In recent months, 40GBase-T has come several steps closer to demonstrating proven viability for data centre applications. CIARAN FORDE, vice-president enterprise sales, CommScope Middle East and Africa*, discusses the impact of this game-changing innovation.

01 August 2013

THE pressure on data centre capacity has never been greater. It is now commonplace for 10 or more virtual machines to be running on the same physical server, making a high-speed uplink essential to ensure all these applications can run without excess latency or degradation of service.

As more and more servers migrate to 10 GbE links to support this data deluge, 40 G uplink speeds are forecast to be a requirement for server interfaces by 2018.

CommScope recently verified a proof-of-concept solution for a viable 40GBase-T channel by utilising prototype Category 8 RJ-45 connectors and copper twisted pair cables at an IEEE 802.3 NGBase-T study group meeting. This proof-of-concept demonstrates that data centre operators can use Category 8 cabling to support 40GBase-T.

One of CommScope’s key intentions in helping to develop the industry standard for 40GBase-T was to ensure that it could be supported and rolled out cost-effectively. The new standard will minimise the time it will take to develop new electronics for switches and servers that can support 40GBase-T connectivity, by building on the work already completed to support 10 GbE connections. Additionally, the standard will also support the ubiquitous RJ-45 connector.

It has been proposed in some corners that Category 7A cabling offers future-proofed support for 40 GbE speeds. However, Category 7A is only specified to a frequency of 1 GHz and PHY (physical layer) industry experts have shown that higher bandwidth, in the range of 1.5 to 2 GHz, will be required to support 40GBase-T transmission. To date, the work of standards bodies indicates that a higher bandwidth solution than Category 7A cabling is needed in support of 40GBase-T.

Additionally, Category 7A supports three different types of connectors that are not interoperable or backwards compatible with the RJ-45 connector. Their use in data centres will require the use of hybrid patch cords and equipment cords making operations more difficult, error prone and slowing down MACs (moves, adds or changes) in data centres. The IEEE has made it clear that it requires a low-bulk, high-density cabling solution for 40GBase-T, given the limited real estate in data centres.

Due to these factors, the wider cabling industry has agreed that Category 8 is the path forward for supporting 40GBase-T. CommScope successfully demonstrated the technical feasibility of Category 8 cabling for enterprise networks. This is a step along the real path towards a viable 40GBase-T system for data centre applications.

Today, 10GBase-T continues to gain broad acceptance in the server and access layers, and CommScope anticipates bandwidth growth will necessitate a 40GBase-T solution in the future. Base-T technology in conjunction with RJ-45 connectivity is a widely accepted and cost-effective networking option in both data centre and commercial building environments. The CommScope proof-of-concept demonstrates that data centre operators will be able to extend their preferred means of communication technology for 40G.

With the requirements placed on data centres increasing rapidly, the ability to flexibly adapt to future demands is crucial for data centre managers. Often, this can be achieved by deploying higher bandwidth solutions in one part of the data centre, provided that these systems are backwards compatible with existing infrastructure.

Organisations that do not future-proof their data centres today will face the need for wholesale upgrades in three to five years that may generate significant down-time. For this reason, data centre operators should be careful not to reduce their initial CapEx (capital expenditure) at the cost of greater OpEx (operational expenditure) during the total lifetime of their infrastructure. Purchasing better quality equipment can also reduce the need for ongoing maintenance and technical support during a data centre’s lifetime. Similarly, media diversity can also play a crucial role in ensuring reliability in data centres.

As the bandwidth of each individual link in the data centre rises, so does the cost of a connection failure. The huge volumes of data that will soon be running across individual cabling will mean that the failure of even one connection can have a significant impact upon a data centre’s overall performance. Unfortunately, the rapid increase in network complexity in recent years has produced many more potential points of degradation and failure in data centres – from a patchcord being accidentally unplugged to a software false alarm halting all network traffic. It is essential then that enterprises have the tools in place to proactively track and monitor data centre activity. Businesses are rapidly waking up to the reality that the less efficient methods used in the past for maintaining their networks and tracing faults are no longer adequate.

The answer lies in “intelligent infrastructure solutions” – systems that provide the missing link between network management tools and the traditionally passive structured cabling infrastructures that connect network devices together. Intelligence provides better, real-time monitoring of the physical network layer, helping IT professionals and network managers to ensure the security of their network by quickly eliminating blind spots, detecting and locating network breaches, and constantly keeping track of all moves, adds or changes within the network.

As the data rates of individual links in data centres increase, IT managers also need to “sweat the assets” they have, as the individual connections are becoming more valuable. To this end, intelligence inside the data centre also improves operational efficiencies across the board, providing visibility into what resources are available, what data speeds can be supported and, if maintenance is needed, what ports are available and what systems can easily be moved.

The combination of 40GbE data rates with the optimisation possible through intelligent infrastructure is a potent one. It will allow data centre operators and enterprise IT directors to ensure minimal risk and maximum performance from their IT systems well into the future. Towards this end, it’s crucial that planning for the future starts today.

 

• US-based CommScope has played a role in virtually all the world’s best communication networks. It creates the infrastructure that connects people and technologies through every evolution. The company’s portfolio of end-to-end solutions includes critical infrastructure needed to build high-performing wired and wireless networks.

• Cable management is vital for data centres
• Cat 8 – the future of cabling in data centres
• Mena wire and cable market reaches $15.4bn

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