Gigabit Ethernet Distance Specifications
Following are the Gigabit Ethernet distances as specified in the IEEE 802.3z standard. Please be aware that these are minimum distances achievable using today's Gigabit Ethernet products. Depending on fiber quality and age, users may experience far greater transmission distances. Brocade products are fully compliant with the standard and have been successfully installed at distances up to 150 km.
| Parameter | Fiber Type | Diameter (microns) | Modal Bandwidth (MHz*km) | Minimum Range (meters) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000BASE-SX | MM | 62.5 | 160 | 2 to 220* |
| " | MM | 62.5 | 200 | 2 to 275** |
| " | MM | 50 | 400 | 2 to 500 |
| " | MM | 50 | 500 | 2 to 550*** |
| 1000BASE-LX | MM | 62.5 | 500 | 2 to 550 |
| " | MM | 50 | 400 | 2 to 550 |
| " | MM | 50 | 500 | 2 to 550 |
| " | SM | 9 | NA | 2 to 5000**** |
Notes:
* The TIA 568 building wiring standard specifies 160/500 MHz*km multimode fiber
** The international ISO/IEC 11801 building wiring standard specifies 200/500 MHz*km multimode fiber
*** The ANSI Fibre Channel specification specifies 500/500 MHz*km 50 micron multimode fiber and 500/500 MHz*km fiber has been proposed for addition to ISO/IEC 11801.
**** IEEE Standard is 5000 meters and Brocade extends this to 10,000 meters.
In using MM fiber, higher modal bandwidth is required when going longer distances to avoid introducing too much jitter. Care should be taken to use the highest rated modal bandwidth cable available and adequately test the installation when utilizing extended distances based on the available power budget.
In addition to supporting the 802.3z minimum requirements, Brocade products will support any Gigabit Ethernet link distance that falls within 80 percent of the optical budgets stated below, when verified using a calibrated OTDR or light meter. A 20 percent margin is reserved to accommodate the normal process of fiber degradation.
SX Optical Budget: 10 dB
LX Optical Budget: 12 dB
LHA Optical Budget: 19 dB
LHB Optical Budget: 29 dB