100G QSFP28 Active Optical Cable 100GBASE QSFP28 to QSFP28(EDR) OM3 AOC Cable for Mellanox, 3Meter

QSFP28 Active Optical Cables are fiber assemblies with QSFP28 connectors designed for direct-attach connections over Multi-Mode Fiber (MMF). These AOCs comply with hot-pluggable QSFP28 MSA and RoHS-6 standards, ensuring compatibility and adherence to environmental regulations. By offering a cost-efficient alternative to discrete optical transceivers and patch cables, these AOCs are ideal for establishing 100Gbps connections within racks and adjacent racks. Active optical cables provide a lightweight and slim alternative to copper cables, simplifying cable management.



Compatible with Cisco , Juniper, Huawei, Mikrotik, Netgear, 3Com, Foundry, Alcatel-Lucent, Avaya, Nortel, D-Link, Intel, ZyXEL, Plane, F5, Dell, Allied Telesis, Edge-Core, Foundry, Avago, BDCOM, Ruij Jie, ZTE, Ubnt UniFi, Fortinet, Calix, Generic, UFiber, Datacom, Ruckus, Mellanox, Linksys, IBM, Viavi, Nokia.

The transmission speed can reach 100Gb/s. Universial compatible with open switch.
It is suitable for high-speed data transmission of large data in cloud computing, data center, server, high-speed network card, large data storage, disk array, high-speed network, virtual reality, unmanned vehicles and other equipment.



Features

• Support 100GBASE-SR4/EDR application
• Compliant to QSFP28 Electrical MSA SFF-8636
• Multi rate of up to 25.78125Gbps
• +3.3V single power supply
• Low power consumption
• UL certification cables (optional)
• Operating case temp Commercial: 0°C to +70 °C
• RoHS 6/6 compliant

Application

• 100GBASE-SR4 at 25.78125Gbps per lane
• InfiniBand QDR, EDR
• Other optical links

Ordering Information

Data Center Cabling Solution: DAC Cables vs AOC Cables

DAC cables and AOC cables are widely used in HPC network cabling systems in data centers due to their low-latency, low-power, and low-cost advantages.DAC cables and AOC cables are available in a variety of configurations to meet network needs. Each is available in 10G SFP+, 25G SFP28, 40G QSFP+ and 100G QSFP28 data rates with additional options from 40G to 4x10G or 100G to 4x25G variants.

DAC/AOC Basics and Types

Direct Attach Cable (DAC) consists of a biaxial copper cable with SFP+/SFP28/QSFP+/QSFP56/QSFP28 connectors terminated at both ends, which can provide a direct electrical connection to an active device.DAC cables can be classified into two categories: passive DACs and active DACs.Both passive and active DAC cables can transmit electrical signals directly through the copper cable. The former can transmit without signal conditioning, while the latter has electronics inside the transceiver to enhance the signal. Generally, DAC cables are used to connect switches, servers, and storage devices within racks.


Active Optical Cable (AOC) consists of multimode fiber with SFP-type connectors terminated at both ends. It requires an external power supply to complete the conversion of electrical signals to optical signals, from electrical signals to optical signals and finally to electrical signals. Generally speaking, AOC cables are mainly used to connect switches, servers and storage between different racks within a data center.

DAC/AOC Cable Comparison
DAC cables are mainly used to connect switches, servers, and storage within a rack, and AOC cables are mainly used to connect switches, servers, and storage between different racks within a data center. In addition to this, DAC AOC cables differ in the following ways.


Power Consumption
Under normal circumstances, the power consumption of AOC cables is higher than that of DAC cables, which is 1 ~ 2 w. The power consumption of DAC active cables is less than 1 w. Passive cables, due to the heat dissipation design of direct-attachment copper cables, consume almost zero power and are less than 0.15 w. Therefore, when the DAC option is used, the operating cost of power consumption will be reduced.

Transmission Distance
AOC cables use fiber optic technology for transmission distances of up to 100m, while DAC cable link length is limited to 10m (Passive DAC: 7m; In summary, the DAC cabling option is suitable for short-distance transmission, and the AOC cabling option is suitable for long-distance networking.

Note:Max. Signal distance that can be transmitted over DAC cable depends on the data rate. The link length decreases as the data rate increases, e.g. 100G DAC cable can only transmit up to 5 meters.

Cost
Roughly speaking, DACs have simpler internals and fewer components, and copper cables are much cheaper than fiber optics. When implemented in large data centers, a large number of DAC cables will save money compared to AOC options. For short distance applications, DAC does offer a cost-effective solution over aoc, but for remote applications, it is wise to list the overall cost by comparing the two options.

DAC Cable Typical Application

The primary use of the 10G SFP+ dac is to connect switches/servers to switches inside or adjacent to the rack. In other words, these 10G direct-attach cables can be used as an alternative to ToR (top-of-rack) interconnections between 10G ToR switches and servers or 10GbE switch stacking. Since 10G SFP+ DACs typically support link lengths of 7 meters with low power consumption, low latency and low cost, this option is ideal for such short distance server-to-switch connections.

Typical Applications for 10G SFP+ AOC Cables
Since there are no strict link length limitations, 10G SFP+ aoc is typically used in multiple locations in the data center such as ToR, EoR (end of row) and MoR (middle of row). As with dac, all servers are connected to top-of-rack Ethernet switches, and each server has one or two Ethernet connections to the switch; these connections can be patched by using AOC cables.
Additionally, the utilization of 10G aoc in the data center can be implemented in several major network areas (e.g., Spine, Leaf, or Core switching areas). Interconnections are typically achieved by employing these 10G SFP+ aocs, which have a theoretical maximum reach of 100 meters

SONBORN is a specialist provider of integrated high-speed communication network solutions for enterprises, data centres and telecom users. Our unwavering commitment to innovation and improvement is reflected in our product development, quality control, technical support and network solutions. It is our ultimate goal to provide our global customers with a comprehensive range of products and services in the communications field while maintaining top quality products.

We offer reliable optical transceivers, switches, passive and active devices and accessories. Integrity, price and service are the brand personality of SONBORN in the telecom industry.