Negotiation and McBasic Gigabit
McBasic Gigabit will negotiate between Master and Slave mode. To avoid
conflicts with devices connected to McBasic Gigabit, it senses which mode is
appropriate and will then choose that mode. McBasic Gigabit also negotiates
between Half- and Full-duplex. Typically, when McBasic Gigabit is connect-
ed to a NIC or switch, it functions as a Master, as the NIC and switch auto-
negotiate and determine which mode will not cause conflict. The
McBasic
Gigabit
should drop down to Slave mode when connected to a switch or
other multiport device. When connected to another McBasic Gigabit, there
is a period of time where, while negotiation is taking place, errors may be
seen. After a short period of time, the device returns to normal operation.
About FiberAlert
FiberAlert
is an advanced troubleshooting features that can help you
locate "silent failures" on your network. However, it is vital that you under-
stand exactly how
FiberAlert
works, and how they will react in your network
configuration, before attempting to install the enclosed module(s).
Installing modules without understanding the effects of
FiberAlert
can cause perfectly functioning units to appear flawed or even
dead
.
If you are unfamiliar with
FiberAlert
, IMC Networks strongly encourages
you to read the following information. Contact IMC Networks technical
support at (800) 624-1070 (U.S. and Canada), +32-16-550880 (Europe) or
for more information and assistance.
A
B O U T
L
I N K
I
N T E G R I T Y
During normal operation, link integrity pulses are transmitted by all point-
to-point Ethernet devices. When an IMC Networks media converter
receives valid link pulses, it knows that the device to which it is
connected is up and sending pulses, and that the copper or fiber cable com-
ing from that device is intact. The appropriate “LINK” LED is lit to indicate
this. The IMC Networks media converter also sends out link pulses from its
copper and fiber transmitters, but normally has no way of knowing whether
the cable to the other device is intact and the link
pulses are reaching the other end.
FiberAlert
allows this information to be
obtained from the fiber, even when physical access to a remote device (and
its link integrity LED) is not available.
W
H A T
I
S
F
I B E R
A
L E R T
?
FiberAlert
lets you know when a fault occurs on your fiber loop by stop-
ping data transmissions and affecting fiber LEDs on both sides of your net-
work. If a media converter is not receiving a fiber link,
FiberAlert
disables
the media converter's fiber transmitter, thus mirroring the link status of the
opposite end of the fiber. Both fiber link LEDs on either end of the link
3
should extinguish, alerting you to the fault.
Using
FiberAlert
, a local site
administrator is notified of a
fault and can quickly determine
where a cable fault is located
without having to go to the
remote site.
For more information on
FiberAlert
, please visit the
IMC Networks Web site at
www.imcnetworks.com/to-fa.htm
. If you are
unsure of how best to implement this features in your configuration, please
contact IMC Networks technical support via phone at
(800) 624-1070 (U.S. and Canada), +32-16-550880 (Europe) or via
e-mail at
.
Installation Troubleshooting
•
During installation, first test your fiber and twisted pair connections
with
FiberAlert
disabled. Then enable
FiberAlert
, if desired, just
before final installation. This will reduce the feature’s interference
with testing.
•
FiberAlert
should only be enabled on one side of a media conver-
sion. Enabling it on both sides would keep both transmitters off
indefinitely.
•
To test
McBasic Gigabit
by itself, you must have an appropriate
fiber patch cable. First, connect
McBasic Gigabit
to the twisted pair
device with a twisted pair cable. Next, loop a single strand of fiber
from the transmit port to the receive port of your media converter.
Finally, verify that you have both twisted pair and fiber link on your
media converter.
•
Make sure that you are using the appropriate twisted pair cable
(i.e. crossover or pass-through). Gigabit Ethernet requires Cat-5
cabling and patch cords.
LED Indicators
McBasic Gigabit
features several diagnostic LEDs. They are:
T
W I S T E D
P
A I R
P
O R T
ACT
Glows yellow when data is detected on the port.
LNK
Glows green when a twisted pair
link
is established.
FDX
Glows green when operating in
Full-Duplex
mode.
PWR
Glows green when unit has
power
.
4
IMC Networks product with
enabled —
Remote Site stops transmitting
Local Link LED is OFF indicating a break in the fiber loop
FiberAlert
Cable Break
XMT
RCV
LED
Remote Site
Local Site
LED OFF = Broken Link
LED
XMT
RCV
