How Data Center Communications Function

By Author: Tony Farinholt
Total Articles: 12
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Even though several people understand consumer based system standards, few know about the ones that keep data centers and the Internet up and running on a daily basis. Whilst the standards are very comparable in specifications, there are major differences involving the consumer products and professional ones. The basics and variations in these technologies are easy to understand when looking at how they work and how they are designed.

The main standard that businesses use today is the small form-factor pluggable (or SFP) module. These standards simply interface a communication tool onto the motherboard of a computer, much like a USB port for a house computer. The mounted module changes what sort of connection one can use, but it supports both standard wires and fiber optic technologies. The edge that these interfaces provide is huge because they can be upgraded or repurposed easily based on what the current need for the owner is. This can make one particular system a diverse piece of hardware which offers many purposes rather than one simple purpose.

With ever increasing data rates, the standard had to be ...
... modified lately. In response, the SFP+ was made to support as much as 10 gigabits of data. This was not just an alternative standard, but it does the important task of deferring some of the processing from the module itself to the board it is attached to. At first, this idea was looked at as something that would limit its capabilities, but the processing on the board can be replaced while still supporting older modules. The Cisco brand SFP modules do less than they did before, and as a result, they are less costly to purchase and change out when needed.

Many of these devices are similar to what is found in countless homes, and most still do not understand why they are made so differently. These data centers use these simply because many ports can fit in a relatively small space while allowing things to be updated or repurposed down the road. The SFP modules are supported by a card that is similar to a PCI card in a traditional computer system. The modules themselves can be updated, and as time goes on, the card itself can be swapped out if necessary. This reduces costly server upgrades while providing extremely high data rates that only a Cisco GLC-T or comparable system can support. Keeping the systems smaller is important because space is simply limited, and a data center that routes a massive chunk of the Internet to its various destinations does not have access to unlimited space.