Guide to SFP+ Transceiver For 10 Gigabit Ethernet

Introduction to SFP+ transceiver
The small form-factor pluggable plus (SFP+) transceiver is based on SFP and developed by the ANSI T11 fibre channel group. SFP+ has become the most popular socket on 10GE systems due to its smaller size and lower power. SFP+ modules can further be grouped into two types of host interfaces: linear or limiting. Limiting modules are preferred except when using old fiber infrastructure which requires the use of the linear interface provided by 10GBASE-LRM modules.

10 Gigabit Ethernet Standards
10 Gigabit Ethernet is a group of computer networking technologies for transmitting Ethernet frames at a rate of 10 gigabits per second. It was first defined by the IEEE 802.3ae-2002 standard. Like previous versions of Ethernet, 10GbE can use either copper or fiber cabling. However, because of its bandwidth requirements, higher-grade copper cables are required: category 6a or Class F/Category 7 cables for links up to 100m. The 10 Gigabit Ethernet standard encompasses a number of different physical layer (PHY) standards. A table is listed below to offer you a visual impression of the standards of 10 Gigabit Ethernet.

Types of SFP+ transceiver for 10 Gigabit Ethernet
SFP+ transceiver complaint with the 10 Gigabit Ethernet standards can be classified into 10GBASE-T SFP+, 10GBASE-SR SFP+, 10GBASE-LR SFP+, 10GBASE-ER SFP+, 10gBASE-LRM SFP+, etc. Next I will provide a brief introduction of the most common SFP+ transceivers for 10 Gigabit Ethernet—10GBASE-SR SFP+, 10GBASE-LR SFP+, 10GBASE-ER SFP+.

10GBASE-SR SFP+
The 10GBASE-SR SFP+ is a port type of multi-mode fiber and uses 850nm lasers. Over OM1, it has a range of 33 m, over OM2 a range of 82 m, over OM3 300 m and over OM4 400 m. 10GBASE-SR delivers the lowest cost, lowest power and smallest form factor optical modules, which was projected to make up a quarter of the total 10GbE adapter ports shipped in 2011. Take 10GB-SR-SFPP ( see in the below image) as an example, it is fully compatible with Extreme devices and the SFP+ 20-pin connector to allow hot plug capability.

10GBASE-LR SFP+
10GBASE-LR SFP+ is designed for single-mode fiber and operates at a nominal wavelength of 850 nm. The 10GBASE-LR transmitter is implemented with a Fabry–Pérot or Distributed feedback laser (DFB). DFB lasers are more expensive than VCSELs but their high power and longer wavelength allow efficient coupling into the small core of single-mode fiber over greater distances. Compared with 10GBASE-SR, the maximum range of 10GBASE-LR is 10 km.

10GBASE-ER SFP+
10GBASE-ER SFP+ transmits over single-mode fiber. Its operating wavelength is 1550 nm. This kind of SFP+ module is used to connect devices both in the same cabinet and in different physical locations up to 40km in distance that is widely used in large building, co-location facilities and carrier neutral internet exchanges.

Conclusion
SFP+ transceiver is widely used to support communication standards including synchronous optical networking (SONET)/synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH), gigabit ethernet and fiber channel. From this text, we have acquired some information about SFP+ transceiver for 10 Gigabit Ethernet. Fiberstore manufactures a complete range of SFP+ transceivers such as 10GB-SR-SFPP, SFP-10G-ER, JG234A, etc. For more information, please feel free to contact us.

Reference:
http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/interfaces-modules/transceiver-modules/data_sheet_c78-455693.pdf

Applying Fiber Plug-and-Play Solutions in Data Center

Fiber plug-and-play solutions for backbone and to the desk applications are a cost-effective and easy install option for mission critical applications such as Data Centers and Storage Area networks (SAN’s). Most fiber plug-and-play solutions operate at a high level of reliability and have considerable design flexibility. This is why it’s so important to have fiber plug-and-play solutions for data center applications. Here’s what you need to know about the top reasons of the topic.

Fast and Easy Deployment
One of the biggest issues facing data center designers is cable management in the racks and cabinets. In commercial building installations, an optical fiber cabling link is typically assembled in the field at the job site. Alternatives to this traditional implementation method are factory-terminated and preassem-bled solutions. In these alternatives, the time-consuming steps of installation are completed in the factory and the complete package is shipped to the job site for installation into a myriad of path-ways and spaces. However, fiber plug-and-play systems provide a quick method for deploying and redeploying optical connectivity for data centers using preconnected cable systems for trunks, cable assemblies and connector modules. Systems are ordered to fit the application then simply pulled and plugged in. Compared to traditional cabling system, installations times can be reduced by as much as 80%. Figure 1 shows a structure of Data Center.

Plug-and-Play Solutions Are Scalable
The plug-and-play solutions support a simpler means of upgrades, moves, adds and changes. Constant change is inevitable in data centers. New construction, technology evolutions, personnel changes and changing technical requirements are all issues to be dealt with by network administrators on a monthly and, sometimes, daily basis. This is why so many companies prefer plug-and-play solutions for data center applications as they do not have to completely shut down their entire system in order to replace the devices and it will bring little disruption to the network. Redesigning the whole system is not favorable because it’s expensive and time-consuming. This is why scalable solutions are some of the most important solutions in the technology industry.

Cooling Efficiency
The thermal needs of the systems are important to avoid premature failure due to overheating. Some systems generate so much heat that they need something extra to dissipate the heat. Fiber plug-and-play solutions have this option and are quite effective in cooling heat. Thermal thresholds are important to know or designers will continually have to replace items in their systems.

Reliable Solutions
Most plug-and-play solutions are reliable. They rarely fail before their life expectancy. Thus, it’s easy to predict their replacement. They can help designers find the solution they need to optimize and help them achieve their desired outcomes. Most companies can plan ahead and avoid downtime that may be associated with these particular devices. The reliability of these devices makes them attractive to designers who require this type of functionality. Because of the scalable cable density and the reliability of the data transmissions, proper airflow is achieved and installation and maintenance costs are reduced.

Conclusion
Fiber plug-and-play solutions are designed to transmit data with a high degree of integrity, reliability, and efficiency and meet the thermal needs of today’s mission-critical data center applications. When they employ the fiber plug-and-play solutions, they will achieve the desired results that they need. Fiberstore supplies a variety of telecom products including those displayed in Figure 1. J4858C, Cisco GLC-T and DEM-311GT are all compatible with major brand and available at Fiberstore with competitive prices. Contact Fiberstore to learn more about what you need to accelerate your fiber plug-and-play solutions.

Reference:
http://www.bradreese.com/adc-plug-and-play.pdf

How do you turn your tech start-up into a global giant?

Launching your own tech start-up propelled by dreams of becoming a paper billionaire is undoubtedly exciting - and relatively easy these days.

But turning your "killer app" or web service into a global giant attracting millions of users and stratospheric valuations is much more difficult.
Yes, we've had the likes of Google, Facebook, Airbnb, Uber, and Spotify, but the reality is that 90% of all early stage businesses fail, whether through lack of investment, customers or sales.
There are just 143 tech "unicorns" worldwide, according to research company CB Insights - defined as privately held tech start-ups worth more than $1bn (￡650m) - and over half are based in the US.
So how do you build your own tech giant?

The big idea
Clearly, every tech business begins with an idea.
Mark Zuckerberg dreamt up Facebook in his college dorm room and Chris Barton thought up Shazam, an app that recognises songs, in the bath.
But very few ideas actually come from "pure inspiration", says Ajay Chowdhury, partner and managing director of venture capital firm BCG Digital Ventures and former chairman of Shazam.
"What I call 'research' innovation is far more prevalent," he says. "This is where you're looking for pain points in an industry and saying how do we address those pain points."
In other words, what problem does your technology solve? What service does your tech provide that has never been provided before?
He gives the example of Airbnb, which tapped into the $550bn global hotel market by enabling people to rent out their spare rooms.
Its co-founder Brian Chesky once advised other tech entrepreneurs to "build something 100 people love, not something one million people kind of like."
'Winner takes all'
Having a good idea is only part of the battle, though.

"People can come up with a great idea but it might not be a real business," says John Somorjai, executive vice president of Salesforce Ventures, an investment subsidiary of cloud-based sales and analytics platform, Salesforce.com.
"Before we invest we consider the size of the market opportunity, the quality of the management team and whether they are building customer traction."
Greg Wolf, of corporate finance house Widebridge Group, adds that an idea must also be "protectable".
This is because in many sectors there is only room for one market leader, particularly if you're targeting a consumer audience, he says.
"The software for social networking is pretty easy to build, but you don't see anyone displacing Facebook," he says.

Culture and teamwork
One major challenge for a fast-growing tech company is retaining its culture and values as the number of employees swells, says Zack Sabban, founder and chief executive of Festicket, a London-based start-up specialising in packaging music festival tickets with accommodation, travel and other services.
"If you have a strong company culture, people will be more independent, autonomous and entrepreneurial," he says.
"Keeping the same culture while you are tripling your team size, and therefore need more corporate processes in place, is very challenging."
Another related challenge is finding enough skilled people who share your vision for the company, says Chris Morton, co-founder and chief executive of online fashion platform, Lyst.
"If you hire great people, then good people will want to work for you; if you compromise then you won't be able to attract talent," he says.

Magnetic pull
Where you set up shop may also influence how successful you are.
More than 60% of today's biggest privately held start-ups are based in the US, with 23% in Asia and 13% in Europe, says CB Insights.
California's Silicon Valley still dominates the global tech scene, attracting "the world's best engineers and an abundance of capital", says Mr Wong. That concentration of money and skills produces "a lot of successful ideas," he says.
According to Dow Jones, European start-ups raised $8bn in venture capital in 2014 while US companies raised about $52bn.
Mr Chowdhury believes this is because investors in Europe are simply too risk averse.
"Historically, Europe's venture capital firms have been staffed by bankers and accountants and they are not usually risk-taking people.
"In the US, the investors have often been tech entrepreneurs and built successful companies, and they are more willing to take a chance on a new idea."

Fashion focused
That's not to say you can't grow your own tech giant outside the US.
Skype, the internet phone and video company founded by a Dane and a Swede, was sold to Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5bn.
Sweden's music-streaming service, Spotify, is now valued at more than $8.5bn, while peer-to-peer payments firm TransferWise, founded by two Estonians, has processed about $3bn of payments to date.

And China's online retail phenomenon, Alibaba, now has a US stock market valuation of more than $210bn.
There's no shortage of funding for the right idea either, it seems. Lyst has raised $60m of investment over the last four years, while the younger Festicket has raised nearly $4m.
"Raising money hasn't been an issue," says Lyst's Mr Morton. "All of our money has come from fashion savvy cities like London, New York, Hong Kong and Paris."

Grow fast, think global
US tech start-ups have the advantage of having a huge ready-made - and largely monolingual - market on their doorsteps. Non-US start-ups don't have that luxury - China notwithstanding.
"Companies really need to think globally from the start, but many do not," says Mr Wolf.
In 2013 - against the advice of some of his investors - Jens Wohltorf took the bold decision to expand his Berlin-based Uber-style taxi service, Blacklane, into 100 cities in 100 business days.

This meant automating a lot of processes, recruiting a lot of new drivers, and promoting the service in many new languages.
"These were all challenges we had to overcome," he says. "But the effort we put in to doing this paid off."
Blacklane now operates in 180 cities worldwide and has raised €25m ($27m; ￡18m) in venture capital funding.
But perhaps the best way to ensure your tech start-up blossoms into a tech giant is to resist selling out the moment Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Apple come knocking, chequebooks in hand.

Unveiling 10G Transceiver Modules

As the core of optoelectronic device in the WAN, MAN or LAN application, fiber optic transceivers have developed various types along with the increasing in complexity. Take 10G transceiver module as an example, it has experienced developments from XENPAK, X2, XFP and finally realized with SFP+. Many users raised the questions related to the main difference between these optical modules. So, in the following part, we will provide some main tips about the difference among the XENPAK, X2, XEP and SFP +.

Four Transceiver Modules—Description & Comparison
Those four transceivers (see in Figure 1) are all used to transmit 10G signal using Ethernet protocol. They are the result of Multi-Source Agreement (MSAs) that enable vendors to produce 802.3ae-compliant pluggable transceivers. The following part will provide a general guide to these module types.

XENPAK—the first 10GbE pluggable transceiver optics. Presents SC connectors
X2—the successor to the XENPAK (the smaller brother of the XENPAK). Presents SC connectors
XFP—the first of the small form factor 10GbE optics and newest pluggable transceiver. Presents LC connectors
SFP+—a 10GbE optics using the same physical form factor as a gigabit SFP. Because of this, many of the small SFP+ based 10GbE switches use 1G/10G ports, giving an added degree of flexibility. Presents LC connectors.

The first published XENPAK was by far the largest in physical size, which totally limited its popularity on the market. Many vendors then began to work on alternative standards. Finally in 2003, MSAs published another two 10G transceiver modules called X2 and XFP. X2 and XFP modules have been developed that support all of the high-power, long-distance applications once reserved for the larger XENPAK transceivers. But nowadays, SFP+ has gradually replaced the XFP and becomes the main stream of 10G transceivers markets. Why? The following part will answer you.

Contrast Between XFP and SFP+
XFP modules are hot-swappable and protocol-independent. They typically operate at near-infrared wavelengths of 850nm, 1310nm or 1550nm. They can operate over a single wavelength or use dense wavelength-division multiplexing techniques. SFP+ published on May 9, 2006, is an enhanced version of the SFP that supports data rates up to 16 Gbit/s. SFP+ supports 8 Gbit/s Fibre Channel, 10 Gigabit Ethernet and Optical Transport Network standard OTU2. It is a popular industry format supported by many network component vendors. Although the SFP+ standard does not mention 16G Fibre Channel, it can be used at this speed.

Both SFP+ and XFP are 10G transceivers, and can connect with other 10G transceivers. The main reason why SFP+ gain more market share than XFP is that SFP+ is more compact sized than XFP. The smaller SFP+ transfers the modulation functions, serial/deserializer, MAC, clock and data recovery (CDR) and EDC functions from the module to the motherboard on the card. In addition, cost of SFP+ is lower than XFP. Because XFP relies on a high-speed interface (10.3125Gbps), high-priced serializer/deserializer (SERDES) is required inside the switch to support it. They add an unacceptable cost to the base system of XFP. XFP complies with protocol of XFP MSA while SFP+ complies with IEEE802.3, SFF-8431, SFF-8432. SFP+ is the mainstream design currently.

Conclusion
SFP+, with its advantages of smaller size, low-cost and meeting the demand of high-density fiber transceivers, is anticipated to give rise to the realization better speed communication networks of the next generation. Fiberstore, as a professional optical transceiver modules manufacturer, supplies a complete range of 10G transceiver modules that can be customized as well. SFP-10G-ER, HP J9150A, F5-UPG-SFP+-R, Finisar FTLX1471D3BCL, QFX-SFP-10GE-SR—these compatible 10G transceiver modules are all available at Fiberstore. If you want to know more about 10G transceiver modules, welcome to contact us.

Reference:
http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/interfaces_modules/transceiver_modules/compatibility/matrix/10GE_Tx_Matrix.html

Classification of Transceiver Modules

Transceiver modules can be classified into different categories based on several different criteria. Package, transmission distance, wavelength, work rate, fiber mode, and connector type are all the common characteristics used for defining fiber optic transceivers. The following is a brief introduction to some of the characteristics used in classifying transceiver modules.

Package of Fiber Optic Transceiver
According to the optical module package, fiber optic transceivers can be divided into SFP, SFP+, XFP, GBIC, X2, XENPAK, QSFP+, PON, CSFP, CFP, 1X9 and SFF. Each package has its unique feature. Nowadays, SFP, SFP+, XFP and QSFP+ are the popular packages and they have been widely used in many fields, such as video communication field, aerospace, fiber to the home and so on. The image below shows a compatible HP SFP transceiver module.

Data Transfer Distance
In relation to data transfer distance, one major difference is multi-mode versus single-mode transceivers. For instance, a multi-mode transceiver will typically cover a distance of 100 m to 500 m. A single-mode transceiver can transmit a distance from 2 km to 120 km. This is an important aspect that people should consider when selecting a transceiver for an application. If the transmission distance is not adequate, the application will not work properly. Data transmission distance may be affected by whether the transceivers are single fiber or dual fiber.

Wavelength
Wavelength is the distance between repeating units of a propagating wave of a given frequency. Fiber optics transceivers transmit signal typically around 850, 1300 and 1550 nm. Multi-mode fiber is designed to operate at 850 and 1300 nm, while single-mode fiber is optimized for 1310 and 1550 nm.

Recent telecom systems use wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM), either DWDM (dense WDM) or CWDM (coarse WDM). For the fiber optic transceiver modules, the common wavelength (see in below image) includes 850 nm, 1279 nm, 1310 nm, 1330 nm, 1490 nm, 1510 nm, 1550 nm and 1610 nm. In the CWDM system, the wavelength range is from 1270 nm to 1610 nm, 20nm as a wave band. In the DWDM system, the wavelength range is also from 1270 nm to 1610 nm, but 0.8nm as a wave band.

Work Rate
The above type of classification brings two distinct types—full duplex mode and half duplex mode. The full duplex mode occurs when the data transmission is transmitted by two different transmission lines. There is communication at both ends of the device and is used for both sending and receiving operations. In this type of transceiver configuration, there is typically, no time delay generated by the operation.

The half-duplex mode is used with a single transmission line that is used for both reception and transmission. The communication cannot occur simultaneously in the same direction. That’s why it’s called the half-duplex system.

Managed Versus Unmanaged Transceivers
Unmanaged Ethernet optical transceivers are typically plug and play. They may have electrical interfaces with hardware DIP switch settings mode. With managed Ethernet fiber optic transceivers, they support a carrier-grade network management.

Conclusion
When you design for fiber optic transceiver, these classification criteria will come in handy. Fiberstore, as an professional telecommunication manufacturer, provides a large amount of fiber optic transceiver modules like SFP+ transceiver, X2 transceiver, XENPAK transceiver, XFP transceiver, SFP transceiver, GBIC transceiver, CWDM/DWDM transceiver, etc. J4858C, DS-SFP-FC8G-SW, DEM-310GT and Finisar FTLX1471D3BCL are all available at Fiberstore. They are fully compatible with major brand. If you have any question, please contact us directly.

1000BASE-T – Gigabit Over Copper Cabling

With the massive applications of bandwidth-related products in telecommunication networks, people may encounter a dilemma of whether to deploy fiber-based or copper-based infrastructure. Limited budget always comes as an essential factor deciding people’s choice, under this circumstance, copper cabling or 1000BASE-T proves to be a nice and cost-saving method.

What Does 1000BASE-T Mean?
1000Base-T is a shorthand designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The 1,000 refers to the transmission speed of 1,000 Mbps, while “base” refers to baseband signaling, which means that only Ethernet signals are being carried on this medium. The “T” refers to the twisted pair cables this technology uses. The following image shows a compatible Finisar FCLF8521P2BTL.

1000Base-T is a type of gigabit Ethernet networking technology that uses copper cables as a medium. 1000Base-T uses four pairs of Category 5 unshielded twisted pair cables to achieve gigabit data rates. The standard is designated as IEEE 802.3ab and allows 1 Gbps data transfer for distances of up to 330 feet.

Comparison Between 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-X, and 1000BASE-T
1000BASE-T is one of the four physical layers or transceivers defined by the two Gigabit Ethernet standards: IEEE 802.3z or 1000BASE-X and IEEE 802.3ab or 1000BASE-T. The following text will describe the comparison between 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-X, and 1000BASE-T in details. Firstly, let us see the table below.

1000BASE-X supports multi-mode and single-mode fiber media and a short-reach, 25-meter copper jumper. As most of the cabling installed inside buildings today is Category 5 copper, the IEEE 802.3 1000BASE-T standard supports Gigabit Ethernet operation over the Category 5 cabling systems installed according to the specifications of ANSI/TIA/EIA-568A (1995). 1000BASE-T, however, works by using all four of the Category 5 pairs to achieve 1000 Mbps operation over the installed Category 5 copper cabling. 1000 Mbps data rates are achieved by sending and receiving a 250 Mbps data stream over each of the four pairs simultaneously.

In contrast, 100BASE-TX uses two pairs: one to transmit and one to receive. Fast Ethernet on Copper (100BASE-TX) achieves 100 Mbps operation by sending encoded symbols across the link at a symbol rate of 125 Mbaud. A 125 Mbaud symbol rate is required because the 100BASE-TX encoding scheme (called 4B/5B coding) has a bandwidth overhead of 20 percent, the difference between 100 Mbps and 125 Mbaud. Although 1000BASE-T uses a different encoding scheme (five level pulse amplitude modulation or PAM-5), because it maintains the 125 Mbaud symbol rate of 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T is backwards compatible with 100BASE-FX at the physical layer.

This compatibility feature is significant for network managers and planners because it means that forthcoming generations of 1000BASE-T NICs and switches will support both 100/1000 and 10/100/1000 autonegotiation between Fast Ethernet (100BASE-TX) and Gigabit Ethernet (1000BASE-T). These speed-agile products will enable network managers to deploy 1000BASE-T incrementally into the network.

Fiberstore Compatible 1000BASE-T Transceiver
1000BASE-T is a time-saving and cost-effective solution. Various products have been provided to enhance the 1000BASE-T performances. Fiberstore provides a wide range of 1000BASE-T transceiver modules including FCLF8521P2BTL, AA1419043-E6 and SFP-1GE-FE-E-T. Please feel free to contact us for more information about 1000BASE-T transceivers.

Reference:
http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/interfaces-modules/gigabit-ethernet-gbic-sfp-modules/product_data_sheet0900aecd8033f885.html