Why You Need Pre-terminated Copper Trunk Cable and How to Choose It?

How long have you ever spent on cable installation? As we all know, cable deployment in the network is a time-consuming work. However, with the help of pre-terminated systems and components, you can cut installation time effectively, for there is no need to do field terminations or splicing during installation. Now, this article focus on one of the pre-terminated cables—pre-terminared copper trunk cable.

What Is Pre-terminated Copper Trunk Cable?

In simple terms, pre-terminated copper trunk cable is a kind of cable which has gone through the same procedures with other cables, but their connectors have already been terminated, properly polished, and the entire cable assembly tested on either both or one end in factory. Copper trunk cables are typically comprised of bundles of 6, 8, or 12. Since they are bundled together, there is no need to worry about cable mess. Pre-terminated copper trunk cables provide a quick “plug-and-play” solution for links between switches, servers, patch panels, and zone distribution areas in the data center, and they are preferred when the cable distances are less than 100 meters and cable lengths are pre-determined. Here is a picture of pre-terminated copper trunk cable.

pre-terminated-copper-trunk-cable

Besides, the common types of pre-terminated copper trunk cables are Cat5e, Cat6, Cat6a, Cat7, etc. And different types have different advantages and specifications. All of them are necessary elements for data transmission in the enterprise and data center networks.

Why You Need Pre-terminared Copper Trunk Cable?

In today’s workplace, quick and easy cable installations that guarantee reliable performance are more critical than ever. When compared to field-terminated cabling, there are many reasons to consider pre-terminated category-rated cables in copper network.

pre-terminated-copper-trunk-cable-deployment

Quick Deployment

It’s know to us that field termination is time-consuming in cable installation. If not use pre-terminated cables, much time would be spent on cable packages and connections. According to some figures, deploying pre-terminated cabling can reduce installation time by up to 75 percent over field terminations.

Less Time Wastage

During a cabling installation, installation and transmission performance testing cost too much time. However, pre-terminated copper trunk cables are terminated in factory, and many of them are provided in a cassette format. This format allows installers to “plug and play” multiple connections with one cassette, which reduce installation time obviously. Besides, transmission testing has been performed by manufacturers before shipment, which also reduces time when installation.

Cable Management Improvement

Pre-terminated trunk cables contribute to data center modularity and consistency, making cabling more accessible and organized. And they also remove excess loops, thus storing excessive slack is not a concern.

Of course, apart from what have been mentioned above, there are also other benefits for applying pre-terminated copper cables such as space saving, cost saving and labor saving. In a word, pre-terminated copper trunk cable deployment benefits cable installation a lot.

Considerations for Choosing Right Pre-terminared Copper Trunk Cable

We have known the benefits of using pre-terminated copper trunk cable. But do you know how to choose a suitable one? Here are several factors you should consider when choosing a right copper trunk.

copper-preterminated-trunk-cable

Fire Ratings of Material

There are different problems may arise in data center and fire is one of them. So there is a need to consider the fire ratings of material. Generally, a riser environment is very common in data center, for in there airflow is not a consideration. But some areas such as drop ceilings and raised floors often require plenum-rated cable which can facilitate air circulation for heating and air conditioning systems.

Termination Types

The termination type of the cable assembly depends on the layout of the data center or telecommunications room, and the design philosophy employed. Different types have different requirements for installation. Common termination types are jack-to-jack, plug-to-open-end, jack-to-plug and plug -to-plug.

Proper Breakout Length

A proper breakout length, referring to the length from the end of the braided sleeve to connectors at the end of the cables, offers the flexibility to route the cables as needed. So it’s important to have a right breakout length.

In addition, cable length and the alignment also should be taken into consideration. Of course, how to choose a suitable pre-terminated copper trunk cable also should depend on your real applications.

Summary

Pre-terminated copper trunk cable provides a perfect cost-effective solution for enterprise and data center applications. Choosing a right one will help you resolve many unnecessary problems during installation process.

OM3 vs. OM4 Multi-mode Fiber Cables

With each passing year, the demands for higher data rates and greater bandwidth in data centers grow. An increasing number of sophisticated fiber optical products have been introduced into the telecommunication market, including fiber patch cables (single-mode fibers (SMFs) and multi-mode fibers (MMFs)), with MMFs being preferred by users. MMFs have four types, OM1, OM2, OM3 and OM4. This article mainly details the differences between OM3 and OM4, helping you clear off the confusion of these two types.

OM3 and OM4 Compatibility

The first thing to note is that OM4 is completely backwards compatible with existing OM3 systems. The connectors and termination of OM3 and OM4 are same. Besides, both OM3 and OM4 are Laser Optimised Multi-mode Fiber (LOMMF) share the same fiber core size of 50/125. So, what are the differences between them?

OM3 vs. OM4

OM4 differs from OM3 mainly in their attenuation and dispersion provided. Let’s first see the following table which shows the attenuation and dispersion of OM3 and OM4.

Type Maximum Attenuation at 850nm Minimum Fiber Bandwidth at 850nm
OM1 3.5 dB/Km 2700 megahertz*Km
OM2 3.0 dB/Km 4700 megahertz*Km
  • Attenuation Analysis

OM4 cable has lower attenuation than OM3. Attenuation refers to the reduction in power of the light signal as it is transmitted (dB). It’s caused by losses in light through the passive components, such as cables, and connectors, relatively simple to explain. The maximum attenuation at 850nm permitted by OM3 is less than 3.5 dB/Km, while the OM4 is less than 3.0 dB/Km. OM4 causes fewer losses.

  • Dispersion Analysis

Dispersion is the spreading of the signal in time due to the differing paths the light can take down the fiber. Two types of dispersion are available: chromatic and modal. Chromatic is the spreading of the signal in time resulting from the different speeds of light rays, while modal is the spreading of the signal in time resulting from the different propagation modes in the fiber. Here the focus is put on the modal dispersion. The modal dispersion determines the modal bandwidth that the fiber can operate, and this is what the difference between OM3 and OM4 lies in. The minimum fiber bandwidth at 850nm allowed by OM3 is 2700 megahertz*Km, by OM4 is 4700 megahertz*Km, meaning that OM4 can operate at higher bandwidth.

  • Other Considerations Between OM3 and OM4

OM4 is more network reliable than OM3, providing great design flexibility. What’s more, OM4 is able to reach an additional 60% links in the core-to-distribution and in the access-to-distribution channels compared to OM3 in 40G/100G Ethernet applications. In 40G Ethernet transmission using 40G QSFP, OM4 enables 150m length reach. Like Arista QSFP-40G-SR4, this 40G QSFP, when runs over OM4, enables 150m reach with MTP/MPO connector at a data rate of 40 Gbps. The image below shows what the Arista QSFP-40G-SR4 transceiver looks like.

Arista QSFP-40G-SR4

Use OM3 or OM4 for Your Network?

On the one hand, since OM3 are compatible with OM4, these two types are interchangeable when the transmission distance limitations are accessible. But on the other, the additional bandwidth and lower attenuation of OM4 make it more ideal for MMF cabling infrastructure. Whether use OM3 or OM4 for your network, it depends on the specific situations, like cost, and distance required.

Conclusion

After detailed discussion, you may have gained a better understanding of the OM3 and OM4 differences and you can quickly choose MMF types to meet your higher bandwidth system requirements. Fiberstore OM3 and OM4 provide solutions that allow more effective and bandwidth-providing network installations. Besides fiber patch cables, Fiberstore also offers copper cables for your networks, such as QSFP-H40G-CU5M. This Cisco QSFP-H40G-CU5M product listed on Fiberstore is 100% compatible with the equivalent Cisco direct attach copper cables. For more information about fiber patch cables and copper cables, you can visit Fiberstore for more information.