The use of optical switches is carried out in fully optical systems. The purpose of using such switches is to switch a channel or packet. Currently, the most common switches are devices with 24 ports.
Switch Overview
In order to understand which switches are better and which ones to use, you need to understand how the system as a whole works. It is worth starting with the fact that any typical network includes nodes, that is, individual computers. The network also includes an environment through which data is transmitted. It can be wired or wireless. In addition, nodes are most often connected by such a means of communication as a router, a hub, or an optical switch. This whole system is created for one purpose - to transfer data from one node to another.
It is important to understand that at the moment it is the switches that have become an important part of almost any network. The principle of their work is micro-segmentation, which makes it possible to send data over the same network to several users of the same network at the same time. Naturally, this greatly reduces the time required to obtain information by several nodes.
Optical SFP Switches
One of the major suppliers of this type of product is ApplyNet, which successfully distributes switch models such as AN-SW802F and AN-SW802M. It is important to note that these models belong to a group of managed WebSmart devices. Products from this line are intended for use in corporate networks or networks of MetroEthernet providers. The production of these models is carried out in plastic ABS cases with dimensions of 200 x 121 x 40 mm. It is important to note that these models are optical switches with 8 ports. The bandwidth of these units reaches 100 Mbps. It is also worth noting that the devices are equipped with passive cooling, which makes it possible to use them both in desktop optical networks, as well as in telecommunication and various distribution cabinets.
Since SFP switches provide the ability to connect fiber optic communications, this greatly increases the distance that the device and its users can share. This distance can reach 20 km. In addition, the use of fiber-optic communications will help to avoid problems with lightning interference and overvoltage, which often occurs when using a conventional copper cable.
Key Features
Currently, the most common is a 24-port optical switch. However, it is impossible to choose models only for this one characteristic. There are several other important indicators.
- One of the most important characteristics is the losses that the apparatus causes. It is necessary that this number be as small as possible, in which case the switch is considered better.
- There is also a feature called transition fading. This parameter shows the ratio of power at a specific output to the power of the remaining outputs. The higher the value of this parameter, the better.
- The signal attenuation coefficient is also one of the main characteristics, which should be as large as possible.
- The last parameter that plays the most important role is the polarization loss of the switch. This indicator should be minimal. If it is necessary to further reduce this value, then you can use a special fiber, which reduces the polarization of the signals.
Cisco Switches
Currently, Cisco optical switches are very widely used by medium-sized companies. In other words, the products of this company have established themselves as a reliable and effective assistant in networking.
However, this company produces quite a few models of various types, and therefore it is necessary to first decide what is required from the organization of the network in the end. Since the direct purpose of the network structure is to ensure fast and stable data transfer between different nodes, the choice of a switch is one of the most important points. Small companies are well suited for the Cisco Catalyst 2960. The advantage of these models is that they differ in a combination of qualities such as reliability, functionality, cost.
Features of optical D-link switches
Previously, hubs were used in the network for communication between individual nodes, however, with the advent of switches, everything changed for the better. These devices are characterized in that they are able to divide one large network into several logical segments, and this, in turn, brought several advantages.
One of the most important advantages of using D-link optical switches was that they made it possible to connect remote devices to the network that could not be connected before. This became possible due to the fact that the switch increases the actual size of the existing network.
D-link models
This company produces many of the most diverse models of optical switches. One of the lines is DES-1010G / 1026G. This device is an unmanaged switch that provides a communication channel whose speed does not exceed 10/100 Mbit / s. In addition, this model is equipped with two ports with a speed of 1000 Mbps, as well as 26 ports that are used to connect computers. Most often, such models are used by small and medium offices to create an optical network between department users.
Another line of unmanaged switches is the DGS-1005D / 08D / 16TL / 24TL. These devices are characterized by the fact that here gigabit channel bandwidth. Due to such a high rate, these devices began to be used for high-speed connection of servers and different stations.
Three-tier network
A three-level model for creating a network is a factor that determines the approach to designing each network separately. It consists of the following three levels - the level of access, distribution, kernel.
The kernel level is the most important function, and therefore it stands at the top of the chain of creating a three-level hierarchical network. This function is responsible for the fast and reliable transfer of large amounts of data. It is also worth noting that the traffic that passes through the kernel is the common traffic for most users of this network.
The distribution level is the link between the core level and the access level. Sometimes it is also called the level of the working group. It is also important to note that depending on the implementation method, this level can perform several different functions.
The last is the access level. This factor regulates the access of individual users of a given group or of various groups united to the information contained in the optical system. This level can also perform several different functions.