10-gigabit Ethernet
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Ten-gigabit Ethernet (XGbE or 10GbE) is the most recent (as of 2002) and fastest of the Ethernet standards.
IEEE 802.3ae defines a version of Ethernet with a nominal data rate of 10 Gbit/s, ten times faster than gigabit Ethernet.
The new 10-gigabit Ethernet standard encompasses seven different media types for LAN, MAN and WAN. It is currently specified by a supplementary standard, IEEE 802.3ae, and will be incorporated into a future revision of the IEEE 802.3 standard.
- 10GBASE-SR ("short range") -- designed to support short distances over deployed multi-mode fiber cabling, it has a range of between 26 m and 82 m depending on cable type. It also supports 300 m operation over a new 2000 MHz·km multi-mode fiber.
- 10GBASE-CX4 -- Copper interface using InfiniBand CX4 cables and InfiniBand 4x connectors for short-reach (15 m maximum) applications (such as aggregation switch to router). This is currently the lowest-cost per port interface at the expense of transmission range.
- 10GBASE-LX4 -- uses wavelength division multiplexing to support ranges of between 240 m and 300 m over deployed multi-mode cabling. Also supports 10 km over single-mode fiber.
- 10GBASE-LR and 10GBASE-ER ("long range" and "extended range")-- these standards support 10 km and 40 km respectively over single-mode fiber. Recently several manufacturers have introduced 80-km-range ER pluggable interfaces.
- 10GBASE-LRM - http://www.ieee802.org/3/aq/, 10 Gbit/s on FDDI-grade 62.5 µm multi-mode cable
- 10GBASE-SW, 10GBASE-LW and 10GBASE-EW. These varieties use the WAN PHY, designed to interoperate with OC-192/STM-64 SONET/SDH equipment. They correspond at the physical layer to 10GBASE-SR, 10GBASE-LR and 10GBASE-ER respecively, and hence use the same types of fiber and support the same distances. (There is no WAN PHY standard corresponding to 10GBASE-LX4.)
Unlike earlier Ethernet systems, 10-gigabit Ethernet (for any nontrivial distance) is so far based entirely on the use of optical fibre connections. However, the IEEE is developing a standard for 10-gigabit Ethernet over twisted pairs (10GBASE-T), using Cat-6 or Cat-7 cable and planned for approval in 2006. Additionally, this developing standard is moving away from half duplex design, with broadcasting to all nodes, towards only supporting switched full duplex networks. It is claimed that this system has high compatibility with earlier Ethernet and IEEE 802 networks.
10-gigabit Ethernet is very new, and it remains to be seen which of the standards will gain commercial acceptance.
See also
External links
- 10 Gigabit Ethernet Alliance (http://www.10gea.org/)
- IEEE 10GBASE-CX4 study group (http://www.ieee802.org/3/10GBCX4/)
- Network World Fusion article on 10GBASE-CX4 lowering costs (http://www.nwfusion.com/news/tech/2004/0524techupdate.html)
- Google 10GBASE-CX4 keyword search (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=10GBase-CX4&btnG=Google+Search)
- Manufacturer of structured cabling system for 10-gigabit Ethernet business applications (http://www.siemon.com/us/10Gip)
- University of New Hampshire Interoperability Laboratory 10 Gigabit Ethernet Consortium (http://www.iol.unh.edu/consortiums/10gec/)