40G and 100G Ethernet: First uses of the highspeed interfaces

Operators, enterprises and equipment vendors are all embracing 100 Gigabit technologies even though the standards will only be completed in June 2010.

Comcast and eri!on have said they will use 100Gbit"s transmission technology once it is available. Juniper #etwor$s demonstrated a 100 Gigabit %thernet &Gb%' inter(ace on its)1*00 core router in June, while in +ay Ciena announced it will supply 100Gbit"s transmission technology to #,-% %urone.t to connect its data centers. Ciena/s technology is (or long0haul transmission, outside the remit o( the 1%%%/s 2302.4ba )as$ 5orce/s standards wor$ de(ining 60Gb% and 100Gb% inter(aces. 7ut the two are clearly lin$ed8 the emergence o( the %thernet inter(aces will drive 100Gbit"s long0haul transmission. 9: 9 Optical networ$ing (oresees two applications (or metro and long0haul 100Gbps transmission8 carrying 100Gbps 12 router lin$s, and multiple.ing 10Gbps streams into a 100Gbps lightpath. ;<e see both8 (or router and switch inter(aces, and to improve (ibre bandwidth,= says >laus Grobe, principal engineer at 9: 9 Optical #etwor$ing. )he trigger (or 60Gbit"s mar$et adoption was the advent o( OC0?*3 -O#%)"-:@ 2$m reach inter(aces on 12 core routers. 1n contrast, 60Gb% and 100Gb% inter(aces will be used more broadly. 9s well as 12 routers and multiple.ing

operators/ tra((ic, the standards will be used across the data centre, to interconnect high0end switches and (or high0 per(ormance computing. )he 1%%% )as$ 5orce is speci(ying several 60Gb% and 100Gb% standards, with copper0based inter(aces used (or e.treme short reach, while optical addresses inter(aces with reaches o( 100m, 10$m and 60$m. 5or 100m short0reach lin$s, multimode (ibre is used8 (our (ibres at 10Gbps in each direction (or 60Gb% and ten (ibres at 10Gbps in each direction (or 100Gb% inter(aces. 5or 60 and 100Gb% 10$m long reach lin$s, and (or 100Gb% 60$m e.tended reach, single mode (ibre is used. @ere 6.10Gbps and 6.2AGbps are carried over a single (ibre using wavelength division multiple.ing &<:+'. ;-hort reach optics at 100Gigabit uses a 10.10 electrical inter(ace that drives 10.10 optics,= says John :/9mbrosia, chair o( the 1%%% 2302.4ba )as$ 5orce. ;)he (irst generation o( 100G79-%0B"%C optics uses a 10.10 electrical inter(ace that then goes to 6.2A <:+ optics.= )he short reach inter(aces reuse 10Gbps C-%B and receiver technology and are designed (or high density, power0 sensitive applications. ;)he 1%%% chose to $eep the reach to 100m to give a low cost solution that hits the biggest mar$et,= says :/9mbrosia, although he admits that a 100m reach is limiting (or certain customers. Cisco -ystems agrees. ;-hort reach will limit you,= says 1an @ood, Cisco/s senior product mar$eting manager (or service provider routing and switching. ;1t will barely get across the central o((ice but it can be used to e.tend capacity within the same rac$.= 5or this reason Cisco (avours longer reach inter(aces but will use short reach Dwhere convenient/. :/9mbrosia would not be surprised i( a 1 to 2$m single mode (ibre variant will be developed though not as part o( the current standards. +eanwhile, the %thernet 9lliance has called (or an industry discussion on a 60Gbps serial initiative. <ithin the data centre, both 60Gb% and 100Gb% reaches have a role. 9 two0layer switching hierarchy is commonly used in data centres. -ervers connect to top0o(0rac$ switches that (unnel tra((ic to aggregation switches that, in turn, pass tra((ic to the core switches. )op0o(0rac$ switches will continue to receive 1Gb% and 10Gb% streams (or a while yet but the inter(ace to aggregation switches will li$ely be 60Gb%. 1n turn, aggregation switches will receive 60Gb% streams and use either 60Gb% or 100Gb% to inter(ace to the core switches. #ot surprisingly, (irst use o( 100Gb% inter(aces will be to interconnect core %thernet switches. %.tended reach 100Gb% inter(aces will be used to connect equipment up to 60$m part, between two data centres (or e.ample. 7ut only when a single 100Gb% lin$ over the (ibre pair is su((icient. Otherwise dense <:+ technology will be used. -ervers will ta$e longer to migrate to 60 and 100Gb%. ;)here are no 60Gb% inter(aces on servers,= says :aryl 1nniss, Ovum/s vice president and practice leader components. ;)en gigabit inter(aces only started to be used Eon serversF

last year.= ,et the 1) manager in one leading German computing centre, albeit an early adopter, told 9: 9 that he could already Gusti(y using a 60Gb% server inter(ace and e.pected 100Gb% inter(aces would be needed by 2012. )wo pluggable (orm (actors have already been announced (or 100Gb%. )he C52 supports all three lin$ distances and has been designed with long0haul transmission in mind, says +att )raverso, senior manager o( technical mar$eting at Opne.t. )he second, the CH2, is designed (or compact short reach inter(aces. 5or 60Gb% more wor$ is needed. Juniper/s announced core router card uses the C52 to implement a 100m connection. Juniper/s C52 is being used to connect the router to a :<:+ plat(orm (or 12 tra((ic transmission between points0o( presence, and (or data centre trun$ing. -o will one 60Gb% or 100Gb% inter(ace standard dominate early demandI Opne.t/s )raverso thin$s not. ;9ll the early adopters have one or two (avourite inter(aces J high0per(ormance computing (avours 60 and 100Gb% short reach while (or core routers it is long reach 100Gb%,= he says. ;9ll the early adopters have their chosen inter(aces be(ore they will round out their port(olio.=