How to Manage Cable in Server Rack?

“I bought a server rack for my network construction several days ago. And it is a 42U server rack. However, I have mounted much equipment with numerous cables in the rack. What can I do to manage the messy wires?”

It is annoying to see many network cables messing inside a sever rack. These cables not only give you an unaesthetic feeling but also obstruct the airflow between each other, making the whole network maintenance more complicated. Therefore, it is necessary to take cable management as a priority in server rack. Next, several cable management tips are given for better experience!

Server Rack Cable Management Best Practices

Fiber Patch Panel + Horizontal Cable Manager with D-Rings

Patch panels can provide space-saving, high-density cable connections. It is very convenient to use a fiber patch panel and a horizontal cable manager with D-rings together in a server rack. The combination of these two products offers a flexible and tidy way to manage fiber optic cables in server rack.

Rack Mount Fiber Enclosure + MPO/MTP Cassettes

Rack mount fiber enclosure can also hold different types of MTP/MPO cassettes such as MTP-8, MTP-12, MTP-24, etc. It offers the interface between the MTP connector on the trunk and the LC duplex jumpers aiming to get quick connection of the applications from data center. This kind of combination is generally adopted in 10G to 40G or 25G to 100G applications.

Ethernet Patch Panel + Horizontal Cable Manager with D-Rings

This is the most commonly seen combination in server rack cable management. Situations like this always use horizontal cable manager to arrange small bundles of Ethernet patch cables. Therefore, as the carrier of copper patch cables like Cat5e, Cat6 or Cat6a, Ethernet patch panel is an incontrovertible choice.

Vertical Cable Manager with D-Rings in Server Rack

The combinations above is good for tidy cable connection and space saving cable management in server rack while the independent use of D-rings in also a vital part. It can organize the long-length cables which are stretched out from all the servers with ease, which can easily be seen from the picture below.

Label Each Cable on Both Ends in Server Rack

Actually, in addition to the four rack cable management tips above, labeling each cable is an assistant but necessary step. If the cables are labeled, then it will be convenient for the replacement of certain cables damaged or outdated in the future. Having a good label printer in the data center or computer closet is absolutely essential to ensure good rack cable management. All you need is to print off every two pieces of small labels in pairs. To ensure the quick positioning of each cable, you can label the cable on both ends with the same symbol.

Conclusion on Server Rack Cable Management

As you can see, there are many tips for server rack cable management. These solutions are very practical either involved with different combinations of various products such as fiber patch panel, rack mount enclosure, Ethernet patch panel, horizontal or vertical cable managers, etc., or concerned with overall considerations like cable labeling. Once these solutions are applied to a server rack, the cables inside will remain clean and easy to manage for years to come.

Original source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/manage-cable-in-server-rack.html

Main Types of Cisco SFP Modules and How to Choose Them?

As is know to us all, transceiver module can be divided into several types, such as RF transceiver module, SFP transceiver module, wireless transceiver module, etc. Here, we will focus on SFP transceiver, more exactly, Cisco SFP modules. Read through this post to learn more about Cisco SFP module types and how to choose them.

Main Types of Cisco SFP Modules

Cisco 1000BASE-T SFP

This type of Cisco SFP module operates on standard Category 5/5e/6a twisted-pair copper cabling with link lengths up to 100m (328ft). Such Cisco 1000BASE-T SFP modules support a max data rate of 1000Mbps and are fully compliant with the MSA and 1000BASE-T standards as specified in IEEE 802.3-2002 and IEEE 802.3ab.

Cisco 1000BASE-SX SFP

Cisco transceiver of this type works on the wavelength of 850nm. Therefore, it is a duplex SFP transceiver only for multimode fiber. It is compatible with the IEEE 802.3z 1000BASE-SX standard, and can be operated on legacy 50micron multimode fiber links up to 550m and on 62.5micron multimode fibers up to 220m. It can support up to 1km over laser-optimized 50micron multimode fiber cable.

Cisco 1000BASE-LX/LH SFP

This type of Cisco SFP is designed for both short distance and long distance data transmission. Actually, it can be regarded as two types of Cisco SFP modules for its application. It can reach a distance up to 10km when connecting with single mode fiber patch cable while up to 550m with multimode fiber patch cable.

For example, the GLC-LH-SM transceiver operates at 1310nm wavelength. This SFP transceiver is compliant with multi-source agreement (MSA) standards. And the Cisco SFP-GE-L SFP module operates at the same wavelength of 1310nm and can work over a distance of 5km through single-mode fiber cable. These two kinds of Cisco SFP modules are popular among different manufacturers.

Cisco 1000BASE-EX

This type of Cisco SFP module is used for long-reach single mode fibers. And it can be regarded as Cisco single mode SFP in essence. It operates on standard single-mode fiber link spans of up to 40km in length. Most importantly, one should insert a 5-dB inline optical attenuator between the fiber-optic cable and the SFP receiving port at each end of the link for back-to-back connectivity.

Cisco 1000BASE-ZX

Cisco SFP modules within this standard is also used for long-reach single mode fibers. This transceiver module operates on standard single-mode fiber optic link spans of up to approximately 70 km in length.

This Cisco SFP module offers an optical link budget of 21dB. However, the exact link span length may differ because of various factors such as the quality of fibers, the number of splices, and connectors. When shorter distances of single-mode fiber (SMF) are needed, it might be necessary to insert an inline optical attenuator in the link to avoid overloading the receiver. A 10dB inline optical attenuator should be inserted between the fiber optic cable connector and the receiving port on the Cisco SFP module at each end of the link once the fiber-optic cable span loss is less than 8 dB.

1000BASE-BX10-D/U

This type of SFP transceivers represent for Cisco SFP modules of 1000BASE-BX-D and 1000BASE-BX-U types in subdivision. They are commonly used in single fiber bidirectional applications.

A 1000BASE-BX10-D SFP is always used together with a 1000BASE-BX10-U transceiver, and their transmission distance is up to 10km. The communication process is accomplished by separating the transmission wavelength of the two devices. That is, if 1000BASE-BX10-D transmits a 1490nm channel and receives a 1310nm signal, 1000BASE-BX10-U will be totally opposite with 1310nm transmitting and 1490nm receiving.

How to Choose Cisco SFP Modules

From the general introduction of the main types on Cisco SFP Modules, it maybe easier for you to choose a Cisco SFP according to your actual needs with transmission distance and other factors taken into consideration.

However, in addition to subjective factors such as transmission range, operation wavelength, etc. from the SFP transceiver side, you should also consider the cost of the Cisco SFPs. Normally, it is much more expensive to buy original Cisco SFP modules. Therefore, buying them from a third-party company is a wise choice. Many third-party suppliers can offer compatible SFPs with a much lower price. These SFPs can work well with Cisco products such as Cisco SFP switch, Cisco fiber cables, etc. You just need to ask detailed information about OEMs and compatibility test and then place your order!

Original source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/main-types-cisco-sfp-modules-choosing.html

Top-of-Rack Switch: What's It and how to Buy It

When it comes to server connecting in data center, network switch is a vital part. You may heard about it that top-of-rack switch is very popular to support power required for large installations and the ToR design is very convenient for servers to connect. However, what is top-of-rack switch and how to buy it when needing? Let’s find out the answers together with the illustration below.

What Is Top-of-Rack Switch (ToR Switch)?

There is no precise saying about top-of-rack switch definition on wiki and other sites. But actually, top-of-rack switch is one kind of various switches located or installed inside a rack. In the top-of-rack design, servers connect to one Ethernet switch or two (for example, gigabit Ethernet switch or 10GbE switch installed inside the rack. The top-of-rack switch is usually placed at the top of the server rack for easier accessibility and cleaner cable management, which is the coming of its name. However, ToR switch can be placed anywhere inside a rack and connected to aggregation switches via fiber optic cables.

Normally, the top-of-rack switch is fixed low-profile (1RU/2U) configuration. The key characteristic is that all the copper cabling is inside the rack and most of the cables connecting servers to the rack switch are short RJ45 patch cables. However, there are a few fiber cables used in the rack as well in order to link the rack to the data center network. Fiber cables to each rack provide much better flexibility and investment protection than copper cables because of the unique ability of carrying higher bandwidth signals with longer distances. Therefore, there is no need for a bulky and expensive infrastructure of copper cabling running between racks and throughout the data center.

Pros and Cons of Top-of-Rack Switch

Pros:

• Minimizes the complexity of the cabling system because all the servers are connected to the switches inside the same rack.
• Reduces cable length to provide a clean and tidy cable management as each server does not need to connect to the aggregation switch by itself using a long cable.
• This ToR design can be upgraded to run network at higher level of 40GE or even 100GE in the future with minimum costs and changes to the existing cabling.
• Supports modular deployment of data-center racks as each rack can come in-built with all the necessary cabling or switches and can be deployed quickly on site.

Cons:

• More top-of-rack switches are required in such installations along with higher maintenance costs.
• Causes waste due to unused ports in each rack because of fixed configurations on top-of-rack switches and different servers.
• Difficult to realize unplanned expansions within a rack.
• 
  

How to Buy Top-of-Rack Switch

If you want to buy a top-of-rack switch, there are many considerations you need to take into. To begin with, a 1U/2U configuration is your priority. Then you need to consider the number of your port needs to avoid unnecessary waste. In addition to port numbers, you must determine whether you need a fiber switch of 10 Gbps, 40 Gbps, or even 100 Gbps for fiber interconnects. At last, evaluate a vendor's ability to support your top-of-rack switches in terms of hardware replacement, software upgrades and troubleshooting assistance.

Original source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/top-of-rack-switch.html

Things You Need to Know About Fiber Optic Cable Uses

What Is Fiber Optic Cable?

Fiber optic cable, or optical fiber cable, is one kind of network cables similar to copper cable. It is designed to use light pulses for long distance telecommunication and high-speed data transmission. Fiber optic cables support much of the world's internet, cable television and telephone systems.

Compared with copper cables, fiber optic cables provide higher bandwidth and can transmit data over longer distances upon similar thickness. Normally, fiber optic cable speed rates at 10 Gbps, 40 Gbps and even 100 Gbps.

Generally, one fiber optic cable is made up of incredibly thin strands of glass or plastic known as optical fibers (called “core”) surrounded by an insulated casing (called “cladding). Each strand is a little thicker than a human hair and can carry much data like 25,000 telephone calls. Therefore, an entire fiber optic cable can easily carry as much data as you can imagine.

Theory on Fiber Optic Cable Uses: How Does It Work?

The fiber core and the cladding bend the incoming light at a certain angle with their own refractive index. When light signals are sent through the fiber optic cable, they reflect off the core and cladding in a series of bounces, which a process called total internal reflection.

Fiber Optic Cable Uses

It is necessary to learn about different types of optical fiber cable when involved with applications of optical fiber communication. There are two primary types of fiber optic cable, single mode fiber (SMF) and multimode fiber (MMF). The former has a very thin core about 5-10 microns in diameter, which is about 10 percent of the latter. Generally, single-mode optical fibers used in telecommunications operate at 1310nm or 1550nm wavelength while multimode fiber at 850nm and 1300nm. However, sometimes, the subdivision of the two types is different due to various fiber optic cable manufacturers.

As for fiber optic cable uses, single mode optical fiber cable is used for longer distances such as 100km compared with multimode fiber under 2km due to the smaller diameter of the fiber core. Therefore, single mode optical fibers are typically used outside between buildings in cable TV, internet, and telephone signals transmission while multimode fibers are used within buildings in backbone applications such as computer network linking.

Applications listed below are the most common fiber optic cable uses:

• Networking: It can be used to connect users and servers in different network settings and can also strengthen the speed and accuracy of data transmission.
• Radio and television systems: Broadcast and television signals are sent to hundreds of millions of households via fiber optic cables.
• Electrical power system: Form a monitoring network on power system operation with optical fibers connecting the electrical substations and command center.
• Railway system: The railway communication, signal and command-dispatching network is composed of optical fiber cables.
• Public traffic police system: The video surveillance network for public security is composed of optical fibers.
• Medical: It is used as light guides, imaging tools and also as lasers for surgeries.
• Defense/Government: It is used as hydrophones for seismic and sonar purposes, as wiring in aircraft, submarines and other vehicles and as well as for field networking.
• Industrial/Commercial: It is used for imaging in hard-to-reach areas.
• Lighting use: Fiber optic cables can be used for lighting.

Conclusion on Fiber Optic Cable Uses

All in all, there are many fiber optic cable uses involved in our daily life. In addition to the applications mentioned above in various systems such as radio and television systems, electrical power system, railway system, etc., fiber optic cables are essential in international networking as well.

Original source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/fiber-optic-cable-uses.html

What's the Difference Between a PoE NVR and PoE Switch?

“I'm going to install two IP cameras in my house. However, I have no idea whether to use a PoE NVR or a PoE switch matching with them. So, what's the difference between them? Can some one help me?”

Such type of questions can be seen in different tech forums, which indicates many people feel confused about the selection between PoE NVR and PoE switch. This blog intends to explore the differences between PoE NVR and PoE switch in details.

What Is PoE?

PoE, an abbreviated form of Power over Ethernet, allows a single cable connecting a power sourcing equipment (PSE) to provide both data connection and electric power to powered devices (PDs) such as IP cameras, wireless access points, etc.

What Is a PoE NVR?

NVR represents for network video recorder which provides you with centralized video controls to easily view, manage, and store your surveillance footage in one convenient location. A PoE NVR is a security video recorder with built-in PoE switch designed to use with PoE-based IP cameras.

Equipped with a PoE switch, a PoE NVR recorder can deliver both data and power over a single Ethernet cable. There is no need for an additional PoE switch, which will reduce the cost of equipment in theory. You just need to connect one Ethernet cable from the camera to the PoE NVR recorder and then the built-in switch will provide power to the camera while transmitting data.

A PoE NVR is ideal for users with minimal network administration experience and is generally used in homes and small businesses. It creates a private camera network, keeping surveillance footage isolated from the main network and adding an extra layer of privacy.

What Is a PoE Switch?

A PoE switch or power over Ethernet switch, containing multiple Ethernet RJ45 ports, is a dedicated network switch with multiple Ethernet ports to connect network segments and provide power and network communications.

A PoE switch expands a network created by a router. Basically, it just assigns LAN IP addresses to your camera and needs to be tied into a system that allows you to see and manage your cameras, which is usually done with video surveillance software on a computer. Therefore, it must be connected directly to a router on the same network as your NVR. It can reduce the need for extra outlets and extension cables and saves deployment cost and labor efforts as well.

Power over Ethernet switch can be classified into many types. In addition to the most common one, gigabit PoE switch, for example, there are other types as well such as unmanaged and managed PoE switch. Most PoE switches provided in the market have standard gigabit Ethernet ports which can provide speed of 10/100/1000Mbps. For smaller network, 8-port Gigabit PoE switch is very popular. For larger/enterprise network, 24-port PoE switch and 48-port managed PoE switch are more popular.

Difference Between a PoE NVR and PoE Switch

From the above, you will see that both PoE NVR and PoE switch can provide power and data transmission. However, a PoE NVR is limited in minimal network administration experience while a PoE switch can expend the network freely. What’s more, a switch does not assign IP addresses, which is the job of a DHCP server, usually built into a router. NVRs with a built-in POE switch provide this service, while PoE switches don’t. The PoE switch simply provides a data path between all of the devices connected to it.

Original source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/difference-poe-nvr-vs-poe-switch.html

Crossover Cable vs. Ethernet Cable

Crossover Cable vs Ethernet Cable

Ethernet cable is normally divided into crossover cable and straight through cable by different networking applications. Straight through cable is a type of common Ethernet cable and is widely used, while crossover cable is a special Ethernet cable type. Therefore, when doing a comparison of crossover cable vs. Ethernet cable, it is actually the comparison between Ethernet crossover cable and straight through cable (referred as Ethernet cable in this post).

Ethernet Cable

Ethernet cable/straight through cable such as Cat5, Cat5e and Cat6 cable, etc. is a type of twisted pair cable primarily used in local area networks to connect two different types of devices such as in the following situations:

• A computer to a cable/DSL modem's LAN port
• A computer to a switch/hub's normal port
• A router's WAN port to a cable/DSL modem's LAN port
• A router's LAN port to a switch/hub's uplink port
• Connect 2 switches/hubs with one of them using an uplink port and the other one using normal port

Actually, when it comes to crossover cable vs. Ethernet cable, it is inevitable to think of their wiring system. As we know, T568A and T568B are two standards recognized by ANSI, TIA and EIA for wiring Ethernet cables. They differ in the order of the 8 cable colors. For T568A, the color order of the 8 pins are white, green, white orange, blue, white blue, orange, white brown, and brown from pin 1 to pin 8 respectively. While, in T568B wiring standard, there are two color order exchanges compared with T568A, pin 1 in exchange for Pin 3 and pin 2 in exchange for Pin 6.

Straight through cable uses the same wiring standard on both ends. That is, both ends (connector A and connector B) use T568A wiring standard or both ends use T568B wiring standard with the same color.

Crossover Network Cable

Crossover cable such as Cat5, Cat5e crossover cable, etc. is a type of twisted pair cable used to connect two devices of the same type such as “DTE to DTE” or ”DCE to DCE” in the following situations:

• One computer to another computer
• One switch to another switch connecting a normal port on both sides
• One hub to another hub connecting a normal port on both sides
• A router's LAN port to a switch/hub's normal port

Different from straight through Ethernet cable, crossover network cable uses two different wiring standards on both ends (connector A and connector B). One end uses the T568A wiring standard, and the other end uses the T568B wiring standard.

Conclusion

In short, the similarity of crossover cable vs. Ethernet cable comparison is obvious. Both Ethernet cable and crossover cable abide by T568A and T568B wiring standards with 8 different color pins on each side of the connector. While, the former one connects two different types of devices to each other such as "a computer to a switch" and the latter one connects two devices of the same type to each other such as "one computer to another computer".

Original source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/crossover-cable-vs-ethernet-cable.html

How to Use Rack Cable Organizer for Cable Management

As we know, it is vital to keep cable well-organized when working with server rooms and data centers. For cable management, rack cable organizer is necessary and important. It plays a leading role in both horizontal rack cable management and vertical rack cable management when applied with other cable management components. It is often involved in many components, such as fiber optic enclosures, fiber optic cassette, cable rack, etc. Next, let’s read through to find relatively good solutions on how to use it.

Horizontal Rack Cable Organizer + Patch Panel

The horizontal rack cable organizer/manager is often used to arrange small bundles of patch cables from network switches and patch panels. It is usually ideal for coax, fiber, copper wiring, patch cords, and other various needs. It is outstanding in organizing patch cords and maintaining required bend radius. Therefore, it is perfect to work with a patch panel, which is ideal to create a flexible, reliable and tidy cabling system for ethernet cables. Normally, a well-organized patch panel cable management provides a reliable cabling system for all of today’s network applications and future-proofing networks.

Horizontal Rack Cable Organizer + Rack Mount Enclosure

In addition to patch panels, rack cable organizer is also very useful applied with rack mount enclosure.

You may know that MTP/MPO-LC enclosure is designed to connect 40/100G devices with the existing 10G devices in an effective way. The breakout panel integrates the advantages of MPO pre-terminated branch cables and compact patch panels, and distributes several sets of links in the distribution box to ensure high performance and reliable direct connection from 10 GbE to 40/100 GbE.

The horizontal rack cable organizer with D-ring is used in front of the 40/100G breakout panel, which is ideal for 40/100G migration in high-density data centers. It is installed on the front side of the fiber enclosure. Every strand of fiber patch cable goes through the D-ring on the panel, eliminating the dangling of cable and decreasing bend loss effectively.

Vertical Cable Organizer in Use

This type of rack cable organizer/manager can be installed in specific areas of the rack. Normally, it can be stacked to reach any height, so it can be a good choice in vertical rack cable management. It provides extra-deep cable management capacity for applications that require large Cat5e/Cat6/Cat6a cable bundles or thick cables.

Conclusion

Rack cable organizer offers a wide variety of options for server rack cable management and data center, networking/IT closets, patch panel racks and server racks. It can be applied with patch panels and rack mount enclosures in an effective way to improve airflow among cables. Different kinds of combinations can meet different needs in various applications, especially with both horizontal and vertical collocation.

Original Source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/rack-cable-organizer-usage.html

Ethernet Patch Panel: Keystone vs. Feed-Through vs. Punchdown

General Introduction on Patch Panel Ethernet

Patch panel is a device designed with a few jacks to monitor, interconnect and test circuits on network connecting and circuits routing. It is very convenient and is commonly used in computer networking, radio, audio, TV, etc.

Nowadays, patch panel ethernet, namely, ethernet patch panel, is almost the most common application of its kind. It is of great importance for cable management in data centers. Serving as the nerve center of the cabling network, the importance of patch panels cannot be neglected. There are different forms of ethernet patch panels. Here, let’s focus on the mostly used three, keystone patch panel, feed-through patch panel and punchdown patch panel.

Patch Panel Ethernet Comparison - Keystone vs. Feed-Through vs. Punchdown

Keystone Patch Panel Ethernet

Keystone patch panel is a traditional form of patch panel Ethernet. It is always in flat style with 1U rack space (24 ports). The clear numbering on the front provides a quick, easy way to identify cable runs, grounding wire included. In addition, keystone lets you create your own color coding scheme. You can choose to card into different color modules for color code management.

Feed-Through Patch Panel Ethernet

Feed-through patch panel is an in-line series of connections mounted onto a frame, which enables network cables to be terminated in an orderly manner. It is usually in 1U (24 ports) and 2U (48 ports) configuration. The feed-through patch panels have RJ45 ports on both sides for easy installation.

It can be repaired without punching a large amount of wires onto the back of the panel, which keeps the patch cable clean at the back of the panel. Without punching down the wires to the ports, it saves time and energy while maximize productivity. Among all the feed-through patch panels, Cat5e and Cat6 patch panel are commonly used in data centers nowadays.

Punchdown Patch Panel Ethernet

Punch down types are available in Cat5e or Cat6 patch panel. In the front of the panel, RJ45 ports (usually 24 ports) are used to directly connect Ethernet copper cable. And these ports have their own numbers as well for easy identification. In the rear, it has patch panel module with color markings for punching down Ethernet cable. This type of panel is a litter cheaper than other panels.

Normally, color coded labels are designed for T568A and T568B wiring configurations. You should insert each wire into its own slot and then terminate the wires with right configuration match. Once you finished the cable installation, you should have a double check with a cable tester to see if all the wires are correctly terminated.

Summary on Patch Panel Ethernet Comparison

Among the different forms of patch panels, keystone can provide different color module management. Punchdown is cheaper but with complex cable installation steps. While, feed-through patch panel is more expensive but it is less messy and is quite suitable for high-density network system, which can protect cable and improve cable management efficiency.

Original Source: http://www.fiber-optic-solutions.com/ethernet-patch-panel-keystone-vs-feed-through-vs-punchdown.html

Bridge vs. Switch: What's the Difference

What Is Bridge?

Bridge, known as network bridge, is a network interconnection device used to connect two or more local area networks. It is responsible for network bridging, which receives and amplifies signals from a network cable, and then sends them to the next cable. Normally, it connects multiple network segments of the network at the data link layer (OSI model layer 2).

What Is Switch?

A switch is a network device used for electrical or optical signal forwarding. It provides an exclusive electrical signal path for any two network nodes that access the switch. It has multiple ports, each with a bridge function that can be connected to a LAN or a high-performance server or workstation.

The most common switch is an Ethernet switch, such as gigabit ethernet switch and 10gb switch. It connects multiple devices, such as computers, servers, or game systems, to a Local Area Network (LAN). Small business and home offices often use Gigabit switches to allow more than one device to share a broadband Internet connection. In addition, as one type of the Ethernet switch, fiber switch is also commonly used.

Bridge vs. Switch

Actually, there are many differences between bridge and switch.

Firstly, a bridge can connect fewer LAN, while a switch can connect more networks compared to the bridge.

Bridge in networking connects two similar networks and manages the flow of network data. It works at the data link layer, which not only extends the distance or range of the network, but also improves the performance, reliability, and security of the network.

Switch in networking can perform data transmission between multiple port pairs at the same time. Each port can be regarded as a separate physical network segment, and the network devices connected to it can enjoy the full bandwidth by itself, without competing with other devices. When node A sends data to node D, node B can send data to node C at the same time, and both of these transmissions enjoy the full bandwidth of the network and have their own virtual connections.

Secondly, most bridges have only 2 or 4 ports. A switch can have hundreds of ports.

Thirdly, bridge has three types, simple bridge, multiport bridge and transparent bridge. However, switch is divided into store-and-forward switch and cut-through switch.

Last but not least, bridges do not have buffers while switches have. Thus, switches perform error checking which bridges don’t perform.In fact, switches are sometimes referred to as multi-port bridges and have faster forwarding capability because bridges are software based while switches are hardware-based and use chips (ASICs) when making forwarding decisions, which makes them much faster than bridges.

Conclusion

It is apparent that both bridges and switches in computer networks are of great importance. However, they differ from each other in certain way. The function of a switch normally reflects a collection of multiple bridges working together, which creates higher bandwidth, faster forwarding capability and greater efficiency.

Original Source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/bridge-vs-switch-whats-the-difference.html

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What Do You Need for a Server Room?

What Is a Server Room?

A server room is a room of data center devoted to provide computer service for secure, stable and reliable operation. It consists of several major parts, such as room design, electric engineering, cabling system, air conditioner, etc. Next, let’s focus on connecting hardware such as server rack, connectors, sockets, plugs, adapters, patch panels, etc. on one of the most important parts - cabling system.

Importance of Cabling System for a Server Room

Cabling system is a modular, highly flexible information transmission path, which enables voice, data and various other control equipment to be connected to the information management system. If not carefully dealt with, dozens of wires will be entangled together like a mess, which is unsightly. What’s worse, electromagnetic interference between lines may degrade the stability and performance of the wires and may cause huge potential safety hazard. Therefore, cabling system construction is vital.

Server Rack & Patch Panel: Priorities to Consider

To lay the cabling in various topologies in order to meet different networking needs, typically we need to install patch panels on a server rack to manage the wires so that each modular connection can be used as needed.

Nowadays, wall mount server rack is very popular among users since it can be used to mount equipment horizontally or vertically anywhere needed. Here comes another question: how to choose a suitable server rack size to make all things to perfection.

As for server rack sizes, 42u server rack is a good choice. It is compatible with a wide variety of servers and rack mountable networking equipment, including Dell, HP/ Compaq IBM, and Sun products. The 42U Rack is completely customizable and can handle even the heaviest loads - up to 3,000lbs!

By the way, a patch panel is a device or unit featuring a number of jacks to connect and route circuits for monitoring, interconnecting, and testing circuits in a convenient, flexible manner. Patch panels are commonly used in computer networking, recording studios, radio and television.

 

Cable Organizer: You Can’t Miss

Last but not least, cable organizer is also very important for cabling construction. Cable organizer, or cable management frame is a tool for organizing electronic wires. It can be mounted on the front of the server rack to provide horizontal cable management for wiring or equipment jumpers. In addition, it simplifies the planning and installation of the cross-connection system.

In short, it is used to sort out the network cables. It has no direct relationship with the network, while it is convenient for management in the future. Therefore, it is necessary to pay more attention to it.

Summary

From all the above, we have much work to do on building a server room, especially on its cabling system. What we need most to make a good construction on its cabling system is to choose a suitable server rack, say, 42u server rack and other equipment such as patch panel, cable organizer, etc.

Original Source: http://www.fiberopticshare.com/server-room-needs.html

Can I Use Cat6 Cable on Cat5 Network?

Nowadays, internet data cabling has become an important part of our daily life. While, with fast update of technology, the old cabling versions are being substituted by the new ones for better experience. For example, Cat6 cable is an advanced version over an older one Cat5. If I update to Cat6 cable on previous Cat5 network, will it work? Read through this post and find out the answer. 

What Is Cat5 Cable?

Cat5 cable is a twisted pair cable for computer networks. Consisting of four twisted pairs of unshielded copper wire, Cat5 is a multimedia cable for carrying signals to transmit information, voice and other information communication services. It is widely used in broadband access projects such as broadband user premises networks. The cable standard provides performance of up to 100 MHz and is suitable for most varieties of Ethernet over twisted pair. Cat5 is also used to carry other signals such as telephony and video. The specification for category 5 cable was defined in ANSI/TIA/EIA-568-A, with clarification in TSB-95.

What Is Cat6 Cable?

Cat6 cable is a standardized twisted pair cable for Ethernet and other network physical layers that is backward compatible with the Category 5 cable standards. Similar to Cat5, Cat6 cable is made up of four twisted pairs of copper wire. Compared with the previous cable versions such as Cat5 and Cat5e, Cat6 cable has a better performance of up to 250 MHz and a faster speed of 10Gbps. 

Cat6 cable must be properly installed and terminated to meet specifications. The cable must not be kinked or bent too tightly (the bend radius should be at least four times the outer diameter of the cable). The wire pairs must not be untwisted and the outer jacket must not be stripped back more than 12.7 mm.

Can I Use Cat6 Cable on Cat5 Network?

Of course, Cat6 Cable can work on Cat5 network. It is backward compatible with previous specifications, which means it can be effectively used with Cat5 network. 

From the introduction above, the major components between Cat6 cable and Cat5 cable are similar. What makes them different are their electrical specifications, or signal transmission capabilities. Category 6 cable has better specifications than 5 or 5e, enabling it to support faster data transmission when installed with compatible devices. 

In fact, it's typical to use newer cabling types when upgrading a physical network infrastructure, even though the hardware is still using older standards. This is how a network admin can get newer cable installed in preparation for a future time when newer hardware will be deployed.

Things You Need to Know:

The major differences between these cables are their capabilities when put into use. Nevertheless, it is apparent that both Cat5 and Cat6 cables use the same end piece known as RJ-45, which is capable of connecting to Ethernet jack on a computer, router, etc. They can be plugged in to the same ports. Therefore, Cat6 cable works on Cat5 Network. However, Cat5 cable can’t be used on Cat6 network since Cat6 network has more requirements on cabling performances and capabilities, which Cat5 cable can not reach.

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Can I Use Cat6 Cable on Cat5 Network?