Introduction to SONET (Synchronous Optical Networking)
SONET (Synchronous Optical Networking) standards were developed to take advantage of low-cost transmission over optical fibers. It defines a hierarchy of data rates, formats and optical signal specifications. More ...
How In-Row Cooling Increases Data Center Efficiency
Increased data center densities enable operators to meet the demands of cloud and hyper-scale environments. As more power is consumed per rack, however, heat becomes a big problem. Most modern data centers have adopted some sort of aisle-containment solution to minimize the mixing of hot and cold air. More ...
What are OFNP, OFNR, OFNG and OFCG? Understanding Fiber Optic Cable Fire Ratings
Just like copper cables, NEC (National Electrical Code) requires indoor fiber optic cables be marked with their fire and smoking ratings. According to NEC, a building's inside area is divided into three types of sections: plenums, risers and general purpose areas. More ...
The Complete Guide to Fiber Optic Connectors
There have been over 100 different fiber optic connectors developed over the years but a select few have stood the test of time and beat out their competition. In this article we talk about the most common. More ...
Build Your Own Fiber Optic Network Like a Professional Network Engineer
The basic philosophy of modern LAN wiring is the concept of structured cabling. The entire networking system is broken up into chunks that allow workstation wires to be concentrated. More ...
Understanding the Basics of All-Optical Switching
All-optical switching is a process by which light in the form of digital communication signals is routed from one transmission channel to another without intermediate conversion to another format. More ...
Wireless or Wired Network?
Do you want the freedom of a wireless network, or do you want the security and reliability of a wired network? Both networks can provide you with great service and expandability, but each one varies in size, reliability, cost and speed. More ...
ISP Multihoming Explained
Multihoming is essentially a method whereby a company can connect to more than one ISP at the same time. The concept was born out of the need to protect Internet access in the event of either an ISP link failure or an ISP internal failure. More ...
What Are Fiber Optic Circulators?
An optical circulator is an nonreciprocal passive device that directs light sequentially from port to port in only one direction. The operation of a circulator is similar to that of an isolator except its constructions is more complex. More ...
Troubleshooting Your Optical Fiber Networks - Introduction to OTDR
In fiber optic networks, OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflectometer) is an opto-electronic instrument used to characterize an optical fiber. An OTDR may be used for estimating the fiber's length and overall attenuation, including splice and mated-connector losses. It may also be used to locate faults, such as breaks. More ...
Multilayer Switch
A network switch operates at layer 2 the OSI model. A multilayer switch also works at layer 3 or higher, all the way up to layer 6 of the OSI model. More ...
What is an Ethernet Switch?
An Ethernet switch is a networking device that is able to interrogate the data within the Ethernet Frames to provide forwarding and filtering and loop avoidance. More ...
A Guide to Broadband Internet Connections
By this point, most of America already has a Broadband Connection to the Internet. But for those that have not yet taken the plunge, a world of benefits awaits you. Broadband can get you surfing up to 50 times faster than a typical 56K modem. More ...
