Register for our 2/22 webinar today! In September 2010, the Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA) ratified the standard for 16Gb Fibre Channel. And while the adoption of new interconnect technology is never immediate, it’s important for organizations to begin thinking about how to prepare for this inevitable change. In this webinar you will learn about the changes in physical layer and hardware platforms when migrating to 16G Fibre Channel to help you decide how to begin planning for the next-gen data center.

In this webinar, you will learn:

• How the physical layer of the data center will be affected by the migration to 16G Fibre Channel
• What changes will be made to the networking and cabling infrastructure as a result of migration
• What you can do to prepare for 16G Fibre Channel now

Preparing for the Next-Gen Data Center: 16G Fibre Channel
Date: Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST
Presented by: James Mallon, Systems Engineer, Brocade

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Our CABLExpress® RSD Series fiber enclosures are ideal for your structured cabling environments, where their front acrylic glass panel protects cabling from disruptive elements.

I recently wrote about spaghetti cabling in the data center and what you can do about it. One crucial step in this process is to map out your current data center layout (including cabling infrastructure), then use this to create a new map of the ideal data center cabling scenario.

At CABLExpress, we use Microsoft Visio to accomplish this. The program is ideal for mapping out your current data center layout, as well as creating plans for future upgrades.

You don’t even have to start from scratch when drawing shapes – Microsoft provides a free download of common data center equipment shapes from manufacturers like 3Com, Cisco, HP and Nortel.

We also have free Visio stencils of CABLExpress products available for download, such as enclosures, harnesses and racks.

The MT-RJ (Mechanical Transfer Registered Jack) was developed by Amp and Corning, but based on specifications from NTT.

About the MT-RJ

Two fibers are included in one connector that looks a lot like an RJ45. That’s where the last part of the name came from. Alignment pins are used to mate the connectors. MT-RJ’s come in two versions, with mating pins (male) and without (female). Though small, allowing for greater density, the MT-RJ has not taken off like the LC due to poor performance characteristics across the board.

View information about other data center fiber connectors.

Continuing my posts on fiber cable connectors in the data center, today I’m going to cover the ST Connector.

The ST Connector

ST stands for Straight Tip. It has a 2.5mm ferrule in a simplex format. It was developed by AT&T shortly after the FC was developed by NTT. Essentially it was AT&T’s answer to this new smaller form factor connector. The design is very similar but the ST has a quick locking mechanism that significantly speeds up installation time. The locking mechanism has a key which does not allow the ferrule to rotate when installed. This is very similar to a BNC connector that you may be familiar with.

In this episode of Cable Talk™, Josh Taylor talks about the “Respect Layer One” message. It is important to view the cables within structured cabling systems as an investment rather than a cost. By viewing it simply as a cost, you could be short-changing your data center and miss the long-term vision of how your cabling infrastructure will need to grow and change. This is particularly true with migrating to 40/100G Ethernet and 16G fibre channel.

Yesterday I wrote about the ESCON connector and its place in the history of data center architecture. Today I’ll cover the FC connector.

FC Connector: An Overview

FC stands for Ferrule Connector. It has a 2.5mm ferrule in a simplex format. The FC connector was developed by NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone).

This screw-on type connector has the advantage of being pull-proof and wiggle-proof when it’s being installed. Because of this, the FC connector works very well for high vibration environments. It is still widely used today in testing equipment and other similar areas where a fixed connection is critical. The down side of the screw-on connector is that it takes a long time (comparably) to install or remove this type of assembly. There is also a key on the connector that must be aligned properly before it can be installed.

To view more information about cable connectors, view our Connector Guide.

There have been many changes in data center architecture over the past 30 years, and the evolution of the cable connector is an excellent way to walk through this rich history. Today I’ll cover the popular fiber cable connectors that have been used in data centers for the last 30 years.

The ESCON Connector

ESCON stands for Enterprise System Connection. It has 2.5mm ferrules in a duplex format. The ESCON connector was developed by IBM in the early 90’s and brought into the data center for use in IBM mainframes, replacing copper bus and tag cables. They were also used for peripheral hardware such as storage devices and tape drives.

The ESCON connector is very sturdy and robust but also has a large footprint. This was okay at the time, as there were not a lot of connections needed. This connector is an icon as it was the first fiber cable connector widely used in data center architecture.

To view more information about cable connectors, view our Connector Guide.