrity.
To achieve 400 Gbps, the interconnect industry is developing next-generation Quad Small Form Factor Pluggable Double Density (QSFP-DD) modules
The QSFP-DD specification defines a module, a stacked integrated cage/connector system, and a surface mount cage/connector system (Figure 1). The new form factor expands the standard QSFP four-lane interface by adding a row of contacts providing for an eight-lane electrical interface, each operating up to 25 Gbps with Non-Return-to-Zero (NRZ) modulation or 50 Gbps with PAM4.
QSFP-DD enables data rates up to 200 Gbps or 400 Gbps aggregate per port.
With up to 12 W of power draw, QSFP-DD modules have critical thermal cooling and management requirements
As QSFP28 module speeds exceed 100 Gbps and power loads increase beyond 5 W
keep the module temperature below 70°C.
enterprise applications with maximum ambient temperatures of about 45ºC maximum
Thermal management techniques used in the design of the module and cage let the QSFP-DD support power levels of 12 W, with a target range up to 15 W.
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Whitepaper: 802.11ax: Next generation Wi-Fi for the Gigabit home
https://www.mobileworldlive.com/new-whitepaper-802-11ax-next-generation-wi-fi-for-the-gigabit-home/?ID=00Qw0000015vtvCEAQ&BU=
Wi-Fi has proved itself as an effective and efficient way of delivering data, but to support new applications, services and devices, the next generation of the technology is needed – 802.11ax.
This whitepaper looks at how 802.11ax is designed to meet changing user requirements, delivering improvements in capacity and reliability – as well as providing an increase in average user speeds.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Analyzer detects interference in the wireless spectrum
https://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4459045/Analyzer-detects-interference-in-the-wireless-spectrum
As wireless communications systems crowd the RF spectrum, interference becomes an increasing problem. The addition of new frequencies for wireless carriers, the reshuffling of U.S. TV broadcast stations, and the deployment of many new devices creates the interference of things. Thus, wireless carriers need to characterize interference, especially in densely populated areas. Such interference can degrade a users’ quality of experience and quality of service.
The MNT100 from Rohde uses real-time Fast-Fourier Transforms (FFTs) at frequencies from 600 MHz to 6 GHz. FFTs make it possible to detect intermittent signals as short as 20 ns, which might be missed with swept-frequency spectrum analyzers. Its polychrome display lets you see these intermittent signals as overlays on top of more continuous signals.
Competing with products from Anritsu, Keysight, and Tektronix, the MNT100 can scan at up to 1.6 GHz/sec
Tomi Engdahl says:
BT boss: Yeah, making a business case for 5G is hard
Also, we’ve not delayed the spectrum auction. Anyway, Three started it!
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/16/bt_boss_yeah_making_a_biz_case_for_5g_is_hard/
Chief exec of BT, Gavin Patterson, has admitted the British telco is struggling to make a business case for 5G investment, given the huge costs of getting the network off the ground.
Speaking at the Huawei Global Mobile Broadband Forum in London, Patterson said: “I talk to other CEOs around the world… and we’ve all been struggling a little bit to make the business case work.”
He said the shift to 5G will involve “significant investment” and capital expenditure. “We’ve got to finish the job on 4G, and we’ve got to make sure we get the return on investment [on that].”
The case for 4G was easier, as it was clear the technology would improve the poor internet experience of 3G, he said. “We’ve not found that yet on 5G.” While the transition to 5G will also create a better internet experience, it may not be until the Internet of Things takes off that new revenue streams are identified. “Finding the use cases is the biggest challenge we have at the moment.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Reuters:
Broadcom says it has closed its acquisition of network gear maker Brocade Communications
Broadcom closes $5.5 billion Brocade deal
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brocade-commns-m-a-broadcom/broadcom-closes-5-5-billion-brocade-deal-idUSKBN1DH1T9
Broadcom Ltd said on Friday it closed its acquisition of network gear maker Brocade Communications Systems Inc, giving it a larger share of the data center products market.
Broadcom, which made a $103 billion unsolicited bid for smartphone chip supplier Qualcomm Inc earlier this month that was rejected, agreed to buy Brocade in November of last year. It won U.S. antitrust approval for the deal in July.
Tomi Engdahl says:
3D Printed WiFi Reflectors Custom Designed for the Building
https://hackaday.com/2017/11/18/3d-printed-wifi-reflectors-custom-designed-for-the-building/
Are you a wizard at antenna design? Chances are you’ve never even given it a try, but this tool could change that. Most home-made WiFi signal boosting antenna plans around the Internet share one feature: they are directional antennas or reflectors. But WiPrint is a tool for designing custom WiFi reflectors that map to the specific application.
If we want to increase the signal strength in two or three different locations the traditional solution is an omnidirectional antenna.
Customizing Indoor Wireless Coverage via 3D-Fabricated Reflectors
http://dartnets.cs.dartmouth.edu/wiprint
Judicious control of indoor wireless coverage is crucial in built environments. It enhances signal reception, reduces harmful interference, and raises the barrier for malicious attackers. Existing methods are either costly, vulnerable to attacks, or hard to configure. We present a low-cost, secure, and easy-to-configure approach that uses an easily-accessible, 3D-fabricated reflector to customize wireless coverage
Tomi Engdahl says:
Net Neutrality is Essentially Unassailable, Argues Billionaire Barry Diller
https://news.slashdot.org/story/17/11/20/0129259/net-neutrality-is-essentially-unassailable-argues-billionaire-barry-diller
The billionaire media mogul behind such popular sites as Expedia, Match.com and HomeAdvisor has a one-word forecast for traditional media conglomerates concerned about being replaced by tech giants: serfdom. “They, like everyone else, are kind of going to be serfs on the land of the large tech companies,” IAC chairman Barry Diller said… That’s because Google and Facebook not only have such massive user bases but also dominate online advertising.
Barry Diller says big media will be ‘serfs on the land’ of tech giants
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/barry-diller-says-big-media-will-serfs-land-tech-giants-182825095.html
The billionaire media mogul behind such popular sites as Expedia, Match.com and HomeAdvisor has a one-word forecast for traditional media conglomerates concerned about being replaced by tech giants: serfdom.
“They, like everyone else, are kind of going to be serfs on the land of the large tech companies,” IAC (IAC) chairman Barry Diller said.
Diller offered that prediction regarding Facebook (FB), Google (GOOG, GOOGL) and other pillars of the digital industry at the Virtuous Circle conference put on by a Washington-based trade group, the Internet Association.
The media mogul’s advice to established media firms wondering how to deal with ever-more-powerful tech titans — “You can be a serf on their land!” — may not have been what you’d expect from somebody in his line of work. But it also fits with growing concerns about the reach and influence of those online firms, and what that’s doing to our access to information and entertainment.
He, for one, welcomes our new tech overlords
“They’re not going away, but where they dominated the world of media they will essentially be supplicants… doing okay,” he said.
That’s because Google and Facebook not only have such massive user bases but also dominate online advertising.
“Google and Facebook are consolidating,” Diller said. “They are the only mass advertising mediums we have.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Marvell and Cavium to Combine Creating an Infrastructure Solutions Powerhouse
http://www.cavium.com/newsevents-Marvell-and-Cavium-to-Combine-Creating-an-Infrastructure-Solutions-Powerhouse.html
- Complementary portfolios and scale enable world-class end-to-end solutions
- Diversifies revenue base and end markets; increases SAM to $16 billion+
- Combined R&D innovation engine and IP portfolio accelerates product leadership
- Creates best-in-class financial model
Santa Clara, and San Jose Calif. (November 20, 2017) –Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) and Cavium, Inc. (NASDAQ: CAVM) today announced a definitive agreement, unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, under which Marvell will acquire all outstanding shares of Cavium common stock in exchange for consideration of $40.00 per share in cash and 2.1757 Marvell common shares for each Cavium share. Upon completion of the transaction, Marvell will become a leader in infrastructure solutions with approximately $3.4 billion1 in annual revenue.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Aeponyx: Optical Chips For Telecom
https://semiengineering.com/aeponyx-optical-chips-for-telecom/
New company seeks to cut cost of optical switch by 10X, improve performance by 100X.
As the amount of data grows, so does interest in silicon photonics. There is no better way to move data than with light. It’s faster, requires less energy, and generates less heat.
The main trouble spots come in two places—packaging the light source with another chip, and the switching technology from optical to electrical and back to optical. While companies like Intel have been working on the packaging process, the switching piece has received far less attention from established players.
Enter Aeponyx, a fabless chip company based in Montreal. The company’s focus is on optical switches that can be tuned dynamically to handle huge amounts of data by combining MEMS and silicon photonics.
“With a micro-optical switch, you can take the cost down 10 times, speed up data by 100 times, and it can all be done in a package that is 7 times smaller than existing switches,” said Philippe Babin, president of Aeponyx.
Babin believes this technology will become critical as 5G begins to roll out over the next few years.
Aeponyx was started with a $1.9 million grant from Canada’s Sustainable Development Technology fund last year. It also has been working with Silicon Catalyst, a Silicon Valley-based incubator/accelerator that was created in 2015.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Marvell and Cavium do the deed, vow to breed infra-monster
Six billion bucks does the trick, now let’s see what kind of kit they build together
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/21/marvell_cavium_acquisition/
The rumours were right: Marvell has formally announced it will buy Cavium, for around six billion US dollars, and plans to emerge as an “Infrastructure Solutions Powerhouse”.
Marvell has offered US$40, plus 2.1757 of its own shares, for each Cavium share. With Marvell scrip currently attracting orders at around $21 and Cavium shares at $84, the latter company’s shareholders will end up ahead by about three dollars per share.
That’s not a colossal premium, but news of the deal spiked both companies’ share price, suggesting that markets like the combination.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Software innovations in IP-based access control
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/print/volume-25/issue-10/features/design/software-innovations-in-ip-based-access-control.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-20
Supported by layer-one infrastructure, these building systems advance to make administration more efficient.
ccess control is among the building system that, in this Internet of Things era, can become digital- rather than analog-based and in doing so, provide building owners with both information and more control over the system’s functions. Axis Communications described some of the technological and business opportunities this transition could create in its white paper “IP opens doors to a new world of physical access control.”
The company explained that the migration of access control from analog to digital will bring benefits comparable to those achieved by migrating video surveillance from analog to Internet Protocol, including lower installation costs, more configuration and management capabilities, enhanced system versatility, and the ability to integrate with other security products. “IP technology is not totally unknown to or unused in the access control industry,” Axis observed, “but existing systems have not been able to fully exploit the advantages of IP.
“Typically, a legacy access control system is dependent on having each device—card reader, handle, door lock, door position switch—hard-wired with RS-485 cable into one central unit or central server”
“Furthermore, when expanding traditional analog systems the process is complicated by the need to consider that a typical central controller is built to accommodate a certain maximum number of doors, normally 4, 8, 16, or 32.”
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) systems enable what Axis called an “edge” solution, which it described as having “one controller for each door, which then is connected to the existing local Ethernet through a regular network switch. Because IP networks are ubiquitous in offices, stores, factory plants and similar facilities, the cost of adding an IP-based door controller would be minimal, as opposed to multiple serial connections wired back to a central server.
ONVIF profiles
Axis authored that paper three years ago. In the time since its publication, some technological evolution and innovations have shaped the IP access control landscape. In July of this year, ONVIF (founded as the Open Network Video Interface Forum in 2008 by Axis, Bosch Security Systems and Sony) announced the final release of Profile A “for broader access control configuration that establishes a standardized interface for access control clients and expands the configuration options of ONVIF conformant access control systems,” the group said. “The release marks the first open specification that allows for the mixing and matching of access control devices and clients within a system, facilitating interoperability for multi-vendor products.”
Per Bjorkdahl, ONVIF steering committee chair, commented, “Profile A is a significant development for the market because it provides a pathway for integrating together access control panels and hardware with management software from different manufacturers. This pathway for integration also provides futureproofing of an access control system, as it allows another manufacturer’s access control management software to be installed in the future, eliminating the need for a hardware rip-and-replace scenario.”
In 2014—the same year the Axis paper was produced—ONVIF released its Profile C for physical access control.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tips for running copper Ethernet cable outdoors
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2017/110/outdoor-copper-tips.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-20
Youtube’s FiberNinja offers the following tips, commenting, “Mind you, this is Southern California so the weather doesn’t get TOO bad, but a lot of the points are common throughout the land — make sure it’s well sealed/insulated, add your drip loops, etc.”
#016: Some tips for running copper Ethernet cable outdoors
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_bUPJftvwc
Tomi Engdahl says:
#013: Tips for Cabling Rackmounted Equipment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_ClmxENYiM
Working this install today made me think of a good brief topic to shoot regarding some tips involving cabling around rackmounted equipment. Hope you all learn something!
Budget Home Network Tour/How To
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00UTYN9j0FE
Tomi Engdahl says:
FCC Announces Plan To Repeal Net Neutrality
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/17/11/21/1910235/fcc-announces-plan-to-repeal-net-neutrality
FCC on Tuesday said it plans to dismantle landmark regulations that ensure equal access to the internet, clearing the way for companies to charge more and block access to some websites
F.C.C. Plans Net Neutrality Repeal in a Victory for Telecoms
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/21/technology/fcc-net-neutrality.html
The Federal Communications Commission released a plan on Tuesday to dismantle landmark regulations that ensure equal access to the internet, clearing the way for internet service companies to charge users more to see certain content and to curb access to some websites.
The proposal, made by the F.C.C. chairman, Ajit Pai, is a sweeping repeal of rules put in place by the Obama administration. The rules prohibit high-speed internet service providers, or I.S.P.s, from stopping or slowing down the delivery of websites. They also prevent the companies from charging customers extra fees for high-quality streaming and other services.
The announcement set off a fight over free speech and the control of the internet, pitting telecom titans like AT&T and Verizon against internet giants like Google and Amazon. The internet companies warned that rolling back the rules could make the telecom companies powerful gatekeepers to information and entertainment. The telecom companies say that the existing rules prevent them from offering customers a wider selection of services at higher and lower price points.
“Under my proposal, the federal government will stop micromanaging the internet,” Mr. Pai said in a statement. “Instead, the F.C.C. would simply require internet service providers to be transparent about their practices so that consumers can buy the service plan that’s best for them.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
AT&T wants to bin 100,000 routers, replace them with white boxes
Carrier tries to speed networking innovation with ‘Disaggregated Network Operating System’
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/21/at_and_t_calls_for_disaggregated_network_operating_system/
AT&T has launched an audacious attempt to push the networking industry towards software-defined networking and white-box hardware.
Revealed in a white paper titled Towards an Open, Disaggregated Network Operating System [PDF], the carrier’s plan called for the creation of a “Disaggregated Network Operating System” (dNOS) as part of a push for “A new approach … for router platform development and procurement”. The company also put its money where its mouth is by promising to “evolve its router-platform sourcing process to give preference to dNOS vendors whose products (or committed product-roadmap) are based on using this platform.”
It also revealed that those who buy in to its vision have a big opportunity, by revealing its networks comprise “100,000 interconnected IP/MPLS routers” bought from traditional networking vendors and offering “vertically integrated proprietary hardware and software components.”
The paper’s authors have cast their collective eye over technologies including Intel’s Data Plane Development Kit, Broadcom silicon and software-defined-networking code, and concluded that if the growing ecosystem of networking hardware and software gets the right help it will mean:
Faster introduction of technologies, designs, and features by means of a collaborative ecosystem of hardware and software component vendors
Flexibility in network design and service deployment via plug-n-play hardware and software components that can cost-effectively scale up and down
Unit-cost reduction through use of standard hardware and software technology components with very large economies-of-scale wherever appropriate
AT&T wants those outcomes very much, but the paper explained it does not believe they can be achieved without a dNOS.
http://about.att.com/content/dam/innovationblogdocs/att-routing-nos-open-architecture_FINAL%20whitepaper.pdf
Tomi Engdahl says:
Networking vendors are good for free lunches, hopeless for networks
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/09/05/networking_vendors_are_good_for_free_lunches_hopeless_for_networks/
Electronic Arts tech director thinks tech-agnostic developers can build better networks than slave-to-vendor NetAdmins
Fire your network administrators, hire developers instead, and stop expecting networking equipment vendors to provide anything more valuable than free lunches.
That’s the advice from games-maker Electronic Arts director of technical engagement Peyton Koran, who delivered a talk titled “The Impacts of Cloud Computing and Open Source on the Networking Industry” at the Future:Net conference that ran alongside last week’s VMworld 2017.
The networking ecosystem is too fragile and slow, too hard for users to participate in
Koran said most organisations are therefore stuck in a cycle whereby network vendors quote scarily high prices for equipment, then wheel in a senior sales person to placate and/or soothe shocked customers. That session ramps up the efforts to sell next-generation equipment but doesn’t actually offer an explanation for how an organisation’s network will improve, or how users can avoid silos or overlapping functionality across a fleet of network kit.
“Basically this ecosystem is great for steaks,” Koran told the conference to laughter an applause. “Most companies are realising this is not an ecosystem they want to be a part of any more.” They are instead looking for interoperable networks and are willing to pay more to get them as services running in the cloud.
The cloud’s a game-changer, he believes, because it doesn’t just replace appliances as a source of networking services, it also replaces the supposed secret sauce that networking vendors bake into ASICs and other closed hardware.
Tomi Engdahl says:
New CWDM8 MSA specifications cover 400 Gbps over 2 km
http://www.lightwaveonline.com/articles/2017/11/new-cwdm8-msa-specifications-cover-400-gbps-over-2-km.html?cmpid=enl_lightwave_lightwave_datacom_2017-11-21
Members of the CWDM8 Multisource Agreement (MSA) have released a technical specification that covers 400-Gbps optical transmission at distances up to 2 km over duplex single-mode fiber. The group says a companion specification for 400-Gbps application of 10 km should be ready by the end of the year.
The CWDM8 MSA announced its formation this past September with an eye toward addressing 400-Gbps applications using NRZ modulation on the optical end while maintaining compatibility with 50-Gbps per lane electrical interfaces such as those the P302.3bs 400 Gigabit Ethernet Task Force envisions (see “CWDM8 MSA targets 400G at 2 km, 10 km via NRZ wavelengths”). The MSA specifications could be applied to QSFP-DD, OSFP, and COBO optical transceivers and modules.
Tomi Engdahl says:
VMware and Cisco acquire SD-WAN market share leadership, further consolidation expected: IHS Markit
http://www.lightwaveonline.com/articles/2017/11/vmware-and-cisco-acquire-sd-wan-market-share-leadership-further-consolidation-expected-ihs-markit.html?cmpid=enl_lightwave_lightwave_datacom_2017-11-21
According to IHS Markit, vendors are making it a priority to include software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) technology in their offerings. Some are doing so with the help of acquisitions, a consolidation trend the market research firm expects will continue.
The first major merger in the SD-WAN market occurred when Cisco acquired Viptela (see “Cisco to buy SD-WAN tech vendor Viptela”). The Cisco acquisition was followed by VMware’s acquisition of VeloCloud, the SD-WAN revenue leader in the first half of 2017, for an undisclosed amount.
“VMware and Cisco have acquired the two SD-WAN market share leaders, making the SD-WAN market a two-horse race for the number-one spot,” said Clif Grossner, IHS Markit senior research director and advisor for cloud and data center. “And we could see even more consolidation as vendors set out to add SD‑WAN to their capability sets, especially since the technology is key to supporting connectivity in the multi-clouds that enterprises are building.”
According to IHS Markit’s Data Center and Enterprise Data Center and Enterprise SDN Hardware and Software Biannual Market Tracker totaled only $137 million in the first half of 2017 (H1 2017), making it a small market. Global SD-WAN hardware and software revenue is forecast to reach $3.3 billion by 2021, however.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Huawei and PLDT to roll out SuperVector and G.fast using existing copper lines
http://www.lightwaveonline.com/articles/2017/11/huawei-and-pldt-to-roll-out-supervector-and-g-fast-using-existing-copper-lines.html?cmpid=enl_lightwave_lightwave_datacom_2017-11-21
Huawei says that it will work with Philippines national carrier PLDT to use existing copper lines to deploy the company’s SuperVector technology to deliver bandwidth of up to 300 Mbps, and G.fast networks for up to 800 Mbps.
PLDT owns more than 70% of fixed broadband market share in the Philippines. In light of the development of social media software, 4K video, and virtual reality (VR), PLDT plans to release new digital services, such as pay TV and smart home security, which will impose higher network capability standards.
According to Huawei, PLDT also intends to offer 5 million users bandwidth of at least 100 Mbps and offer 800 Mbps premium broadband services in more than 100 high-end buildings by 2018.
Huawei says it will evaluate the carrier’s network-wide copper lines to advance PLDT’s digital society goals.
“Huawei’s evaluation on network-wide copper lines helps us identify bottlenecks that hinder copper broadband acceleration,” said Czar Lopez, PLDT’s assistant vice president for access network planning and engineering. “In addition, we jointly set up pilot projects regarding cutting-edge copper line technologies—G.fast and SuperVector. These projects have strengthened our confidence towards copper broadband acceleration and fast delivery.”
the Chinese systems house is offering G.fast systems to deliver services to small enterprises and what it described as “VIP home users.” The technology enables a single device to deliver bandwidth of up to 800 Mbps for 96 users concurrently.
Huawei also will supply SuperVector devices that deliver as much as 300 Mbps for high-end home users; the devices are compatible with current DSL terminals to facilitate an upgrade that is undetectable to users. The company says it also can offer vectoring devices in original cross-connecting boxes or fiber-to-the-curb (FTTC) sites to reduce project delivery completion time as well, while delivering100 Mbps bandwidth to basic home users.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Corning celebrates milestone: one billion kilometers of optical fiber
http://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/2017/09/corning-celebrates-milestone-one-billion-kilometers-of-optical-fiber.html?cmpid=enl_lfw_newsletter_2017-11-21
Materials science and optical fiber manufacturing company Corning Incorporated (Corning, NY; NYSE: GLW) announced a significant milestone: delivery of its one-billionth kilometer of optical fiber.
Corning invented the first low-loss optical fiber in 1970, which helped launch the age of fiber-optic communications and transformed the way the world creates, shares, and consumes information. Since that time, Corning optical fiber has been deployed in hundreds of thousands of networks across the globe, from long-haul and submarine networks to access networks and datacenters.
“The invention of optical fiber ushered in a communications revolution,”
Today, Corning says it remains the worldwide market leader and is the most widely deployed brand of fiber.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Limelight: Internet Use up 64%
http://www.broadbandtechreport.com/articles/2017/11/limelight-internet-use-up-64.html?cmpid=enl_btr_weekly_2017-11-21
According to Limelight Networks’ (NASDAQ:LLNW) latest “State of User Experience” report, 45% of consumers worldwide spend more than 15 hours (outside of work) on the Internet each week, a 64% increase in the last year. In the United States, 54% of consumers spend more than 15 hours online each week.
Looking at the main online activities and behaviors:
U.S. consumers spend the most time each week on social media sites (4 hours, 44 minutes), followed by watching videos (4 hours, 12 minutes) and reading the news (3 hours, 24 minutes). Online shopping was fourth on the list at 3 hours, 22 minutes.
Laptops are the main device for online activities in the United States, followed closely by smartphones. Smartphones are the primary choice for women and people age 18-45, and laptops are preferred by men and people 46 and older.
When it comes to consumers’ demands for online experiences, the expectations are high, and security is a major concern. One in four U.S. consumers said they would not continue to make purchases on a website that has experienced a security breach. The survey also indicated that 39% of U.S. consumers will leave a website that’s taking too long to load and go on to make purchases with a competitor.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Stanford taps installed fiber-optic networks for earthquake sensing
http://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/2017/10/stanford-taps-installed-fiber-optic-networks-for-earthquake-sensing.html?cmpid=enl_lfw_newsletter_2017-11-21
Biondo Biondi, a professor of geophysics at Stanford University’s (Stanford, CA) School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences, dreams of turning the dense network of buried optical fibers that crisscross San Francisco into an inexpensive “billion sensors” observatory for continuously monitoring and studying earthquakes.
Over the past year, Biondi’s group has shown that it’s possible to convert the jiggles of perturbed optical fiber strands into information about the direction and magnitude of seismic events. The researchers have been recording those seismic jiggles in a 3-mile loop of optical fiber installed beneath the Stanford University campus with instruments called laser interrogators provided by the company OptaSense (Houston, TX), which is a co-author on publications about the research.
“We can continuously listen to–and hear well–the Earth using preexisting optical fibers that have been deployed for telecom purposes,” Biondi said.
Currently researchers monitor earthquakes with seismometers, which are more sensitive than the proposed telecom array, but their coverage is sparse and they can be challenging and expensive to install and maintain, especially in urban areas.
By contrast, a seismic observatory like the one Biondi proposes would be relatively inexpensive to operate. “Every meter of optical fiber in our network acts like a sensor and costs less than a dollar to install,” Biondi said. “You will never be able to create a network using conventional seismometers with that kind of coverage, density and price.”
Such a network would allow scientists to study earthquakes, especially smaller ones, in greater detail and pinpoint their sources more quickly than is currently possible.
Stanford researchers build a ‘billion sensors’ earthquake observatory with optical fibers
https://news.stanford.edu/2017/10/19/building-billion-sensors-quake-monitor-optical-fibers/
The same optical fibers that deliver high-speed internet and HD video to our homes could one day double as seismic sensors for monitoring and studying earthquakes.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Global installations mapped by Fiber Optic Sensing Association
http://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/2017/11/global-installations-mapped-by-fiber-optic-sensing-association.html?cmpid=enl_lfw_newsletter_2017-11-21
The Fiber Optic Sensing Association (FOSA) released details on more than 1,300 installations of distributed fiber optic sensing (DFOS) around the world. The data reflects the largest representative sample ever published.
In an interactive map, FOSA provides a geographic breakdown of global DFOS installations in more than 75 countries. Key insights include:
- China had more deployments than any other nation with roughly 11.3% of all identified installations, followed closely by Germany at 9.4%. The United States came in third with roughly 6.5%, and South Korea was fourth with 4.8% of installations.
- Assets most frequently monitored using DFOS included power cables (22.2%), tunnels (20%), pipelines (13.5%), and perimeters (8.4%).
- The more than 1,300 identified installations span more than 20,000 miles in length (33,300 km).
https://www.fiberopticsensing.org/page/map
Tomi Engdahl says:
FCC Plans to Gut Net Neutrality, Allow Internet ‘Fast Lanes’
https://www.wired.com/story/fcc-prepares-to-unveil-plan-to-gut-net-neutrality/
The Federal Communications Commission will publish on Wednesday its plan to reverse Obama-era net neutrality rules that banned internet service providers from blocking or slowing down content, or creating so-called “fast lanes” for companies willing to pay extra to deliver their content more quickly.
The new FCC order will throw out almost all of the agency’s 2015 net-neutrality rules, including the prohibitions on blocking and throttling content, senior FCC staff said during a conference call with reporters Tuesday. The order will also ban states from imposing their own net-neutrality rules to replace the federal regulations.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why the Government is Right to Block the AT&T-Time Warner Merger
https://www.wired.com/story/why-the-government-is-right-to-block-the-atandt-time-warner-merger/
Despite what Randall Stephenson thinks, the Department of Justice’s suit blocking AT&T from acquiring Time Warner’s assets in an $85 billion merger is a great moment for antitrust in America. It’s late, but it’s welcome.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Bad news for Nokia and its competitors
There is no significant change in the sale of base station equipment for a better yet at least three years. Research Institute SNS Research predicts that the market will grow at 2% in 2017-2020.
This year, the market size is $ 53 billion, the research institute says. The number is higher than the traditionally selling devices for base stations, but according to SNS Research, market boundaries are blurring as operators increase their networks with both mini-buses and wifi routers.
In 2020, this market size will be $ 56 billion. The traditional macro-base stations account for 32 per cent of this amount after three years
The market for traditional base stations was spiked in 2014, when the equipment was sold by the Research and Markets Research Institute for $ 33 billion.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7211&via=n&datum=2017-11-23_14:44:29&mottagare=31202
Tomi Engdahl says:
John Eggerton / Broadcasting & Cable:
As the FCC seeks to kill net neutrality, Comcast, Charter, and cable trade group NCTA vow not to block, throttle, or interfere with lawful sites or activities — Look to calm critics suggesting FCC Title II rollback would lead to such conduct — ISPs were renewing their pledges not to block …
Ajit Pai and the FCC want it to be legal for Comcast to block BitTorrent
This is what happens when you’re honest about killing net neutrality
https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/22/16691794/net-neutrality-fcc-ajit-pai-comcast-block-bittorrent
Tomi Engdahl says:
Jane Wakefield / BBC:
UK authorities change advertising rules for ISPs, requiring that stated speeds are achieved by 50% of users at peak times, up from 10% — Broadband firms will no longer be able to advertise their fast net services based on the speeds just a few customers get, from May next year.
Broadband firms must ditch ‘misleading’ speed ads
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42079941
Broadband firms will no longer be able to advertise their fast net services based on the speeds just a few customers get, from May next year.
Currently ISPs are allowed to use headline speeds that only 10% of customers will actually receive.
In future, adverts must be based on what is available to at least half of customers at peak times.
It follows research that suggested broadband advertising can be misleading for consumers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
‘We Are Disappointed’: Tech Companies Speak Up Against the FCC’s Plan To Kill Net Neutrality
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/17/11/22/2147210/we-are-disappointed-tech-companies-speak-up-against-the-fccs-plan-to-kill-net-neutrality?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot%2Fto+%28%28Title%29Slashdot+%28rdf%29%29
Cloudflare Might Be Exploring a Way To Slow Down FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s Home Internet Speeds
https://tech.slashdot.org/story/17/11/23/149208/cloudflare-might-be-exploring-a-way-to-slow-down-fcc-chairman-ajit-pais-home-internet-speeds?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot%2Fto+%28%28Title%29Slashdot+%28rdf%29%29
Probably the easiest thing would be to slow down requests from the FCC’s IP ranges. Or put up an interstitial whenever someone from those IPs visits a site behind us. I think it’s less likely we’d do it across the board ourselves, more likely we’d implement it as an option our customers could opt in to.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Casa Systems Files for $150M IPO
Key maker of cable access and optical network gear and software has also been investing in wireless (Updated)
http://www.multichannel.com/news/finance/casa-systems-files-150m-ipo/416706
Casa Systems, a maker of cable modem termination system and converged cable access platform gear and software, is aiming to raise up to $150 million in an IPO, according to an S-1 filed on Friday (November 17).
Founded in 2003, Andover, Mass.-based Casa cut its teeth on field programming gate arrays (FPGAs) alongside its eventual development of DOCSIS 3.0 CMTSs in 2008, an integrated CCAP in 2012, a DOCSIS 3.1 chassis in 2015, and, last year, its move into the distributed access architecture (DAA) and Remote PHY arena.
With an eye toward network virtualization, Casa has also developed Axyom, a software-powered architecture for a range of core and access network functions for fixed and wireless networks. Its Axyom software platform, for examples, supports apps such as security gateways, small cells and WiFi gateways, and the evolved packet core.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Analysis of FCC net neutrality comments finds over 1M pro-repeal were likely faked and 99% of organic comments were in favor of keeping rules — I used natural language processing techniques to analyze net neutrality comments submitted to the FCC from April-October 2017, and the results were disturbing.
More than a Million Pro-Repeal Net Neutrality Comments were Likely Faked
https://hackernoon.com/more-than-a-million-pro-repeal-net-neutrality-comments-were-likely-faked-e9f0e3ed36a6
I used natural language processing techniques to analyze net neutrality comments submitted to the FCC from April-October 2017, and the results were disturbing.
NY Attorney General Schneiderman estimated that hundreds of thousands of Americans’ identities were stolen and used in spam campaigns that support repealing net neutrality. My research found at least 1.3 million fake pro-repeal comments, with suspicions about many more. In fact, the sum of fake pro-repeal comments in the proceeding may number in the millions.
After clustering comment categories and removing duplicates, I found that less than 800,000 of the 22M+ comments submitted to the FCC (3-4%) could be considered truly unique.
Identifying 1.3 Million Mail-Merged Spam Comments
The first and largest cluster of pro-repeal documents was especially notable. Unlike the other clusters I found (which contained a lot of repetitive language) each of the comments here was unique; however, the tone, language, and meaning across each comment was largely uniform.
It turns out that there are 1.3 million of these. Each sentence in the faked comments looks like it was generated by a computer program. A mail merge swapped in a synonym for each term to generate unique-sounding comments.
it’s clear that there’s something fishy going on
But just because the largest block of pro-repeal submissions turned out to be a premediated and orchestrated spam campaign¹³, it doesn’t necessarily follow that there are many more pro-repeal spambots to be verified, right?
On the other hand, comments in favor of net neutrality were more likely to deviate from a form letter (light green, as opposed to dark green bars) and were much more numerous in the long tail.
Organic Public Comments: 99%+ Support Keeping Net Neutrality
Tomi Engdahl says:
FCC doubles down on its dead-wrong definition of how the internet works
https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/25/fcc-doubles-down-on-its-dead-wrong-definition-of-how-the-internet-works/?utm_source=tcfbpage&sr_share=facebook
In May, when the FCC released an early draft of its plan to undo 2015’s strong net neutrality rules, I pointed out that its case rests almost entirely on a deeply incorrect definition of how the internet works. There can be no mistake now that this misrepresentation is deliberate; the agency has reiterated it in even stronger terms in the final draft of the proposal.
the basic problem is this: broadband has to be defined as either an information service or telecommunications service.
It’s important because the two things are regulated very differently — the FCC has much greater power over telecommunications services, under the “Title II” authority that internet service providers are so afraid of.
Tomi Engdahl says:
One idea:
Net Neutrality will die, so let’s take the profit out of killing it.
https://www.cringely.com/2017/11/22/15471/
Tomi Engdahl says:
The twisted future of optical signal modulation
https://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/measure-of-things/4459089/The-twisted-future-of-optical-signal-modulation
By transmitting “twisted light” between buildings separated by a mile in Erlangen, Germany, research engineers and physicists have demonstrated a new optical modulation technique. You’re familiar with wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) where different wavelengths (i.e., colors) of light are superposed into a beam with each wavelength carrying a different signal. The new technique could be called OAMDM for “orbital angular momentum division multiplexing.” Instead of combining beams of different colors, beams are superposed that are in different states of “orbital angular momentum.”
Physics background for “twisted light”
Angular momentum is the rotational version of linear momentum; conservation of angular momentum is the rotational version of Newton’s law of conservation of linear momentum. Conservation of angular momentum is the phenomenon that makes it easier to stay balanced on a bicycle when it’s moving.
The orbital angular momentum of light is also described by the quantum number l, but it’s easier to think of it in terms of polarization.
Your sunglasses transmit light with vertical polarization and absorb light with horizontal polarization. We usually think of polarization where the electric field vector of the wave is either horizontal or vertical, so-called planar polarizations. At the photon level, individual photons have circular polarizations: the electric field vector rotates perpendicular to the direction of motion, either clockwise or counter clockwise. These two states of polarization correspond to the two possible states of the photon’s spin, +1 or -1 (zero is not allowed because photons are massless; a spin zero photon implies that it must exist in a rest state, but because its going the speed of light in every reference frame photons can never be at rest). Orbital angular momentum in light extends the idea of polarization into beams of light whose Poynting vectors (which describe the direction of energy flow) rotate about the direction of motion.
“Twisted light” is marketing jargon for beams of light in different states of optical orbital angular momentum.
Optical orbital angular momentum modulation
Use of optical orbital angular momentum modulation at 2.56 Tbits/s using four beams was demonstrated in fibers back in 2012, as reported in Terabit free-space data transmission employing orbital angular momentum multiplexing. It’s trickier in free space.
In the new study, “Free-space propagation of high dimensional structured optical fields in an urban environment,” two beams of 809 nm wavelength light in different orbital angular momentum states were superposed and transmitted 1.6 km across the Erlangen skyline, above traffic
This experiment serves as proof of principle that optical orbital angular momentum states can be used to multiplex signals into a single beam that can propagate across long distances, a whole new approach to wireless point-to-point data transmission.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Led on silicon enables an optical CMOS circuit
The light would also be suitable for internal data transfer, but electronics and light do not fit in one common CMOS chip. Satente Dutta, a researcher at Twente University, has managed to bring light to the core of the semiconductor chip. The solution is attractive because no specialty materials or manufacturing methods are needed. Light comes from silicon.
The problem with piecing is that silicon emits only a small amount of infrared light while the silicon detector needs visible light. Dutta turned on the LED in reverse direction. With low voltages, the current does not run, but at high enough voltage a small stream is generated, with avalanches in the avalanche causing the LED to emit visible light.
In addition to the LED, the same process can be used to perform both the light and the light channel. The solution is considerably more compact than, for example, an optocoupler, but requires some optimization of power consumption.
One international research team has, in turn, developed a new ldn of GaN-based materials, but abandoning its awkward p-alloy. If technology can be used for high light output, a breakthrough could enhance the efficiency of LED lighting without the need to significantly enhance existing production technology.
The work involves a resonant tunnel diode (RTD) in the gallium nitride system.
Source: http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7220-ledi-piilla-mahdollistaa-optisen-cmos-piirin
Tomi Engdahl says:
UK emergency crews get 4G smartmobes as monkeys attempt to emerge from Reg’s butt
Samsung inks deal to give crews up to 250k handsets
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/24/samsung_4g_devices_for_police_fire_and_ambulance/
The deal with the South Korean company will last for at least three years, with a potential to provide up to 250,000 phones, which is part of a continuing £1.2bn project to replace the current Airwave radio network with Emergency Service Network (ESN) devices which use normal 4G network signals instead, provided by EE.
Currently 86 per cent of the UK’s landmass is covered by British mobile operator EE’s 4G network. This needs to be increased to 97 per cent to match Airwave’s coverage.
Samsung competed for the contract alongside specialist emergency coms company Sepura, and also Motorola, which operates the Airwave network.
The police, firefighters and paramedics won’t be using your average handset however. Their custom models are toughened, water resistant and have push to talk buttons like their old radios.
They will also have internet access in the field for the first time, allowing live video broadcasting and access to records and other information.
A Home Office statement said “using a single ESN 4G device is more effective, efficient and less costly than using a combination of the existing Airwave devices and multiple commercial networks and standard 4G devices.
it is likely that Motorola’s Airwave system will have to be kept running after its intended switch-off in 2020
Tomi Engdahl says:
Activist investor rages at Mellanox for dismissing Marvell’s advances
Why won’t you let us create value for shareholders?
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/24/starboard_value_strikes_at_mellanox/
InfiniBand/Ethernet tech supplier Mellanox is being targeted by an activist investor pissy that it rejected overtures from Marvell.
Starboard Value has bought a 10.7 per cent holding in Mellanox, wanting to influence the company’s management to create more value for shareholders (increase share price so we can make a profit).
Peter Field is a principal at Starboard Value and also a director of Marvell Technology Group, which is buying Cavium for $6bn and competes with Mellanox in some product areas.
A look at Mellanox’s revenue and net income over the past three years and stock price history does not show the classic long-term decline we tend to associate with with activist investor targets, such as Imation or Quantum.
Tomi Engdahl says:
QSFP-DD pluggable modules boost data density
https://www.edn.com/design/components-and-packaging/4459022/QSFP-DD-pluggable-modules-boost-data-density
Tomi Engdahl says:
China plots new Great Leap Forward: to IPv6
It’ll be a doddle because we invented it, claims state-owned organ Xinhua
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/27/china_plots_new_great_leap_forward_to_ipv6/
China has claimed it invented IPv6, according to state-controlled newswire Xinhua.
The outlet on Sunday reported the Middle Kingdom’s plan to ramp up IPv6 adoption. That plan has probably been implemented because, with more than 700 million Internet users at the end of 2016, China has likely struggled to find sufficient IPv4 addresses.
So the Communist Party has decreed a plan to get around a quarter of its Netizens (200 million) onto the much bigger IPv6 address space by 2018, rising to 500 million users on the protocol by 2020.
“By the end of 2025, network, applications and terminal devices will fully support the adoption of IPv6 in China, and it will have the largest number of IPv6 users in the world, according to the plan”, the official press agency added.
That’s in line with what’s necessary world-wide. Since IPv4 addresses are depleted everywhere except in Africa, the only ways to expand the number of Internet users are to use IPv6 or to deploy carrier-grade network address translation (NAT).
Scaling NAT systems forever is not best practice, for China or anyone.
RFC 2460 which defined the protocol was written in 1998 by Stephen Deering and Robert Hinden, both of them American
China to speed up IPv6-based Internet development
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-11/26/c_136780735.htm
China plans to put the Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)-based network into large-scale use, to boost the development of the Internet industry.
The country aims to have 200 million active users of IPv6 by the end of 2018, while the number will exceed 500 million by 2020, according to an action plan issued by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council.
By the end of 2025, network, applications and terminal devices will fully support the adoption of IPv6 in China, and it will have the largest number of IPv6 users in the world, according to the plan.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Tools & Learning> Products> Product Brief
Analyzer detects interference in the wireless spectrum
https://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4459045/Analyzer-detects-interference-in-the-wireless-spectrum
As wireless communications systems crowd the RF spectrum, interference becomes an increasing problem. The addition of new frequencies for wireless carriers, the reshuffling of U.S. TV broadcast stations, and the deployment of many new devices creates the interference of things. Thus, wireless carriers need to characterize interference, especially in densely populated areas. Such interference can degrade a users’ quality of experience and quality of service.
Competing with products from Anritsu, Keysight, and Tektronix, the MNT100 can scan at up to 1.6 GHz/sec. Using a PC-based software option, an antenna (optional, see photo) and a Windows-based software, you can see from where signals emanate. The R&S MNT100 has several RF interference locator packages.
A standard locator package for manual handheld interference hunting.
An automatic locator package that lets you automate mobile direction finding.
A complete locator package comprising basic and automatic locator equipment.
Tomi Engdahl says:
UK’s ProLabs launches NBASE-T transceiver with SFP+ uplink
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2017/110/prolabs-nbaset-sfp.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-27
ProLabs has introduced a new high-speed SFP-NBASE-T combo transceiver. The IEEE-802.3bz/NBASE-T transceiver is SFF-8431 and SF-8432 MSA-compliant and supports low power consumption and EMI emissions. It features an MDI/MDIX crossover mode with unshielded and shielded cable support, as well as multiple loopback modes for testing and troubleshooting, built-in cable monitoring and link diagnostic features, and a robust die-cast housing.
“More than 90% of structured cabling installed between 2003-2014 (approximately 70 billion meters) has been CAT5/6, with current technologies’ throughput on these cable types limited to 1Gbps. This will be a bottleneck to delivering bandwidth available from end points such as 802.11ac that have the capability to deliver greater than 1.3 Gbps with Wave 1 and greater than 2.3 Gbps with emerging Wave 2 products,” notes Tony Lefebvre, VP of products and marketing at ProLabs. He adds, “Rather than incur the time and expense of replacing existing plant with CAT6A/7 or fiber, the NBASE-T transceiver solution from ProLabs enables customers to use an existing SFP+ port on their network equipment and connect over existing CAT5/6 cabling, delivering 2.5/5Gbps throughput. With the NBASE-T transceiver solution, customers can greatly increase their time-to-service and defer costly re-cabling.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
White box networking in remote and branch offices
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/print/volume-25/issue-11/features/design/white-box-networking-in-remote-and-branch-offices.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-27
Not just the domain of hyperscale data centers, white box networking can be deployed efficiently in the enterprise.
Remote and branch office networking challenges
Branch office networks have several common elements. Branches are hundreds or thousands of miles away from the corporate headquarters, and there are typically no trained IT people on site in each branch. Rather, these networks are centrally controlled and administered from the corporate data center.
Recognizing the need for trouble-free, centrally managed networking infrastructure many years ago, branch office equipment vendors built proprietary, fully integrated systems to handle networking chores. The problem with this approach is that entrenched vendors with proprietary hardware/software architectures demand high costs as they extend their contracts with locked-in enterprise customers. In addition, full-service 24×7 solution support (hardware, software, interoperation and applications) adds to the cost, exacting the steepest possible pricing from enterprise customers.
White box networking: A new approach to branch office networking
Over the past 10 to 15 years, the IT industry underwent a transformation. Rather than buying proprietary servers with proprietary operating systems, enterprise IT departments began buying “white box” servers from suppliers like Quanta and Dell, and running standard operating systems like Linux on them. Today, it’s far less common to see customers buying servers with proprietary operating systems pre-installed on them.
A few years ago, mega-scale data centers like Google, Facebook and Amazon wanted to replicate the white box server paradigm with network switches, so they defined standard Ethernet switch architectures that allowed them to buy switch hardware from the best source and put their own switch software on it. Because these companies made very large investments in switching software development teams, they could make this work.
Today enterprises of all sizes are buying white box servers and running Linux or other operating systems, and this trend has now migrated down to networking switches. A number of open networking software companies like Pica8 have emerged, offering enterprises a standards-based, full-featured network operating system (NOS) for use with white box switches.
By using white box switches, enterprises can separate hardware-purchase decisions from software decisions, just as is done with application software and servers. This freedom of choice drives costs down.
Open switching software brings a broad range of networking capabilities to white box switches.
Open switching software in the remote and branch office
Besides the cost savings, there are several things needed to satisfy networking in the remote office/branch office environment. Branch offices, particularly today’s retail stores, must support a dynamically changing set of demands, including the following.
Data—Transactional support for the business, must always be the highest priority
Voice—IP phones require Power over Ethernet (PoE), plus enough protected bandwidth to ensure call quality
Video—Surveillance cameras, plus advertising and promotional video have specific bandwidth requirements
WiFi—Not only supporting retail employees, but also allowing store customers to browse, check product details, and interact with new retail applications
Emerging new immersive technologies—New ways of selling are evolving quickly
Emerging WAN strategies, including SD-WAN—Replacing traditional dedicated links while offering much higher speeds
Whatever’s next—For example, virtual or augmented reality, will continue to advance demands on branch offices
Open switching software includes many features that have been developed to support this challenging environment, including the following.
Advanced, granular quality of service (QoS)—Giving network architects the tools they need to prioritize and protect classes of traffic
Device detection and PoE management—The software can recognize approved device types and provide power to them, both simplifying the installation process and preventing unauthorized devices from getting powered on
Unapproved devices can be blocked from the network
A rich set of switching protocols and management interfaces are supported
The economics of white box networks
Due to the virtualization of network, compute and storage, enterprises now reap the economics of scale available from centralizing the data center with large complexes containing multiple processors in thousands of servers, just as the mega-scale data center operators like Amazon, Microsoft, Google and Facebook do.
Supporting white box switches in the enterprise branch office
White box switches include models made by ALPHA, Delta, EdgecorE, Quanta Cloud Technology, and others. These companies also make switching hardware for most major OEM switch vendors. In addition, brite-box (branded white box) switches are available from HPE and Dell. These white box and brite box switches give customers a broad range of choices, are mature and have very low failure rates.
White box networking solves the expense of automation and maintenance as well; by automating branch office networking and providing centralized policy control, white box solutions enable fast, comprehensive, and cost-effective networking, eliminating the use of on-site personnel for the bulk of IT management and raising IT staff productivity with built-in automation and remote management.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tight IT budgets demand smarter installations, infrastructure and operations
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/pt/2017/11/tight-it-budgets-demand-smarter-installations-infrastructure-and-operations.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-27
When it comes to the purchase of data network, communications and other IT infrastructure, it’s often tempting to buy cheap, quick-fix solutions to meet the immediate needs with as little pressure on the company coffers as possible. But that buck saved now could come at greater expense down the line, cautions BT-SA, South Africa’s leading ICT infrastructure solutions partner.
Despite shrinking ICT budgets, technology continues to develop rapidly, often necessitating an unplanned and unbudgeted revamp of infrastructure, hardware and/or software. That’s where the smart companies that opted for solutions based on their adaptability win over those that took the short-term view and settled for cheap solutions that meet only their immediate needs.
According to Erik Jordaan, director of BT-SA, when it comes to infrastructure and operations (I&O), a properly and strategically designed solution will save companies exponentially more money in the long term than this week’s discounted deal.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wireless network infrastructure a $56 billion opportunity: SNS Research
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/pt/2017/11/wireless-network-infrastructure-a-56-billion-opportunity-sns-research.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-27
SNS Research’s latest research report indicates that the wireless network infrastructure market will grow at a CAGR of 2% over the next three years, with annual investments anticipated to reach $56 billion in 2020.
The analyst contends that “the term ‘Wireless Network Infrastructure’ has conventionally been associated with the macrocell RAN [Radio Access Network] and mobile core segments of mobile operator networks. However, the scope of the term is expanding as mobile operators increase their investments in heterogeneous network or HetNet infrastructure such as small cells, carrier Wi-Fi and DAS (distributed antenna systems), to cope with increasing capacity and coverage requirements. In addition, mobile operators are keen to shift towards a C-RAN (centralized RAN) architecture, which centralizes baseband functionality to be shared across a large number of distributed radio nodes. In comparison to standalone clusters of base stations, C-RAN provides significant performance and economic benefits such as resource pooling, multi-cell coordination, network extensibility and energy efficiency.”
Despite a rapid and persistent decline in standalone macrocell RAN infrastructure spending, SNS Research estimates that the wireless network infrastructure market will grow at a CAGR of 2% between 2017 and 2020. Driven by investments in HetNet infrastructure and 5G NR (New Radio) rollouts – beginning in 2019, the market is expected to be worth $56 billion in annual spending by 2020, up from $53 billion in 2017.
Tomi Engdahl says:
9 fiber-optic connector companies to watch for 2017-2027: FMI
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/pt/2017/11/9-fiber-optic-connector-companies-to-watch-for-2017-2027-fmi.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-27
“North America is expected to lead the fiber-optic connector market in terms of market share, followed by Asia Pacific and Europe,” states the analyst. FMI adds, “The growth of the fiber-optic connector market in North America will be fuelled by the demand for fiber-optic cables in data centers for applications such as cloud computing, video, virtualization, etc., whereas the demand for fiber-optic connectors in Asia Pacific will be primarily driven by growth in telecommunications and IT.”
The most significant players in the global fiber-optic connector market, according to FMI, include Alcatel-Lucent SA, 3M, ZTE Corporation, Broadcom Limited, Corning Cable Systems LLC, Hitachi Ltd., Amphenol Corporation, Molex Incorporated and Extron Electronics.
Fiber Optic Connector Market to Perceive Substantial Growth During 2017–2027
http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/fiber-optic-connector-market-to-perceive-substantial-growth-during-2017-2027-891265.htm
With the growth of online and offline connectivity, the technologies that make up the supporting infrastructure are also growing at a rapid pace.
With the growth of online and offline connectivity, the technologies that make up the supporting infrastructure are also growing at a rapid pace. Data transfer rates have been growing at remarkable rates. Data transfer rates reaching 400 GB/s and beyond have rendered traditional high-speed copper cables and connectors useless. The outdating of traditional physical connectivity methods has thus paved the way for Optical Fibers and fiber optic connectors which can enable efficient data transfer rates at higher bandwidths.
As signals in a fiber optic based connections transmit data through a beam of light, Fiber optic connectors play a major role in preventing data loss by eliminating air gaps between connecting ends. This prevention of data loss is particularly important for industries like Aerospace, defense and medical where low latency and minimal data loss is of utmost importance. For the same reason, a sizable portion of the growth in the fiber optic connector market is expected to be generated from these industries.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Industrial researchers seek to stamp out inferior indoor Wi-Fi
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/pt/2017/11/ongoing-industrial-research-seeks-to-stamp-out-inferior-indoor-wi-fi.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2017-11-27
“Despite the importance of fully operational (indoor) wireless networks, their planning and rollout is still largely a manual exercise. Consequently, some areas in a building might have no wireless coverage at all, while other spots have too many signals present (resulting in interference). Especially in harsh industrial environments, the rollout of reliable wireless networks is complex and challenging.”
Poor, Unstable Indoor WiFi: A Relic From The Past
https://www.wirelessdesignmag.com/blog/2017/11/poor-unstable-indoor-wifi-relic-past
Mobile networks (3G, 4G, WiFi): They surround us anytime and anywhere, indoors and outdoors. Usually, we don’t even realize their presence (unless they’re not working properly). Without mobile networks, we’re unable to make phone calls, stream music, or video to our smartphones. In industrial environments, they’re crucial to ensure smooth company operations, from maintaining and monitoring machines to sharing information.
However, despite the importance of fully operational (indoor) wireless networks, their planning and rollout is still largely a manual exercise. Consequently, some areas in a building might have no wireless coverage at all, while other spots have too many signals present (resulting in interference). Especially in harsh industrial environments, the rollout of reliable wireless networks is complex and challenging. Signals may get blocked by moving piles of stock and materials, resulting in loss of connectivity.
To address this challenge, in 2014 imec kicked off FORWARD, a project conducted under the umbrella of the imec.icon collaborative research program. It investigated how white spots (i.e. areas lacking wireless coverage) and sources of network interference in (industrial) buildings can be predicted quicker, using that knowledge to automatically initiate on-the-fly network (re)configurations.
“Ultimately, FORWARD resulted in a number of approaches to foresee in optimal network coverage, to support a quick hand-over of traffic between (WiFi) access points, and to automatically (re)configure those networks on-the-fly—switching access points on/off and adapting their energy levels as is needed,” says Plets. “Those outcomes, and more specifically the WHIPP tool we developed, now allow us to also help other partners build robust and reliable WiFi networks that continue to operate flawlessly—even in harsh industrial environments.”
WHIPP: Accurately Predicting WiFi Coverage And Sources Of Interference 10x Faster
WHIPP software uses a building’s (digital) construction plans as its input—while its supporting app allows to quickly and flexibly make additional access point measurements. On one hand, WHIPP performs the actual network planning, thereby keeping the number of WiFi access points (and thus the cost) as low as possible without compromising on signal quality. On the other hand, WHIPP also calculates the total installation cost (including Ethernet and power cabling, ducts, labor costs, etc.). Moreover, the tool can be used for frequency planning and calculating how exposure to electromagnetic radiation can be limited.
Plets: “Existing methods to calculate the ideal configuration of indoor WiFi networks have significant shortcomings. Traditional site surveys, for instance, require a lot of time and are very expensive. Other tools are slow, not suited to deal with large spaces, or sufficiently accurate.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
There are still many VDSL connections in Japan, but most of them are being shut down. From operators, EneCom says it will replace VDSL connections with Nokia’s G.fast technology, which can access copper gigabit data rates.
G.fast is the technology that ITU has ratified in 2014. It reaches gigabit reaches one hundred meters from the distribution center. 200 meters from the standard promise to speed up to 200 megabits per second and 250 meters for another 150 megabits per second. If the link is not too long, you can also transfer a 8K TV picture to G.fast.
The agreement between Nokia and EneCom also aims at updating the connections to XG.fast technology in the coming years. According to Nokia, a standard, 0.6-millimeter telephone line in XG.fast generates a 500-megahertz channel, with bits moving 10 gigabytes per second with a pair of 30-meter distances. One cable reaches two gigabits per 100 meters.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7222&via=n&datum=2017-11-27_15:22:29&mottagare=31202
Tomi Engdahl says:
Most 400G links used in high-speed Datacom applications will utilize signaling formats such as pulse amplitude modulation 4-level (PAM4) to achieve design goals set forth by draft standards such as 400G Ethernet (IEEE 802.3bs and IEEE 802.3cd) and OIF-CEI-56G.
engineers are now faced with the challenging task of reviewing the standards in order to develop a test plan.