Conventional high-speed ethernet networks operating over fiber are which of the following?

Ethernet is primarily a standard communication protocol used to create local area networks.  It transmits and receives data through cables. This facilitates network communication between two or more different types of network cables such as from copper to fiber optic and vice versa. However, you may wonder what an Ethernet media converter is? In short, an Ethernet media converter is a device that is able to support communications between two different types of network media. The media converter consists of a circuit card within a case. The card typically has 2 ports to connect two differing types of network cables. This post will attempt to answer any questions you might have regarding the functionality of fiber media converters and Ethernet networks.

What is an Ethernet Network?

As mentioned, Ethernet network is used to create local area network and connect multiple computers or other devices such as printers, scanners, and so on. In a wired network, this is done with the help of fiber optic cables, while in a wireless network, it is done through wireless network technology. An Ethernet network uses various topologies such as star, bus, ring, and more.

What Are the Various Types of Ethernet Networks?

Fiber optic media converters connect an Ethernet device with CAT5/CAT6 copper cables to a fiber optic cable. An Ethernet network usually is active in a 10-km periphery. This extension to fiber optic cable significantly increases the distance covered by the network. Here are some types of Ethernet networks:

• Fast Ethernet: As the term suggests, this is quite a high-speed internet, and can transmit or receive data at about 100 Mbps. This type of network is usually supported by a twisted pair or CAT5 cable. If a laptop, camera, or any other device is connected to a network, they operate at 10/100Base Ethernet and 100Base on the fiber side of the link.
• Gigabit Ethernet: This type of network transfers data at an even higher speed of about 1000 Mbps or 1Gbps. Gigabit speed is an upgrade from Fast Ethernet which is slowly being phased out. In this type of network, all the four pairs in the twisted pair cable contribute to the data transfer speed. This network type finds a large application in video calling systems which use CAT5e or other advanced cables. For extended networks, the distance of up to 500m, 1000Base SX fiber cables may be used for multimode, as well as 1000Base LX for single mode systems. VERSITRON manufactures Gigabit Ethernet Media Converters that can handle 10/100/1000Base speeds on the Ethernet side and 1000Base Gigabit speed on the fiber side by using Fiber SFP modules.
• 10-Gigabit Ethernet: This is an even more advanced and high speed network type with a data transfer rate of 10 Gigabit/second. It is supported by CAT6a or CAT7 twisted pair cables, as well as fiber optic cables. By using a fiber optic cable, this network area can be extended up to around 10,000 meters.
• Switch Ethernet: This type of network requires a switch or hub. Also, instead of a twisted pair cable, a normal network cable is used in this case. Network switches are used for data transfer from one device to the other, without interrupting any other devices in the network.

Ethernet may be either a wired or wireless network. In a wired network, various types of cables are used. Here are some widely used Ethernet cables:

• 10Base2: This is a thin twisted pair coaxial cable.
• 10Base5: This is thick twisted pair coaxial cables.
• 10Base T: This is a twisted pair cable which offers a speed of around 10 Mbps.
• 100BaseTX: This is a twisted pair cable and offer a speed of 100 Mbps.
• 100Base FX: Fiber optic protocol which offers a speed of 100 Mbps.
• 1000Base SX: Fiber optic protocol which utilizes a wavelength of 850nm for multimode networks.
• 1000Base LX: Fiber optic protocol which utilizes a wavelength of 1310 nm, for multimode networks and up to 1550nm for singlemode networks.

Ethernet is one of the oldest ways to connect to the Internet. You can connect Ethernet cables to wired as well as wireless networks. Here are some pointers which distinguish these two types of Ethernet networks.

• Wired Ethernet Network: This is the most conventional wired LAN or WAN type of connectivity. An Ethernet cable is connected to a modem directly, and its other end is connected to a device such as a laptop or a desktop. This must be at least a Cat5 cable or beyond. Here, since the connectivity is direct, the speed is also much faster than wireless networks. In fact, this is a good option for single users to connect to the internet. Of course, this can be done for more than one user, such as in a small business network. You can connect around 1- to 15 devices in such a network, in an area up to 10 km. While wired Ethernet has almost become obsolete, it is actually beneficial for small groups, much faster and safer than wireless ones and can load and transfer bulky files such as videos and audios as well as live stream hem seamlessly.


• Wireless Ethernet Network: A wireless network basically uses high frequency radio waves and does not involve cables to be connected to the receiving device such as a laptop. Hence, it is more flexible than wired networks and the device would connect if present within a given range or periphery where the modem and router are connected. This is easy to install but there may be problems related to signal strength at times, especially when transferring bulky files. Popularly known as Wi-Fi, here the data is transmitted in the form of wireless signals unlike over a cable. If there is a modem and a router, you need to connect the modem to the router with the help of an Cat5 or Cat6 ethernet cable. The virtually connected device picks up signals from the router.

• Ethernet media converters can be installed as standalone or rack mountable in a media converter chassis, and can be placed in cramped areas, as they are quite small and compact.
• They can also be easily wall mounted or DIN rail mounted in industrial applications.
• Allow a user to transmit data over distances up to 100km by using fiber optic conversion
• They can be used to convert any IP device such as a camera to fiber optic.

For optimal use of your network and increasing your speed of communication, you can opt for a top quality Ethernet Media converter manufactured by VERSITRON. We supply Media Converters to military, government, and commercial end users world-wide. VERSITRON works closely with each customer to ensure that the most practical and cost effective solution is utilized for any specific application. Click RFQ to know the fiber media converter price from our product range. 

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Gigabit Ethernet (GbE), a transmission technology based on the Ethernet frame format and protocol used in local area networks (LANs), provides a data rate of 1 billion bits per second, or 1 gigabit (Gb). Gigabit Ethernet is defined in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.3 standard and is currently being used as the backbone in many enterprise networks.

Gigabit Ethernet connects computers and servers in local networks. Its improvements in data transfer speed and cabling have prompted many enterprises to replace Fast Ethernet with Gigabit Ethernet for wired local networks.

Gigabit Ethernet is carried on optical fiber or copper wire. Existing Ethernet LANs with 10 megabits per second and 100 Mbps cards can feed into a Gigabit Ethernet backbone.

Newer standards, such as 10 GbE, a networking standard that is 10 times faster than Gigabit Ethernet, are also emerging. Today, data centers and enterprises have a myriad of options of Gigabit Ethernet speeds, including 10 GbE, 20 GbE, 40 GbE and 100 GbE for core switching.

How Gigabit Ethernet works

Gigabit Ethernet networks can function as half-duplex networks for shared media or as Ethernet switches with a switched full-duplex network.

Gigabit Ethernet uses the same 802.3 framing structure as standard Ethernet. It supports 1 Gb per second (Gbps) speeds using Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detect (CSMA/CD). CSMA/CD handles transmissions after a collision has occurred. The transmission rate may cause data packets to intersect when two devices on the same Ethernet network attempt to transmit data at the same time. CSMA/CD detects and discards collided data packets.

Gigabit Ethernet speeds are delivered by either copper or fiber optic cables. Fiber optic cables are needed for long-range transmissions of more than 300 meters (m). However, traditional Ethernet cables can transmit data at gigabit speeds over shorter distances -- in particular, Cat5e cables or above or the 1000Base-T cabling standard and above. Cat5e cable, for example, consists of four pairs of eight twisted wires in one cable.

Types of Gigabit Ethernet

Gigabit Ethernet is implemented in different cabling physical layer standards, including the following:

• 1000Base-CX. This standard, which is used for connections up to 25 m, uses either balanced twinaxial cabling or shielded twisted pair (STP) cabling.
• 1000Base-SX. This standard, which is used for connections up to 220 m, uses fiber optic cables for short-wavelength transmissions.
• 1000Base-LX. This standard, which is used for connections up to a maximum distance of 5 kilometers (km), uses fiber optic cables.
• 1000Base-T. This standard, which is used for connections up to 100 m, uses unshielded twisted pair (UTP) copper cables with Cat5, Cat5e, Cat6 and Cat7.
• 1000BASE-T1. This standard, which is used for connections up to 15 m, uses STP copper cables.
• 1000BASE-TX. This standard, which is similar to 1000Base-T, is used for connections up to 100 m. It uses UTP copper cables. But this standard does not receive much recognition due to its cost and Cat6 and Cat7 cable requirements.
• 1000BASE-KX. This standard, which is used for connections up to 1 m, uses UTP-type cables.

Benefits of Gigabit Ethernet

Gigabit Ethernet provides the following benefits:

• Reliability. Fiber optic cables used in some gigabit internet offerings are more durable and reliable than traditional copper wiring.
• Speed. A transmission speed of 1 Gbps should be more than enough for most online applications today.
• Less latency. Reduced latency rates range from 5 milliseconds to 20 ms.
• Transferring or streaming video data. Gigabit Ethernet can smoothly stream 4K content at a high frame rate.
• Multiuser support. High-speed internet can be split into multiple tasks to support multiple devices.

History

As one of the most widely used LAN technologies, Ethernet was introduced in 1973 and has evolved over the years:

• In 1995, Fast Ethernet was introduced and, as a standard, remained the fastest version of Ethernet for three years. Fast Ethernet was designed to carry traffic at a rate of 100 Mbps.
• In 1998, three years after the introduction of Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet was introduced by IEEE to replace Fast Ethernet. It provided a data rate of 1 Gb and initially required the use of fiber optic cables.
• In 1999, a new standard was passed that enabled UTP Cat5, Cat5e or Cat6 cabling to be used. This was called 1000Base-T.
• In 2002, 10 GbE was introduced.
• In 2004, the 1000BASE-LX10 and 1000BASE-BX10 standards were added.
• In 2010, a standard for 40 GbE and 100 GbE was introduced to support endpoint and link aggregation.
• In 2013, IEEE published results from an Ethernet Study Group for a 400 GbE standard.
• In 2017, IEEE ratified 200 GbE and 400 GbE, which are two times and four times faster, respectively, than 100 GbE.
• The Ethernet Alliance's technology roadmap expects Ethernet speeds of 800 Gbps to 1.6 terabits per second to become an IEEE standard between 2023 and 2025.

Learn more about 400 GbE and the effect it will have on enterprise networks in this article.