Choosing 24-Fiber MPOMTP Cabling for 40100G Migration
Running 40G requires 8 fibers, with 4 fibers each transmitting at 10Gbit/s and 4 fibers each receiving at 10Gbit/s. Running 100G requires a total of 20 fibers, with 10 transmitting at 10Gbit/s and 10 receiving at 10Gbit/s. Both scenarios call for high-density MPO-style connectors, which can be either 12-fiber or 24-fiber. However, 24-fiber MPO/MTP cabling is often considered to be the better solution for 40/100G migration. Why? Reading this post and you will get the reasons.
Running 40G requires 8 fibers, with 4 fibers each transmitting at 10Gbit/s and 4 fibers each receiving at 10Gbit/s. Running 100G requires a total of 20 fibers, with 10 transmitting at 10Gbit/s and 10 receiving at 10Gbit/s. Both scenarios call for high-density MPO-style connectors, which can be either 12-fiber or 24-fiber. However, 24-fiber MPO/MTP cabling is often considered to be the better solution for 40/100G migration. Why? Reading this post and you will get the reasons.
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
WHITE PAPER<br />
<strong>Choosing</strong> <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong><br />
MPO/MTP <strong>Cabling</strong> <strong>for</strong><br />
40/100G <strong>Migration</strong><br />
In 2002, the IEEE ratified the 802.3ae standard <strong>for</strong> 10GbE over duplex fibers (one fiber transmits and<br />
the other receives) terminated with duplex LC-style connectors and vertical cavity surface-emitting<br />
laser (VCSEL) transceivers. With the increasing need <strong>for</strong> high speed data transmission, in 2010, the<br />
IEEE ratified the 802.3ba standard <strong>for</strong> 40/100G to satisfy this demand. Similar to how transportation<br />
highways are scaled to support increased traffic with multiple lanes at the same speed, the 40/100G<br />
standards use parallel optics, or multiple lanes of fiber transmitting at the same speed. Running 40G<br />
requires 8 fibers, with 4 fibers each transmitting at 10Gbit/s and 4 fibers each receiving at 10Gbit/s.<br />
Running 100G requires a total of 20 fibers, with 10 transmitting at 10Gbit/s and 10 receiving at<br />
10Gbit/s. Both scenarios call <strong>for</strong> high-density MPO-style connectors, which can be either 12-fiber or<br />
<strong>24</strong>-fiber. However, <strong>24</strong>-fiber MPO/MTP cabling is often considered to be the better solution <strong>for</strong><br />
40/100G migration. Why? Reading this post and you will get the reasons.<br />
12-<strong>Fiber</strong> and <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP <strong>Cabling</strong><br />
A 12-fiber MPO/MTP connector is used <strong>for</strong> 40G Ethernet. Among the 12 fibers, only 8 optical fibers<br />
are required—4 <strong>for</strong> Tx and 4 <strong>for</strong> Rx, and each channel has a transmission rate of 10Gbps (typically<br />
40G applications use only the 4 left and 4 right optical fibers of the 12-fiber MPO/MTP connector,<br />
while the inner 4 optical fibers are left unused). To run 100GbE, there are two solutions. One is to<br />
use two 12-fiber MPO/MTP connectors—one transmitting 10Gbit/s on 10 fibers and the other<br />
receiving 10Gbit/s on 10 fibers. The other solution is to use a <strong>24</strong>-fiber MPO/MTP connector—20<br />
fibers in the middle of the connector transmitting and receiving at 10Gbit/s and the 2 top and<br />
bottom on the left and right unused. 12-fiber can be both used <strong>for</strong> 40/100G solutions, but why said<br />
the <strong>24</strong>-fiber is better than 12-fiber? The following part will explain in details. The figure 1 below<br />
shows different construction of 12-fiber and <strong>24</strong>-fiber MPO/MTP.<br />
FS.COM White Paper | <strong>Choosing</strong> <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP <strong>Cabling</strong> <strong>for</strong> 40/100G <strong>Migration</strong>
WHITE PAPER<br />
Figure 1. Different Construction of 12-<strong>Fiber</strong> and <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP<br />
Why Is the <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> the Right <strong>Migration</strong> Path to 40/100G?<br />
• <strong>Fiber</strong> Utilization to the Extreme<br />
Using <strong>24</strong>-fiber trunk cables with <strong>24</strong>-fiber MPO/MTP connectors on both ends to connect from the<br />
back of the switch panel to the equipment distribution area can utilize the fibers to the extreme. As<br />
we have mentioned above, 40G will uses 8 fibers (4 Tx and 4 Rx) of the total 12-fiber trunk cable<br />
with 12-fiber MPO/MTP connectors, leaving 4 fibers unused. Nevertheless, when three 40G links<br />
are using three separate 12-fiber trunk cables, it will result in a total of 12 unused fibers, or 4 fibers<br />
unused <strong>for</strong> each trunk, which can be a waste. With the use of <strong>24</strong>-fiber, running three 40G links will<br />
use all <strong>24</strong> fibers of the trunk cable, which recoups 33 percent of the fibers that could be lost with<br />
12-fiber trunk cables, providing a much better return on investment. For 100G applications, which<br />
require 20 fibers (10 Tx and 10 Rx), a <strong>24</strong>-fiber trunk cable can provide a single 100G link instead of<br />
using two 12-fiber trunk cables.<br />
• Spacing Saving<br />
With more and more equipment and patch cables used in data centers, space is a premium. Using<br />
<strong>24</strong>-fiber trunk cable will cause less cable congestion in already-crowded pathways, which can save<br />
more space and make cable management easier. For example, <strong>for</strong> a 40G application, it takes three<br />
12-fiber trunk cables to provide the same number of links as a single <strong>24</strong>-fiber trunk cable which can<br />
take about 1.5 times more pathway space.<br />
• Increasing <strong>Fiber</strong> Density<br />
With today’s large core switches occupying upwards of one-third of an entire rack, density in fiber<br />
switch panels is critical. <strong>24</strong>-fiber MPO connectors offer a small footprint which can ultimately<br />
FS.COM White Paper | <strong>Choosing</strong> <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP <strong>Cabling</strong> <strong>for</strong> 40/100G <strong>Migration</strong>
provide increased density in fiber panels at the switch location.<br />
WHITE PAPER<br />
• Cost Effective<br />
The <strong>24</strong>-fiber data center fiber trunking and interconnect solution offers a simple and cost effective<br />
migration path from 10G-40G-100G, providing future-readiness <strong>for</strong> three generations of active<br />
equipment. With <strong>24</strong>-fiber trunk cables effectively supporting all three applications (shown in the<br />
figure 2), there is no need to recable the pathway from the back of the switch panel to the<br />
equipment distribution area.<br />
Conclusion<br />
Figure 2. <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP trunk <strong>for</strong> 10G/40G/100G Applications<br />
With increasing concerns about the cost to upgrade and the complexity involved, data center<br />
managers need a solution that simplifies the process and provides better return on investment,<br />
while meeting both current and future needs. Taking the advantages of maximum fiber utilization,<br />
space and cost saving and high density, it is no doubt that <strong>24</strong>-fiber MPO/MTP cabling is better<br />
solution <strong>for</strong> 40/100G migration.<br />
FS.COM White Paper | <strong>Choosing</strong> <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP <strong>Cabling</strong> <strong>for</strong> 40/100G <strong>Migration</strong>
WHITE PAPER<br />
Contact Us<br />
Manufacturing R & D (China)<br />
Eastern Side, Second Floor, Science &<br />
Technology Park, No.6, Keyuan Road,<br />
Nanshan District, Shenzhen 518057,<br />
China<br />
Tel: +86 (755) 8300 3611<br />
Fax: +86 (755) 8326 9395<br />
Email: sales@fs.com<br />
APAC Office (Hong Kong)<br />
1220 Tung Chun Commercial Centre,<br />
438-444 Shanghai Street, Kowloon,<br />
HongKong<br />
Tel: +(852) 817 636 06<br />
Fax: +(852) 817 636 06<br />
Email: sales@fs.com<br />
North America (United States)<br />
331 Andover Park East Ste330, Tukwila,<br />
WA 98188,United States<br />
Tel: +1 (253) 277 3058<br />
Fax: +1 (253) <strong>24</strong>6-7881<br />
Email: sales@fs.com<br />
London Office (United Kingdom)<br />
Third Floor 207 Regent Street, London,<br />
W1B 3HH, United Kingdom<br />
Tel: +44 (020) 3287 6810<br />
Follow us<br />
LinkedIn<br />
Twitter<br />
Facebook<br />
G+<br />
Pinterest<br />
Youtube<br />
Blog<br />
Notice: This document is <strong>for</strong> in<strong>for</strong>mational purposes only and does not set <strong>for</strong>th any warranty, expressed or<br />
implied, concerning any equipment, equipment features, or service offered or to be offered by FS.COM.<br />
FS.COM reserves the right to make changes to this document at any time, without notice, and assumes no<br />
responsibility <strong>for</strong> its use. This in<strong>for</strong>mation document describes features that may not be currently available.<br />
Contact a FS.COM sales team <strong>for</strong> in<strong>for</strong>mation on feature and product availability.<br />
FS.COM White Paper | <strong>Choosing</strong> <strong>24</strong>-<strong>Fiber</strong> MPO/MTP <strong>Cabling</strong> <strong>for</strong> 40/100G <strong>Migration</strong>
Change language