In the market of fiber optic products, there are many kinds of optical transceiver modules, such as GBIC, SFP, SFP+, QSFP+, QSFP28, CFP, and so on. All these transceiver modules provide you with a large variety of options. Which one to choose? For example, will you choose an SFP optical transceiver over a GBIC? Many people are confused about them. It seems that you should first figure out what you need and then know the differences between them before making a decision.

Small form-factor pluggable (SFP) is a specification for a new generation of optical modular transceivers. The devices are designed for use with small form factor (SFF) connectors, and offer high speed and physical compactness. SFP transceivers are expected to perform at data speeds of up to five gigabits per second (5 Gbps), and possibly higher. There are many differernt types of SFP transceivers, and they work with different wavelengths at a designated location or distance. For example, a TRENDnet TEG-MGBSX compatible 1000BASE-SX SFP transceiver, as shown below, uses 850nm for a maximum of 550 meters.

SFP modules are hot-swappable. They can be easily interchanged, electro-optical or fiber optic networks can be upgraded and maintained more conveniently than has been the case with traditional soldered-in modules. Rather than replacing an entire circuit board containing several soldered-in modules, a single module can be removed and replaced for repair or upgrading. The form factor and electrical interface are specified by a multi-source agreement (MSA). SFP is also known as a Mini GBIC as its function is somewhat similar to GBIC transceiver while SFP is smaller in size. SFP transceivers are designed to support SONET, Gigabit Ethernet, Fibre Channel, and other communications standards. Due to its smaller size, SFP is now more and more widely used for both telecommunication and data communications applications.

A gigabit interface converter (GBIC) is a transceiver that converts electric currents to optical signals, and optical signals to digital electric currents. It is a hot-swappable input/output device (it can be removed and replaced without turning off the system) that plugs into a Gigabit Ethernet port or slot, linking the port with the network. Generally, GBIC is with SC connector. It is commonly employed in fiber optic and Ethernet systems as an interface for high-speed networking. The data transfer rate is one gigabit per second (1 Gbps) or more. GBIC modules allow technicians to easily configure and upgrade electro-optical communications networks. A GBIC module is economical, because it eliminates the necessity for replacing entire boards at the system level. Upgrading can be done with any number of units at a time, from an individual module to all the modules in a system.

Based on the definitions of GBIC and SFP, you may have a further understanding on both of them. Is SFP a better choice over GBIC? I think the answer is yes. SFP transceiver is smaller than GBIC module. The difference in size is very desirable for many people, especially for those who deal with lots of them, because it will take up a lot less space. Considering that space in a server location is quite limited, using SFP modules lets you put more within one rack unit than if you used GBICs. Because of this single difference, SFP optical transceivers rapidly gain popularity with administrators who want to maximize their space.

Other basic functions of SFP is almost the same with the GBIC and they are equal in performance. The characteristics of the two, whether for electrical or for fiber optics, are just about identical. So switching from one to the other will not really help your network perform better or make it worse. Though there are some users still using GBICs as their old divice which can not be updated to support SFP, GBIC will gradually be obsoleted and replaced by SFP. So it is a better choice to go with SFP.

SFP transceiver module gains more and more popularity among consumers, and it has replaced GBIC to some extent. Fiberstore can offer those GBIC and SFP transceivers with same performances at more reasonable prices.

Posted by: jowang at 03:11 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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