However, for sub 90m links, copper is still a viable option offering a more cost effective alternative to fibre. The number of shipped copper GbE and 10GbE ports far outweigh fibre ports which helps to drive the purchase cost down. 10GBase-T requires a minimum standard of Category 6A; it’s currently unclear if you will be able to run 40GbE over Cat6a, even if it is for a shorter length (the draft standard is based on Category 8.) Without doubt Shielded cabling will be needed however.
For switch to server/switch patching, our double shielded Cat6a cables are hard to beat in terms of available performance. Assembled using a Cat7 cable ensures plenty of performance headroom and cables are guaranteed to deliver 10GbE performance. All cables are individually Fluke tested to ensure 100% compliance.
We also pre configure patching looms, presenting RJ45 shielded Cat6a sockets mounted in a pair of 19″ panels, with pre-connected lengths of Cat6a solid cables between the two. This saves time in building rack to rack copper connectivity.
Other copper connectivity options are DAC (Direct Attach Cables) which are 10GbE cables hard wired to SFP+ transceivers, and are a cheap way to interconnect devices with SFP+ slots provided they are in the same rack (10m max distance).
Also CX4 cables which are similar to Infiniband, although these are becoming less common now that 10GBaseT is ratified.
10GbE supported over SFTP cables – lower cost option compared to fibre
Pre-Patched 19″ 10GbE Panel Looms – simply mount and patch into, saves installation time
100% individually tested cables – reliable performance guaranteed