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You can get 40GbE if you buy used theses days for roughly the same price using this switch [1] and NIC [2] combo. The only downside is cables [3] are still expe

by en4bz 8y ago

You can get 40GbE if you buy used theses days for roughly the same price using this switch [1] and NIC [2] combo. The only downside is cables [3] are still expensive and copper cables are limited to 20' but if you're in a lab environment that shouldn't be an issue. [1] https://www.ebay.com/itm/Arista-DCS-7050QX-32S-R-32-Port-40GbE-4-Port-10GbE-Switch-w-2x-B-F-PSU-Ears/283084791842?epid=664277829&hash=item41e92b2022:g:1x8AAOSwF2xbZHY5 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Arista-DCS-7050QX-32S-R-32-Port-40G... [2] https://www.ebay.com/itm/MCX353A-FCBT-DELL-Mellanox-ConnectX-3-VPI-Single-Port-QSFP-40GBE-PCI-E-CX353A/202307805284?hash=item2f1a7c2064:g:i2QAAOSwH~ta8WhV https://www.ebay.com/itm/MCX353A-FCBT-DELL-Mellanox-ConnectX... [3] https://www.fs.com/products/30795.html https://www.fs.com/products/30795.html

deleted 8y ago
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ComputerGuru 8y ago
I use those NICs for point-to-point connections but note that they’re not true Connectx3 cards (don’t ask me why they have that name), they need the kernel drivers from the the Connectx2 branch.
walrus01 8y ago
Two strand, 9/125 single mode fiber cables (LC-LC) are actually really cheap, a 20 meter is about $6. Shorter distances are like $3-4 a piece. in bulk, two strand single mode fiber optic cable is actually less costly per meter than Cat5e. Glass is cheap, copper isn't. This does require having a $1500 fusion splicer to put ends on it.
- timthorn 8y ago
  But you do need the transceivers at both ends which inflates the cost significantly.
  - walrus01 8y ago
    For 40G/100G, sure, but for intra-facility connections, 1310nm/LX 10GbE SFP+ are like $27 a piece now. For servers and connections that will be upgraded in the future, fiber is the way to go. If you need low cost, relatively unskilled labor to run cat6 cable to ceiling mounted wifi access points, by all means use copper. But 2.5 and 5GBaseT (nevermind 10GBaseT) are really pushing the limits of how fast we'll ever be able to send down a 8-wire copper cable, even with advanced modulation and signal processing. Singlemode is futureproof for probably the next 50 years.

by en4bz 8y ago

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

ComputerGuru 8y ago

I use those NICs for point-to-point connections but note that they’re not true Connectx3 cards (don’t ask me why they have that name), they need the kernel drivers from the the Connectx2 branch.

walrus01 8y ago

Two strand, 9/125 single mode fiber cables (LC-LC) are actually really cheap, a 20 meter is about $6. Shorter distances are like $3-4 a piece. in bulk, two strand single mode fiber optic cable is actually less costly per meter than Cat5e. Glass is cheap, copper isn't. This does require having a $1500 fusion splicer to put ends on it.

timthorn 8y ago
But you do need the transceivers at both ends which inflates the cost significantly.
- walrus01 8y ago
  For 40G/100G, sure, but for intra-facility connections, 1310nm/LX 10GbE SFP+ are like $27 a piece now. For servers and connections that will be upgraded in the future, fiber is the way to go. If you need low cost, relatively unskilled labor to run cat6 cable to ceiling mounted wifi access points, by all means use copper. But 2.5 and 5GBaseT (nevermind 10GBaseT) are really pushing the limits of how fast we'll ever be able to send down a 8-wire copper cable, even with advanced modulation and signal processing. Singlemode is futureproof for probably the next 50 years.