10 GB Campus - MMF or SMF

jim_berlow · ‎01-17-2008

I understand that there are severe distance limitations when running 10 GB over MMF. However, when I bring this up everyone wants to know what the maximum distance is. Does anyone have a link to a document in fairly easy language (CIO language) that clearly shows the distance limitations?

andrew.burns · ‎01-18-2008

Hi,

It all depends on the physical interface - not the technology as such. There's a nice table (Table 2) that gives an easy to understand overview here:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/switches/ps5718/ps708/prod_white_paper0900aecd802a648b_tk214_TSD_Technologies_White_Paper.html

The reason there is a range given for MMF is that it depends on the quality of the fibre you have installed.

If you want the full details of cable quality vs. length then have a look here:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/modules/ps5455/ps6574/product_data_sheet0900aecd801f92aa.html

HTH

Andrew.

sjohanh123 · ‎01-25-2008

When talking MM we are generally spaeking about a couple of hundred meter.

SM cable/interfaces ranges from a couple of kilometers to hundreds of kilometers.

zangelo_vbar · ‎01-29-2008

Beyond distance limitations you might also consider the increased capacity that SMF provides. I believe 50/125 MMF has about 2Ghz of bandwidth, while a SMF 8/125 has around 100 TERAhertz. Might not put that extra capacity to use immediately using existing standards, but it might come in handy down the road (especially if future standards--40gig, 100gig--mandate shorter distances).

Also, while the SMF optics are more expensive, you can make up a lot of that because the cable itself is cheaper.

Just something to consider.

-ZA