Effectively enabling your network comes down to your ability to address a range of different connectivity questions. For starters, with cabling, it’s a matter of dealing with long range, short range and twisted pair options. From there, it becomes a matter of dealing with pluggables — which goes beyond simply matching the speed, mode and fiber type.
As Fuel Member Ian P. Johnston, a security engineer and analyst, describes, “The ISO Seven Layer Networking Model is still essential to designing, maintaining, operating and troubleshooting networks. We can be thankful that Ethernet and IP now dominate layers 2 and 3, but getting the layer 1 fiber connections right seems to get harder by the month: Just as one gets used to LC and ST, along with the options for SFPs, SFP+s, LR, SR, SM, MM, etc. etc., something new like 40G or 100G comes along! Great news for data transfer, but more trouble for the engineer who's got to figure out the best connectivity options and create the BOM.”
We caught up with Chris Bihary, CEO and co-founder of Garland Technology, which provides network test access points (TAPs), to help address questions related to network connectivity. Bihary, along with Patrick Nixdorf, system engineer for Garland, will be presenting a webinar* on May 2 that addresses the basics of network connectivity, along with vendor-specific connectivity such as BiDi and MTP®. This webinar will also dive into the unique environmental considerations within Industrial Ethernet and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) settings.
Fuel: When it comes to the basics of Network Connectivity, in your opinion, what are some common misperceptions that cause users the greatest challenge?
Bihary: Lack of knowledge on fiber technology and fiber connectors. For example, people are used to LC connectors, but when they transition to MPO-12 or MPO-24, there is not much education available. In the security space, 1G copper interfaces are common, however when we move to fiber, especially 10G and beyond, more education is needed on how to best achieve these speeds.
Fuel: What will attendees of the webinar learn with regard to vendor-specific connectivity?
Bihary: MPO for 40G and 100G Data Centers is becoming a standard because of the higher density compared to LC or SC connectors, as well as lower install cost. However, with more fibers per connector comes the issue of higher dB losses. During the webinar, we will discuss how US Conec developed the MTP-brand connectors to overcome this issue. We will also discuss the different ways dB loss can be measured — this is of great importance when evaluating technologies, because there is not a set standard and engineers need to know how many fiber loss connection points are being measured compared to what will take place in their network environment. Implementation of Cisco's bidirectional (BiDi) optical technology is a viable option to boost 10G traffic to 40G, without cabling infrastructure upgrades. We will show how to utilize 50 micron, dual strand OM3/OM4 multi-mode fiber to achieve 40G traffic from 20G single strand fiber with two different wavelengths.
Fuel: What is the key takeaway that attendees can expect from this webinar?
Bihary: Full knowledge of copper and fiber interfaces for any speed from 10M to 100G. Different speeds that are supported and different ways to use cables for different applications. When someone requests MTP-24 fiber, not only will you know the speeds it can achieve, but you'll know how the fibers are utilized to achieve the speed.
Network Connectivity — Basics and Beyond
Tuesday, May 2, 2017
12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. Central Time
12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. Central Time
Speaker: Chris Bihary, CEO/Co-Founder, Garland Technology; Patrick Nixdorf, System Engineer, Garland Technology
Join Garland Technology, a Fuel Founding Partner on a network connectivity reboot - this webinar will begin with covering the basics and expand into vendor-specific connectivity such as BiDi and MTP® as well as the unique environmental considerations within Industrial Ethernet and Industrial Internet of things (IIoT) settings.
