The growing use of virtualization in data centers has addressed the need for 10G Ethernet as a way to reduce the complexities when using the existing 1G Ethernet infrastructures. Moving to 10G Ethernet has a number of choice from 10GbE interfaces including CX4, 10G SFP+, SFP+ direct attach copper (10G SFP+ Cu) and 10GBASE-T. However, 10GBASE-T is perceived as a more cost-effective solution for broad deployments. The10GBASE-T SFP+ copper transceiver offers the potential to deliver power saving connectivity by utilizing Cat 6a/7 cable infrastructure with pay-as-you-grow flexibility.
10GBASE-T, also known as IEEE 802.3an, is the Ethernet standard released in 2006 to provide 10Gbps connections over unshielded or shielded twisted pair cables (Cat6/Cat7) over distances up to 100 meters (330 ft). 10GBASE-T is the fourth generation of IEEE standardized BASE-T technologies which all use RJ45 connectors and unshielded twisted pair cabling to provide 10Mbps, 100Mbps, 1Gbps and 10Gbps data transmission, while being backward-compatible with prior generations.
Last year, HPE and other vendors launched a 10GBASE-T SFP+ copper transceiver, giving the equipment designers