Category Archives: Fiber Optic Switch

25G Switches: A Key Choice for Future Networks

25G switches are currently very popular with customers. ince its introduction in 2014, 25G Ethernet has existed for approximately five years. The market for 25G Ethernet has experienced many ups and downs over the years. If we compare the advanced methods of 10G-25G-100G and 10G-40G-100G, we will discover that customers seem to prefer 25G Ethernet because it appears to be more refined. Why go with 25GbE? How can the advantages of 25GbE be understood? The possibility of 25G switches will be discussed from various angles in this article.

The Development of 25G Ethernet

Due to virtualization and cloud computing, networks are now facing modern challenges requiring increased bandwidth. Even with the rapid development of 10G, the most important TOR switch in the data center has been difficult to meet the needs of existing network data. The standards for 100G and 40G were later endorsed by the IEEE. However, while 100G is relatively costly and difficult to implement, 40G is neither expensive nor efficient for cloud providers in terms of TOR switching.
IEEE 802.3 has developed a 25G Ethernet connection standard for the above situations. It facilitates the upgrade deployment of cloud-based database environment and enterprise environment, and also helps expand the 25G switch market. IEEE 100G Ethernet serves as the basis for 25G Ethernet, utilizing Ethernet’s single-lane 25Gbps connection and 4 x 25 Gbps lanes.

Why choose 25G Ethernet?

Due to the growth of Internet data, 25G switches are also designed with high-density ports to meet enterprise needs. So, compared with 10G or 40G networks, what breakthroughs does 25G Ethernet have at the technical level? Why will 25G Ethernet still be popular in the future.
Serializers and deserializers channels: A combination transceiver or circuit known as a SERIALIZER/DESERIALIZER (SERDES) is utilized for high-speed transmission, serial data conversion to an aligned interface, and other purposes. To connect one end point of the 25G Ethernet card to the other end point of the 25G Ethernet card, we only require one SERDES channel at 25Gbps.
25G Ethernet NICs: The popular Intel Xeon CPU provides 40 lanes of PCI Express 3.0 with a bandwidth of about 8Gbps per lane. We use a lane called PCI Express to connect the NIC to the CPU. A 25G Ethernet network card requires a single PCI Express 3.0×8 channel, and the usage efficiency is 25G2/(8G8)=78%. In terms of PCI Express lanes, the 25G network is more flexible and efficient than the 40G network.
Cost-effective cabling: SFP28 optical modules are used in 25G Ethernet switches and boards. Since they are single-lane links, they can be used with 10G Ethernet LC optics. You can save money and time by not having to change cables when you upgrade from 10G network to 25G network.
Benefits of 25G I/O switch: The most significant switch I/O representation and fabric capacity are provided by 25G Ethernet. The network bandwidth of 10G Ethernet has the potential to increase the network scale and profit of cloud companies by 2.5 times. 25G switches can also achieve network scalability and higher-density port applications through single-channel transmission.

Why Do We Need 25G Switches?

Switch Compatibility
Most of the available 25G switches are backward compatible because most of their supporting optical modules use SFP28. For 25G signal transmission, SFP28 is an improved version of SFP+. SFP+ transceivers can be connected to SFP28 ports since they have the same form factor. Fiber optic cabling in data centers can also be used with SFP28.
Therefore, re-architecting your data center with 25G Ethernet switches can save a lot of money and give you more flexibility to increase bandwidth during migration.
Port and System Density
25G technology is similar to 10G, but with 2.5 times higher performance. 25G technology significantly reduces power consumption and cost per gigabit, which means it requires 25G switches to provide higher port and system density. Using four 25 Gb/s data streams, for instance, a compact 100G path over copper or fiber optic cables is possible. Additionally, this method conserves energy and requires fewer TOR switches and cables, resulting in significant OpEx savings for data center operators.
Price and Performance
When price and performance are taken into consideration, 25G Ethernet is significantly less expensive per Gbit/s of bandwidth than 10G Ethernet. 25G switches or transceivers are priced very competitively on the market, only 30-40% more expensive than 10GbE, and this premium is expected to go down over time. In this case, 25G equipment needs to be deployed, such as 25G data center switches, 25G campus switches, etc.
The Crehan forecast below demonstrates that 25G is superior in both price and performance.
Figure 3: Price Comparison by Connection Speed

Explore the Features of 25G Switches

With the landing of the 25G standard, its supporting equipment has also been launched in 2016, such as 25G SFP28 transceivers, DAC cables, 25G adapters, 25G switches, etc. According to application scenarios, 25G equipment is also divided into 25G data center switches and 25G campus switches, etc., and their respective performances will also have some differences.
The 25G Ethernet switch market is mainly dominated by some brand vendors, such as 25G Dell, Cisco, Juniper, Arista, and Mellanox switches. Generally, 25G 48-port switches are the most popular type. Most 25G switches today offer two types of 25GbE interface form factors: QSFP28, which can support 4x25Gbps, and SFP28, which can support 1x25Gbps.
For example, FS N8500-48B6C is a 25G Ethernet switch with 48 x 25Gb SFP28, with 8 x 100Gb QSFP28 ports, which can be used to build a data center network. Whether it is a TOR (Top of Rack) switch or a switch deploying a spine-leaf architecture, a 25G network switch is a good choice.
Figure 2: FS 25G Ethernet Switch N8500-48B6C
     ”Also Check- N8500-48B6C Switch

Summary

With the trend towards higher Ethernet bandwidth, the demand for 10G Ethernet has been declining. Regardless of market research, 25G inevitably looks like the ideal choice because it is cost-effective, offers high bandwidth and requires low power consumption. In this context, equipment such as 25G switches play an indispensable role.

What Are the Commonalities of Switches Supporting Cumulus Linux

As the first full-featured Linux based operating system (OS), Cumulus Linux has injected great possibilities and new vitality in networking field in these two years. Due to its great effort in open networking, Cumulus Linux has been one of the three leading OSs in the market. The another two are IP Infusion OcNOS and Pica8 PICOS. Recently, the collaboration between FS and Cumulus Networks has been made. The N-series open switches from FS will be pre-installed the latest Cumulus Linux OS to customers. At the moment of their joint effort in achieving open networking, we are going to make an analysis of the similar features of the open manageable switch supported by Cumulus Linux.

FS Collaborates with Cumulus Networks

Figure 1: FS Collaborates with Cumulus Networks

An Overview of Cumulus Linux

Cumulus Linux is a flexible open network operating system, which can be installed on various open switches, including the layer 2 switch and layer 3 switches. The code used to build Linux is free and available for users to view or edit. Therefore, it looks like the world’s largest data center that allows users to automate, customize and scale using web-scale principles. After the installation of the Cumulus Linux OS, the open switch can act as a Linux server.

Cumulus Linux

Figure 2: Cumulus Linux

Similarities of Open Switches Supporting Cumulus Linux

Featured with supporting a broad partner ecosystem, the Cumulus Linux gives customers more options and flexibility in data center networking regarding switch type, CPU, chip type, and supported transceivers.

Switch Type

Generally, open switches that support Cumulus Linux are bare mental switches coming with open network install environment (ONIE). In that case, no matter you have a brite box switch like Cisco switch, or a white box switch like FS switch, Cumulus Linux can be accessible to them. Nowadays, in the market of open switches, the 32-port and 48-port switches with 40G/100G transmission speed are commonly applied by enterprise users. Considering their high-density and greater agility needs for networking, the open switches are mostly layer 3 switches so as to achieve spine-leaf or overlay architectures.

CPU

The open switch CPU that supports Cumulus Linux OS usually comes in three types: ARMv7, PowerPC, and x86_64. Among these three types, x86_64 is the most popular one, adopted by most vendors, such as Dell, HPE, Mellanox, and FS.

Chip Type
Chips of Open Switches

Figure 3: Chips of Open Switches

Currently, Broadcom chip and Mellanox chip are the major roles of switch chip. The Mellanox type is usually used by Mellanox itself or Penguin. Therefore, the Broadcom type dominates the largest switch chip market share, installed by the most brand vendors or the third party suppliers.

Supported Transceivers

Since most open switches support high-speed transmissions, the matching transceivers are QSFP28, QSFP+, and SFP28. Only some 10G and 1G open switches will need to use SFP+ and SFP transceivers. By the way, viewing the trend, you will find 25G Ethernet has been deployed by many enterprise users in recent years for high bandwidth need. Accordingly, the 25G open switch has been a more economical and efficient choice than 1G or 10G switches. Also, the 25G switch will be the best solution to pave the road for the upcoming 100G/400G Ethernet in the future.

Summary

Just like the agility and simplicity the Cumulus Linux has advocated, it brings a truly economical and open network environment for users. With so many choices for open switch type, CPU, chip, and supported transceivers, it liberates the choices for open switches, which begets an open networking market in the end.

Open Switch—One Contributor to Open Source Network

With the higher and higher demand for network agility and scalability, traditional networking has been no longer satisfying. In that case, the open source network has been an urgent need. To meet with this new trend, here comes our open switch, a great contributor to the open networking.

What Is Open Switch?

Open switches refer to switches in which the hardware and software are separate components that can be changed independently of each other. That means you will gain more flexibility to tailor your own network switch. Conventionally, the open source switch in the market can mainly be classified into the bare metal switch, white box switch, and brite box switch.

Open Switch

Figure 1:Open Switch

Open Switch Hardware

The open hardware means the hardware of an open switch can support multiple operating systems (OS). This is in contrast to closed switches, in which the hardware and software are always purchased together. For example, if you buy a Juniper EX or MX you also buy JUNOS; if you buy a Cisco Catalyst switch you buy IOS. However, things will be different with open switches. In the context of that, no matter which type of open source switch you are using, it’s possible to support many operating systems instead of a proprietary one. By the way, the hardware manufacturers of the open switch are primarily Taiwanese, including Accton, Quanta QCT, Alpha Networks, and Delta Computer. These same companies are original design manufacturers (ODMs) for many of the mainstream switch vendors.

Open Hardware

Figure 2: Open Hardware

Open Switch Software

The open software signifies that an OS can be run on multiple hardware configurations. As we mentioned before, you don’t need to buy an OS from the original brand of your switch hardware. For example, if you have Cumulus Linux, you can buy a layer 3 switch without a brand label. They still work well with each other. In the past, most people have no choice but to use brite box switch that integrates OS and hardware of branded suppliers. Now, with an open switch software, choices and economic efficiency will be largely expanded and improved. Generally, there are three popular open softwares in the market: Cumulus Linux, IP Infusion OcNOS and Pica8 PICOS.

Cumulus Linux Software

Figure 3: Cumulus Linux Software

Why Choose Open Switch?

  • With an open source switch, more flexibility, and options can be enjoyed. There is no need to configure your switch as in the past or wait for vendors to release new software or hardware.
  • It brings the open source network to operators, enterprises, third-party vendors and network users, accelerates the innovation speed of new services and functions of the network deployment, and takes users closer to SDN (software-defined network) and NFV (network functions virtualization).
  • The network simplicity and reliability can be improved through the automated centralized network device management, unified deployment strategies, and fewer configuration errors.
  • The network flexibility and scalability have been greatly increased, which will also save much cost and time for IT workers and enterprises.

Summary

In this post, we make an exploration of the open switch. From the introduction to its hardware, software, and benefits, we can understand why the open switch has been a great facilitator for open networking.

10GbE RJ45 Switch Recommendations

Over the years, the advent of more affordable 10GBASE-T copper solutions has seen growing adoption. And modern business, from sales and marketing to technical support and service, has become increasingly dependent on a fast and reliable network. With a 10GbE RJ45 switch, people can better manage and protect their networks, avoiding network congestion at busy time and shortening the response time to customers and then bring new products to the market faster. Here, we’ll recommend some 10GbE RJ45 switches for your references.

10GbE RJ45 switch

The Reason of Choosing 10GbE RJ45 Switch

10GbE means the speed will be 10 times faster than a normal Gigabit network. Visually, there’s no difference. But if you need to copy large files, a 10GbE switch is necessary. However, why we use the RJ45 type, not the fiber one? Because RJ45 ports can be connected by the copper cables which are something we all are used to. And SFP switch is popular in data centers, which needs to be connected by the expensive fiber cables. RJ45 switch is better since it can be backward compatible with people’s older computers. This is a perfect solution for home use or SMB, since these users would not like to cost too much to buy fibers or new optical equipment. Therefore, a 10GBASE-T switch is their first option.

FS 10GbE RJ45 Switch Recommendations

As a reputable supplier, FS understands the importance of reliable and high performance networks for home users and SMB users. The 10GbE RJ45 switches from FS present the right solution for these users. The following are two RJ45 switches from FS.

S5800-48F4S
S5850-48T4Q
Description
48-port 1Gb SFP and 4-port 10Gb SFP+
48 x 10GBase-T ports and 4 x 40Gb uplinks
Switching Class
Layer2/3
Layer2/3, data center, Metro
Switching Capacity
176Gbps
1.28Tbps
Forwarding Rate
130.95Mpps
952.32Mpps
Latency
2.3us
612ns

S5800-48F4S and S5850-48T4Q switches come with different port designs. With different switching capacity and forwarding rate, they are made to meet various demands.

Highlights

Both S5800-48F4S and S5850-48T4Q 10GBASE-T switches provide comprehensive L2 or L3 features like MLAG, SNMP etc. in order to meet current and future needs on virtualization, converged networking and mobility. Each port can automatically detect which device is connected to the switch and what speed is needed, then support the device with sufficient speed. Both S5800-48F4S and S5850-48T4Q data switches will give the exact speed like 100MB, 1, 5 or 10 Gigabit that is required without downgrade. In addition, the ports of these switches can be connected with regular Cat5 cables. As a result, there is no need to change into Cat6 or Cat7 wiring. Also, FS data switch uses a Web-based management. Users can easily manage the device through a handy Web-based tool.

Conclusion

10GbE RJ45 switch is the ideal choice for small businesses that want an affordable network switch solution. Whether you are working with a small network of just 10G connections, or a large campus or enterprise network with higher links speed, FS has the right switch for you. Any question about buying issues, please feel free to contact us via sales@fs.com.

How to Choose a Gigabit Network Switch?

Gigabit network switch is the most commonly used equipment in data centers. Before choosing the best network switch for the current or future network, people can type “Ethernet switch” into the online shopping site or search engine, they may find a ton of listings for switches of all kinds and price levels. It’s not an easy job to find one. Then how to choose a Gigabit network switch in order to avoid buying the wrong device or overspending needlessly?

Gigabit network switch is widely used

Figure: Gigabit network switch is widely used.

Types of Gigabit Network Switch

Gigabit Ethernet switch can be divided into unmanaged, managed and PoE categories.

Unmanaged switches use the plug-and-play design that means they only allow Ethernet devices to communicate with one another. They are shipped with fixed configuration and don’t allow any changes to this configuration. This type of network switch is normally found in home networks or small business.

Managed switches offer all the features of unmanaged switches and are capable of configuring, managing and monitoring one’s LAN. Users have greater control over how data travels over the network and decide which one has access to it.

PoE switches support electrical power and data transmission over one network cable, which will greatly simplify the cabling process. Using a PoE switch, people don’t need to worry about power outlet when deploying network devices.

Features of Gigabit Network Switch

With a network switch, users can have different networked devices on their desks as well as bandwidth-intensive applications that require high rates of data transmission and no tolerance for congestion. These switches are the basics of modern wired network. They can not only provide the connections to PCs and other devices in a wide variety of fields, but also support the cloud storage of servers. With new trends like SDN and the IoT transforming the industry, people have to get the features that they need from the switches, so that they would know which switch is the one that they need.

How to Choose a Gigabit Network Switch?

Here are the most important facts you should consider when choosing a Gigabit network switch.

  • Choose the role of the switch. If you are just looking for a device to extend your wired network at home, one unmanaged switch is suitable. And an 8 port Ethernet switch or 12 port switch is enough for home network. If you want to find a switch for a large network, you may buy one or more managed switches acting as core switches. 24 port and 48 port PoE managed switches are the right choice.
  • Choose the forwarding rate of the switch. Gigabit switches have different processing rate. Processing and forwarding data rates are very important. The processing rate becomes lower, the forwarding rate will be slower. This may make the switch unable to accommodate full wire-speed communication across all the ports. So people should figure out what forwarding rate they need before buying a Gigabit switch.

Conclusion

From the above, we know how to choose a Gigabit network switch. If you have decided to buy a network switch, welcome to visit FS.COM. FS has a good selection of 10Gb switch, 40G or even 100G switch and PoE switch for home and office users.