 - 10-Gigabit Ethernet (sometimes expressed as 10GBASE-T, 10GE, 10GbE or 10 GigE), is a telecommunication technology that offers data speeds up to 10 billion bits per second. 10GbE was standardized in IEEE 802.3a.
Built on the Ethernet technology used in most of today's local area networks (LANs), 10-Gigabit Ethernet has been described as a "disruptive" technology that offers a more efficient and less expensive approach to moving data on backbone connections between networks while also providing a consistent technology end-to-end. Using optical fiber, 10-Gigabit Ethernet can replace existing networks that use ATM switches and SONET multiplexers on an OC-48 SONET ring with a simpler network of 10-Gigabit Ethernet switches and at the same time improve the data rate from 2.5 Gbps to 10 Gbps.
10-Gigabit Ethernet is used to interconnect local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), and metropolitan area networks (MANs). 10-Gigabit Ethernet uses the familiar IEEE 802.3 Ethernet media access control (MAC) protocol and its frame format and size. Like Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet, 10-Gigabit Ethernet uses full-duplex transmission, which makes possible a considerable distance range. On multimode fiber, 10-Gigabit Ethernet will support distances up to 300 meters; on single mode fiber, it will support distances up to 40 kilometers. Smaller Gigabit Ethernet networks can feed into a 10-Gigabit Ethernet network.
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06 Jan 2010
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