As an indispensable component of network design, optical transceiver has been greatly improved in the past decades to cope with the increasing needs for speed and performance. From SFP, SFP+ to QSFP+, smart engineers will always promote a wise solution to realize higher-speed connectivity. For 40G network, 40GBASE-SR4 QSFP+ transceiver just like other modules can support conversion between optical signals and electrical signals of high data rate, making itself a commonly utilized interconnection solution in data center. And there is an alternative for 40G short-reach interconnection—AOC (active optical cable).

Usually, a 40G AOC cable contains a fiber optic cable terminated with QSFP+ connectors on both ends. Additionally, there is also other version of 40GBASE QSFP+ AOC with one end connected with a QSFP+ connector and the other end with several SFP+/XFP connectors., this is typically called fanout or breakout 40G AOC cable. 40GBASE QSFP+ to QSFP+ AOC has more advantages in transmission distance, bend radius, cable size, cable weight and cable management when compared with 40G copper DAC. Compared to 40GBASE-SR4 QSFP+ transceiver, 40G AOC avoids the need for fiber optic connectors and has a similar performance as the former, which seems to be a much more faster and easier methods for 40G interconnection. However, just like the coin has two sides, everything has its merits and demerits. To figure out which one is more suitable for your applications, a brief comparison between the two components will be offered in the following text. Figure 1 shows a 40GBASE AOC plugging into a switch.

Cost—Cost must be considered when choosing a solution for 40G interconnection. And the cost can be divided into two main aspects—material cost and the maintenance cost. The market price of 40G QSFP+ AOC is generally lower than 40G QSFP+ SR4 transceiver. To accomplish the connection, additional cost for patch cables should be considered for interconnection using 40G QSFP+ SR4 transceivers. For maintenance, as above mentioned, AOC is faster and easier which do not require much skills and saves labor. If the cost is limited, then AOC could be your choice.

Transmission Distance—Optical signals are weaken as the transmission distance increases. Thus, to ensure the transmission quality, the transmission distance should be the first aspects to determine which one is better for your applications. Generally, 40G QSFP+ SR4 can support longer transmission distance than that of 40G QSFP+ AOC. For 40G transmission, if the distance is less than 100 meters, 40G QSFP+ AOC and 40G SR4 QSFP+ transceiver could have nearly the same performances. However, when the transmission distance is longer than 100 meters, the performance of 40G AOC will be limited. In this case, 40GBASE-SR4 QSFP+ will have a better performance. For example,QSFP-40G-SR4is Cisco 40GBASE-SR4 QSFP+ that can support a distance of 150m. Figure 2 shows a 40GBASE-SR4 QSFP+ and a OM3/OM4 MTP to LC break out cable, which provides a cost-effective solution for 40G interconnection for a distance of up to 150 m.

Reliability—Cables and connectors in data center inevitably need to be plugged out from devices like switches or servers for regular use and maintenance. With the actions of repeating plugging, the reliability and stability of a component became extremely important. The connectors of 40G AOC is factory pre-terminated, while QSFP+ SR4 transceivers is connected by additional MPO connectors and fiber optic cable. Thus, compared with QSFP+ SR4 transceiver, AOC is less affected by the repeating plug during daily use. In addition, there will be no insertion loss and return loss of 40G AOC, which can ensure its reliability furthermore. It has been proved that AOC has better reliability than that of transceivers.

Installation and Maintenance—Both 40G AOC and 40G QSFP+ SR4 transceiver are highly integrated components that provide increased port density and high data rate connection with great convenience during installation and maintenance. However, 40GBASE QSFP+ AOC is superior in this aspect. TakeQSFP-H40G-ACU7Mas an example, it is factory pre-terminated. Plug and play. It eliminates the process of linking two modules, which must be done for interconnection using 40G QSFP+ SR4 transceivers. Moreover, if there is a fault, you can just replace the AOC. However, the tests for the MPO connectors and cables are needed if 40G QSFP+ SR4 transceivers are used. Thus, AOC is easier and faster in installation and maintenance.

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Ever since the Gigabit Ethernet has been applied in the telecom industry, the supporting devices like SFP transceivers have enjoyed popularity among more and more places. But there are several types of SFP transceivers available on the market. Which one suits you better? This article will illustrate three types of SFP transceivers—1000BASE-T SFP, 1000BASE-SX SFP, and 1000BASE-LX/LH SFP. I hope readers can learn something at the end of this text.

SFP (Small Form-Factor Pluggable) transceiver is a compact, hot-swappable, input/output device that is used for both telecommunication and data communications applications. As a major component required for Gigabit Ethernet connectivity, SFP interfaces a network device motherboard to a fiber optic or copper networking cable. With so many types of SFP transceivers, users are supposed to select the appropriate one for each link to provide the required optical reach over the available optical fiber type (multimode fiber or single-mode fiber).

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To cope with the never-ending requirement for higher bandwidth, people are looking to migrate from 10G Ethernet to 40G Ethernet, whilst keeping their fiber infrastructure in compliance. However, the ability to migrate from 10G to 40G hinges on knowing the nature and length of the backbone cable. If you don’t know the overall length of the circuit, connector style (LC, 12 or 24 fiber MPO) or the fiber type (OM2, OM3, OM4, SM, etc.), you will trigger some mistakes during the migration. Then the following passage provides instantaneous access to detailed information about upgrading from 10G to 40G over multimode fiber.

Migrating from 10GbE to 40GbE for multimode fiber will require a lot more fibers and a different type of connector. Because 10G SR transceivers require 2 fiber strands per 10G link, 40G SR4 and CSR4 transceivers require a minimum of 8 fiber strands, and often 12 fiber strands in practice. The reason for this requirement is that 40G SR4 and CSR4 transceivers use 4 parallel fiber pairs (8 fiber strands) at 10Gbps each for a total of 40G full duplex. What’s more, 10G SR transceivers operate over dual-fiber multimode fiber (MMF) with LC connectors, and 40G SR protocols, such as SR4 and CSR4, operate over MMF ribbon with MPO connectors. As a result, 40G MPO-based SR4 transceivers cannot reuse aggregation fiber infrastructure built for 10G connectivity requiring fiber cabling infrastructure to be redesigned and replaced. The following text provides two cost-effective solutions for upgrading to 40G network.

Scenario 1—if upgrading from 10G to 40G, one or more of the LC Duplex cassette(s) can be replaced with 12 MPO adapters. The MPO adapters are designed to fit in the same opening as the cassettes. This easy upgrade path uses the 8-fiber harness cable to connect to the 10G SFP+. From Figure 1, we can see that 4 10G SFP+ modules likeSFP-10GB-SR are connected with MPO adapter by MTP harness cable. It does not require any additional space and reuses the same patch panels. Additional 12-fiber cable assemblies (or any fiber counts in multiples of 12 fibers) are provided as needed for backbone or horizontal cabling.

Scenario 2—if it is required to add some 40G connections while retaining the 10G connections, like Figure 2 shows, use one MPO/MTP LGX Cassette to connect four 10G SFP+ links. Then a Type-B female MPO/MTP trunk cable should be used between the cassette and 40G QSFP+ transceiver. QSFP+ transceiver likeQSFP-40G-SR4is needed here to provide a cost-effective solution for smoothly migrating to 40G connectivity.

• Media type—the type of cable and connector, such as LC or MPO, 12 or 24 strand fiber cable.
• Wiring pattern—12 and 24 strand cables won’t have the same wiring patterns, and it’s essential to track the wiring pattern coming out of trunk cable A and know whether it’s compatible going into trunk cable B.
• Performance level—whether it is a 40 or 100GbE cable, OM3 or OM4. This also provides details about the expected performance of a cable assembly.
• Insertion and cleaning—the number of insertions is used as an indicator of how often a particular fiber should be cleaned – if the fiber has been re-connected four or five times, it’s a good idea to clean it to remove dust or oil.
• Length of cable—the intelligent connectors enable the database to add up all the components on a circuit and see if the circuit exceeds the length budgets for 10, 40, or 100GbE. Even if the circuit segments are different lengths, it will base the length determination on the media type and expected performance level.

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The accelerating growth of worldwide network traffic is forcing service providers, enterprise network managers and architects to look to ever higher-speed network technologies, just as the cabling technologies that support them are changing continually. Both IEEE802.3 standards and the associated 10G cabling technologies have assumed many forms in order to determine what 10G cabling strategy best suits a particular organization. The 10GbE standards outlined below help define and optimize the environment in which they operate and the cabling technologies over which they communicate. After going through this passage, you may find a suitable cabling for your 10G network.

• 10GBASE-SR—uses the lowest cost optics (850nm) to support 10GbE transmission over standard multimode fiber for distances of 33 and 86 meters. The SR standard also supports up to 300 meters using the new 2000MHz/km multimode fiber (laser-optimized). SR is the lowest-cost optics of all defined 10GbE optics. TakeJD092Bas an example, it can support a link length of 300m over OM3.
• 10GBASE-LR—uses higher cost optics (1310nm) than SR and requires more complex alignment of the optics to support single-mode fiber up to 10 km.
• 10GBASE-LX4—supports traditional FDDI grade multimode fiber for distances up to 300 meters using Coarse Wavelength Division Multiplexing (CWDM) at 3.125 Gbit/s. The LX4 standard also supports single-mode fiber for up to 10 Km. LX4 is more expensive than both SR and LR because it requires four times the optical and electrical circuitry in addition to optical multiplexers.
• 10GBASE-ER—uses the most expensive optics (1550nm) to support single-mode fiber up to 30 km. For 40km, the fiber-optic connection must be an engineered link.
• 10GBASE-LRM—ratified by IEEE, uses a technology called EDC (Electronic Dispersion Compensation). 10GBASE-LRM can provide a long distance solution based on multimode fiber and operates with a single wavelength of 1310nm.
• 10GBASE-SW, 10GBASE-LW, 10GBASE-EW—defined for use with a WAN PHY. These standards were defined to operate at the same baud rate as OC-192/STM-64 SONET/SDH equipment. They are the equivalent of the SR, LR and ER standards and support the same fiber cabling. LX4 does not have an equivalent WAN PHY standard.

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If you take a look at the description of a SFP transceiver module, you will see the "DOM support” appeared in the product details. What does it mean? In fact, DOM or Digital Optical Monitoring as the words implies, is used for monitoring some parameters of the transceiver, which can help to identify the location of the fiber link failure, simplify maintenance, improve system reliability. Obviously a SFP with DOM function is high-ender than one without it. This is why most of modern optical SFP transceivers support DOM functions. To have a further understanding of DOM, some detailed information will be introduced in the following passage.

To sum up, these three commands can used to turn on/off DOM for all transceivers type in the system:

• Router (config) #transceiver type all
• Router (config-xcvr-type) #monitoring
• Router (config-xcvr-type) #end

Once enabled, DOM can be accessed via CLI using "show interface transceiver command”. Off all the five values, two mostly used and relevant values are TX and RX power, temperature is also used sometimes. The operating range of these three values is unique across all modules and is available in the data sheet.

DDM, short for Digital Diagnostics Monitoring, is a technology used in SFP transceivers in order to give the end user the ability to monitor real-time parameters of the SFPs. Such parameters include optical output power, optical input power, temperature, laser bias current, and transceiver supply voltage etc.

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Optical transceiver market is growing rapidly and expected to be worth billion dollars. Network designers confirm that big data technology in data center is a major contributor to this growth. A transceiver, as a necessary component in data center can help executives to get their data in real-time, thus people can make immediate decisions. This is why it’s so important to be aware of how transceivers help to support big data.

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2010 witnessed the ratification of 40GbE and 100GbE standard, which is a great breakthrough of telecommunication industry. This standard is developed by the IEEE 802.3ba Task Force to support sending Ethernet frames at 40 and 100 gigabits per second. They also address physical layer specifications for communication across backplanes, copper cabling, multimode fiber and single-mode fiber. In 2016, 40GbE will continue to enjoy its popularity of aggregation links in data center networks. With four times the capacity and the ability to cost-effectively migrate to 100GbE, 40GbE is regarded as the next logical step in the evolution of data network. 40GbE has been utilized worldwide, and 100GbE will become popular soon, we can’t help looking forward to the advent of higher-bandwidth network like 400GbE.

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40G QSFP+ (quad small form-factor pluggable plus) module is a compact, hot-pluggable transceiver used for data communications applications. It is the high-density interface addressing deployment of high-performance computing in data center clouds by using four independent optical transmit and receive channels. Compatible HP QSFP+ transceivers provided by Fiberstore are third-party optical modules certificated to be fully compatible with HP Switch/Router product line. HP compatible QSFP+ transceivers have the same functionality with the original. HP 40GBASE QSFP+ modules in this article are mainly introduced in three different types—40G LR4 QSFP+ transceiver, 40G SR4 QSFP+ transceiver and 40G CSR4 QSFP+ transceiver.

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Ethernet and Fibre Channel are the two typical networks that data center will utilize to present operational and maintenance issues. Traditional Ethernet is a family of frame-based computer networking technologies for local area networks (LANs), whereas Fibre Channel is used for storage area networking (SANs). Fiber over Ethernet (FCoE) is a storage networking protocol that supports Fibre Channel over Ethernet. This article will provide an overview of FCoE, describe the importance to data center that make up the new ecosystem, and explains how the technology is developed today.

FCoE combined with the advent of 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10 GE) fabrics will grant companies the ability to consolidate their I/O, cables, and adapters while at the same time increase the utilization of their servers. Conceptually FCoE can be broken down into three components: encapsulation of a Native Fibre Channel Frame into an Ethernet frame , the extension of Ethernet to become a lossless fabric, the replacing of a Fibre Channel link with MAC addresses in a lossless Ethernet fabric.

I/O consolidation means a customer can use multi-function network/storage adapters in place of single-function network-specific and storage-specific cards, thereby reducing the number of server slots and switch ports, as well as reducing the number of power consumed for I/O and necessary cooling. This also results in fewer points of management administrators will have to control. A reduction in NICs through I/O consolidation has an additional important advantage. The ability to cool a set amount of heat generated per rack is the primary barrier to data-center expansion and inefficiency encountered today. Reducing the amount of NICs in servers can reduce the amount of heat those servers generate.

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Telecom infrastructure company Zayo Group Holdings will make an investment of $14 million to provide fiber-to-the-tower (FTT) to 78 new towers in Indiana to serve a wireless customer.

Zayo said the towers will be located on 234 new network miles south and west of Indianapolis and connect a corridor to Louisville, Kentucky. The sale will also leverage 350 miles of fiber that is already in place to create a diverse ring in the region.

Zayo expects this contract to result in a strong return on the incremental $14 million capital investment to construct the additional 234 route miles of fiber network. Zayo expects to use the network to serve additional wireless tenants. Zayo will also provide fiber-based services to non-wireless customers such as universities, school districts, hospitals and content providers.

There are financial service, insurance, technology and healthcare businesses, in addition to several state and private universities in Indianapolis and the surrounding area.

"Our network will have the capacity to not only provide FTT infrastructure for one of the nation’s leading wireless carriers, but also the fiber capacity to support services to additional mobile operators and other customers in need of high-bandwidth solutions,” said Jacob Fuller, vice president of Zayo’s Mobile Infrastructure segment.

After this expansion, Zayo will have approximately 8,200 towers, including those under construction and those already connected to its fiber network.

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With the speed in the data center now increases from 10G to 40G, different optical technology and cabling are required. But at first we should figure out the design of 40G Ethernet network. There are several key factors that may affect the transition to 40G. This article today will pay special attention to those aspects that influence data center design consideration.

The MPO is defined by TIA-604-5-C, Fiber Optic Connector Intermateability Standard. Type MPO (FOCIS-5) as an array connector that can support up to 72 optical fiber connections in a single connection and ferrule. While the MPO is versatile in the fiber count supported, the 12-fiber MPO is the version widely deployed. Many data center designs today use cassette-based duplex LC connectivity or MPO to duplex LC harnesses at the electronics interface, while 12-fiber MPO-based connectivity is used to connect the trunk cabling to each cassette or harness.

• 40GBASE-SR4 (parallel optics)

100m on OM3/125m on OM4—10G on four fibers per direction

• 40GBASE-LR4(cWDM)

10km on single-mode fiber—4x10G 1300nm wavelength region

• 40GBASE-CR4

7m over copper—4x10G (twinax copper)

• 40GBASE-FR(Serial)

2km on single-mode—4x10G 1550nm

As noted above, the QSFP+ module is specified for use with different standard. The 40GBASE-SR4 is terminated with the MPO connector. For example, CiscoQSFP-40G-SR4QSFP+ transceiver enables high-bandwidth 40G optical links over 12-fiber parallel fiber terminated with MPO/MTP multifiber female connectors.

For 12-fiber MPO cassette-based optical systems already installed, 40G migration is as simple as removing the existing cassette from the patch panel housings at the equipment and cross connects and replacing the cassette with an MPO adapter panel. Next, an appropriate 12-fiber MPO jumper would be used to cross-connect the trunk cabling as well as interconnect into the QSFP. Though not widely available currently, future preterminated system trunks may utilize 24-fiber MPO connections, both on the trunks and on the cassette. In this case, 40G deployment would require an interconnect harness terminated with two 12-fiber MPO connectors at the QSFP end, and one 24-fiber MPO at the trunk end. This would provide the needed interface with the 24-fiber MPO-based trunk and the 40G QSFP. A 24-fiber MPO jumper would be needed at the system cross connects to ensure polarity was maintained and that skew was within requirements.

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Push and pull usually come as the opposite side, but in the case of telecommunication field, they definitely come hand in hand. Push-Pull or Pull-Pull cables are used for greater freedom in routing allowing for smaller bend radii in some installations. Their typical applications include vent air controls and mechanical starters in aircraft. This article today will address these two cables in detail.

While Pull-Pull cables in most cases are more flexible and are used in the tension (Pull) mode. The design has an integral return spring maintaining the load on the cable returning it to the standby position. This spring allows the use of flexible cables allowing tighter radius. Maximum working loads should be minimum breaking load of the core plus a built in safety factor.

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In 2010, the IEEE ratified the 802.3ba standard for 40/100GbE. Similar to how transportation highways are scaled to support increased traffic with multiple lanes, the 40GbE standards use parallel optics, or multiple lanes of fiber transmitting at the same speed. This cost effective 40GbE solutions are a key enabler for delivering support for higher bandwidth flows, lower latency and deterministic load sharing, whichpromote40G QSFP+ taking off in 2013. 40G QSFP+ modules have gained much popularity among users. This article will provide some detailed information about QSFP+ modules, especially Juniper QSFP options.

• The Juniper JNP-QSFP-40G-LX4 module for SMF/MMF links in 2km/150m, respectively.
• The Juniper QFX-QSFP-40G-SR4 module for MMF links for a distance of 150m.
• The Juniper JNP-QSFP-40G-LR4 modules for SMF for a distance of 10km.
• The Juniper 40G QSFP+ to 4 10G SFP+ direct-attach copper breakout cables in lengths of 1 and 3m.
• The Juniper QSFP+ to QSFP+ direct attach copper cables enable a very short length of 1, 3 and 5m.

Main Features of Juniper 40G QSFP+ Modules

• Support for 40GBASE Ethernet
• Hot-swappable input/output device that plugs into a 40-Gigabit Ethernet QSFP+ Juniper switch port
• Flexibility of interface choice
• Interoperable with other IEEE-compliant 40GBASE interfaces available in various form factors
• Support for "pay-as-you-populate" model
• Support for the Cisco quality identification (ID) feature which enables a Juniper switch to identify whether the module is certified and tested.

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Chinese networking vendor ZTE maintained its strong profit growth in 2015, but this time it was fuelled by a healthy jump in revenues as much as cutting overheads.

In its guidance for full-year 2015 ZTE said it expects revenue to top RMB 100 billion, with improved sales of LTE and optical networks driving the growth as well as smart city, enterprise ICT solutions and routers.

This will mark a 24% increase in revenues from 2014, which saw ZTE almost double its profits in spite of modest revenue growth thanks to a fairly extensive streamlining exercise. 2015 profits didn’t increase by such a large ratio this time but by a similar number in absolute terms – jumping by 44% to RMB 3.78 billion.

ZTE recorded higher sales of 4G long-term evolution (LTE) network solutions internationally, in addition to China,” said the ZTE announcement. "The company also posted increased sales of optical network solutions as the demand for broadband networks strengthens.

The growth in annual revenue was also driven by increased sales of high-end routers in overseas markets, while ZTE posted higher revenue from sales of enterprise information and communications technology (ICT) solutions including smart city and data centre solutions to companies and government departments. In addition, ZTE also boosted sales of 4G smartphones outside China, as well as terminal products for homes.

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From 3Mbps to the IEEE 802.3ba standard now supporting 40/100G speed, telecommunication field has gone through a huge migration. Let us ignore what has happened in this process, and take a look at the sudden emergence of 40G network, which has far-reaching significance to the user. From the equipment point of view, high-density 40GbE core switch board is the general trend, especially in the field of data center switches. 40G products have currently been mass produced. Many major vendors like Cisco, HP, Juniper and Mellanox have released a large variety of 40G devices including 40G transceiver and 40G cables. Of whichMellanox QSFP+will be introduced in this article in detail.

• Mellanox QSFP SR4 module uses MTP/MPO connector type to connect an OM3/OM4 fiber cable.
• Mellanox QSFP SR4E module uses MPO connector type to connect OM3 and OM4 fiber cables.
• Mellanox QSFP LR4 module uses LC-LC connector type to connect a fiber cable.

QSFP+ transceivers are designed to carry Serial Attached SCSI, 40G Ethernet, QDR (40G) and FDR (56G) Infiniband, and other communications standards. QSFP modules increase the port-density by 3x-4x compared to SFP+ modules. Mellanox’s QSFP+ optical transceiver is designed to provide outstanding performance in high bandwidth applications such as FDR InfiniBand and Ethernet, at speeds up to 56Gb/s and reaches up to 30 meters. Each of Mellanox’s 56Gb/s QSFP modules contain four fiber optic transceivers, each operating at data rates of up to 14.0625Gb/s. Rigorous production testing ensures the best out-of-the-box installation experience, performance and durability.

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Optical fiber cabling had gone through rapid development over recent years and maintained its leading role in telecom field. While twinax cable still remained a good way to access the networking industry trends over the last three decades and presented the highest longevity among all media. Twinax cable (see in following Figure) is a type of cable similar to coaxial cable that has two inner conductors instead of one. And owing to its cost efficiency, it is commonly used in short-range high-speed differential signaling applications. Currently there is a twinax cable which comes in either passive or active copper cable. So what is the difference between them? Today’s passage will provide a satisfying solution to you.

When the distance between connection points exceeds 5m, it is highly recommended to use active cables to ensure signal is transferred all the way through. The downside is that they are more expensive and use more power. The upside is that you don't have to worry about distance (up to 300 meters) and, perhaps more importantly, you don't have to worry about which vendor’s cable you use and the signal is improved and gives peace of mind by creating a trustworthy connection. In regards to active versus passive twinax cables, it depends on what you are connecting together.

QSFP to 4SFP+ copper breakout cables are suitable for very short distances and offer a very cost-effective way to connect within racks and across adjacent racks. TakeQSFP-4SFP10G-CU1Mas an example, this breakout cable connects a 40G QSFP port and four 10G SFP+ ports of Cisco switches and operates at a link length of 1m. While a QSFP+ to QSFP+ passive copper cable consists of a cable assembly that connects directly into two QSFP+ modules, one at each end of the cable. This cable use integrated duplex serial data links for bidirectional communication and is designed for data rates up to 40Gbps. There are various QSFP+ to QSFP+ passive copper cables branded by famous brands, like Cisco, HP, Juniper, Brocade, etc. The following picture shows a CiscoQSFP-H40G-CU3MCompatible QSFP+ to QSFP+ passive copper cable.

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A heated debate over whether fiber will take place of copper in the near future has caught people’s attention lately. Five to seven years ago, fiber was considerably more expensive than copper and, as such, was used sparingly. As fiber price has dropped dramatically and our bandwidth needs have grown, data centers have started to use more fibers all the way to their infrastructure. Under this circumstance, people wonder that copper cabling may soon be out of the stage of telecom industry. But the truth is that there is a still a place for copper cabling in the data center, even in 40G data center.

The problem of standard twinaxial cables is not their performance as much as their tendency to be stiff and bulky, thus consuming precious rack space and blocking critical airflow. The current copper solution for 40G Ethernet limits the architectures one can deploy. 40G Ethernet QSFP+ DAC cable assemblies have a reach of 5 to 7 meters. Thus QSFP+ DAC cable (or QSFP+ breakout cable) assemblies cannot be used for most end-of-row (EoR) implementations or other architectures. What’s worse, DAC cable assemblies are a point-to-point solution and therefore cannot support a structured cabling design. Designers must be careful not to bend the cables too much because the cable’s shielding and overwrap materials can distort the precise cable geometry needed to maintain impedance control, which can degrade signal performance. Moreover, the wrapped shield, with repeated breaks in the shield along the cable length, can produce an unwanted resonance effect, evident at certain frequencies.

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SAN FRANCISCO – Ford is making a big push to get intimately involved with the daily mobility needs of all motorists, regardless of whether they own a Ford automobile.

In April, the automaker will launch a smartphone app called FordPass that helps users with parking and other services, provides live assistants via chat or voice, and offers reward-based programs with partner companies. Although FordPass can be used by anyone, it offers the most benefits to Ford vehicle owners.

Ford also will roll out four new FordHubs that, much like interactive kiosks at events such as the North American International Motor Show, opening Monday in Detroit, are designed to showcase the company’s various Ford Smart Mobility initiatives. They won't be points of sale.

"We don’t just want to be in the vehicle business, we want to be in the connected relationship business,” Ford CEO Mark Fields told USA TODAY. "Anyone can make an app. This is more than that. It’s about a platform that has a digital as well as physical presence in the lives of anyone who uses transportation.”

FordPass is a bold and logical step from Fields. Since taking the reins in 2014, he's been maneuvering his company to to source new revenue streams in a transportation future powered by Millennials who typically see more value in car sharing than ownership. Fields has been particularly aggressive in pushing forward into autonomous cars — fleets of which may form the next great urban transportation network — and driver-assist systems, both of which he discussed at last week's auto-tech-filled 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Ford executives say that the 18-month project leveraged deep dives into a range of digital branding successes including Amazon’s Mayday button (which summons a live consultant to a Kindle Fire screen), Burberry’s in-store digital runaway experiences (bringing apparel to life for shoppers) and Nespresso’s customer-centric strategy (which includes a mix of retail outlets and phone consultants).

When FordPass launches, users can book and pay for off-street parking in advance.Partner companies will include ParkWhiz and Parkopedia. Using the app,another partner, FlightCar, offers the opportunity to rent out your vehicle for paywhile you’re away on a trip.FordPass will be available first in the U.S. and Canada, followed by specific European markets as well as China and Brazil.

Tapping into even the smallest percentage of mobility-related transactions of commuters would result in significant sales. Similarly, FordPass app fans who might be in the market for a vehicle could translate to new customers.

Fields says FordPass may well be used by people "who may never buy a Ford, but we still want to be part of making their lives easier.”

Also part of the FordPass roll out is a user loyalty program with two initial partners, McDonald’s and 7-Eleven. While details are still coming into focus, the idea is that FordPass users who shop at those businesses can accrue points while in turn the retailers can offer shopping incentives to users through the app. At launch, the partnership roster seems thin. But Fields says the company is carefully evaluating who to sync up to FordPass. . "There has to be a meeting of minds," he said.

Not surprisingly, the full suite of FordPass options are available only toFord car owners, specifically thosewith vehicles equipped with Sync Connect infotainment systems. TheFordPass appwillprovideaccess to features such as remote start, lock and unlock, vehicle location assistance,updates on fluid levels, and the opportunity toschedule dealership appointments.

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When you look at the evolution of networking and the data that drives it, there is no surprise that Ethernet has been and will continue to be the most widely used network interface. Consumers and network designers wish to smoothly migrate to higher network speed—100G/400G without compromising quality. Ethernet speed upgrade path was clearly defined as from 10G,40G to 100G. But recently a new migrate path (10G-25G-100G) was gradually accepted by subscribers. For those who need to migrate their network to adopt to the big data age, choose 25G or 40G Ethernet, that is the question! This article provides the pros and cons of 25G and 40G Ethernet network. You will get your own answer at the end of it.

Here Comes 25 Gigabit Ethernet
25 Gigabit Ethernet has passed the first hurdle in the IEEE standards body with a successful Call for Interest (CFI) in July, 2014. It is a proposed standard for Ethernet connectivity that will benefit cloud and enterprise data center environments. 25 GbE leverages technology defined for 100 Gigabit Ethernet implemented as four 25 Gbit/s lanes (IEEE 802.3bj) running on four fibers or copper pairs. Telecom giants like Google, Microsoft, Arista, and Mellanox are pushing the development of a 25 Gigabit Ethernet standard for top-of-tack server networking. Relevant transceiver modules and optical cables are developed to support this technology.

40G Ethernet Network
The IEEE P802.3ba 40G and 100G Ethernet Task Force was formed to develop a 40 Gigabit Ethernet and 100 Gigabit Ethernet draft standard. At the physical layer, 40G Ethernet is essentially 4×10G lanes. Standards-based 40G Ethernet switches and routers are starting to show up in enterprise networks, following ratification of the IEEE 802.3ba specification in mid-2010. QSFP+ modules and 40G DAC cables are introduced to back 40G networking, which are warmly welcomed by network designers. For example, QSFPP-4X10GE-LR (see in Figure 2) is compatible Juniper QSFP+ transceiver. It can be used in a 4×10G modules with 10GBASE-LR interfaces.

25 Gigabit or 40 Gigabit Ethernet for Your Server
The most obvious feature of 25 Gigabit is described in two words—single lane. The phrase refers to the electrical signaling on the chip that would power an Ethernet port, while the design of 40 GbE was based on 10 GbE. Originally, 100 GbE had a similar heritage, with its initial design in 2010 using 10 lanes of 10 Gbps. This is the first generation of 100G transport links. As standards bodies sought to improve the efficiency of 100 GbE in the coming years, its second generation consists of four lanes of 25 Gbit/s Ethernet on four fiber or copper pairs. This will be disruptive to the 10G and 40G infrastructure.

In addition, the proposed 25 GbE standard reduces the number of lanes on the chip makes it less expensive to produce and less power-hungry. It also simplifies the process with just minor changes for forward error correction and lane alignment when compared to 40 GbE. To sum up, getting 25 GbE performance for the same price of 10G combined with reduced operating costs, which makes itself a compelling proposal for migration.

On the other hand, driven by cloud computing, mobile broad-band and IPTV for higher user bandwidth, demand for 40G transport links is growing quickly. 40G links has been deployed for more than 5 years. Compared to 25GbE, it has a longer history. And a good news is that advances in semiconductor technology and innovative designs are reducing the cost of 40G systems. High-speed serial links, flexible interfaces, integrated packet, lower power and less silicon real estate are all helping telecom manufacturers deliver cost-effective solution to upgrade from 10G to 40G.

The 40GbE specification defines a wide range of port types and has been ratified by IEEE. 40G optical equipment are all compatible with the existing 10G devices. Take 40G-QSFP-4SFP-C-0101 (see in Figure 3) as an example, it is the compatible Brocade QSFP+ to 4SFP+ Passive Breakout Copper Cable, which offer a cost-effective way to establish a 40G link between QSFP port and SFP+ within racks and across adjacent racks. However, 25GbE transceiver modules like QSFP28 and SFP28 will not be compatible with the existing QSFP+ and SFP+ cable assemblies. Which will cause trouble to users. Many experts believe that if people agree to add 40GbE instead of endlessly debating will lead to faster standards completion.

Right Move at the Right Time
Planning for migration to higher-speed Ethernet can feel daunting as telecom experts hold different opinions towards the future of 25G and 40G. Some believe that the dominant next-generation server connection speed is going to be 25G, but some confirm that 40G between switches is expected to remain and will not be affected by this development. Just remember to make the right move at the right time. 

Reference:
http://www.panduit.com/heiler/TechnologyBriefs/D-COTB02--WW-ENG-25GigEthernet4Servers-W.pdf

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