System Cabling
86
Appendix A:
Cabling Information and
Specifications
This appendix provides supplemental information and specifications.
A.1
QSFP Cable
QSFP (Quad Small Form-factor Pluggable) Key Features:
Small size, high density, hot-pluggable connector with four transmit and four receive
channels
Supports both types of cables:
Copper active or passive cable
Copper passive cable equipped with two simple passive connectors and a standard
copper cable
Copper active cable equipped with an active device to optimize signal quality
Fibre optic cable delivered as either:
Fibre cable with two separate modules
Active optic cable where cable and optic adaptors are delivered as a single unit
(permanently attached cable)
Data rate: 2.5 Gbps (SDR), 5 Gbps (DDR), and up to 10 Gbps (QDR) per channel
QSFP optic modules use standard MPO parallel 12-fibre jacketed ribbon optical connector
Provide manageability, discovery, and identification capability, such as vendor
identification, module part number, serial number, cable type, using low-speed two-wire
(I2C) interface
Active cables: Integrates digital diagnostic capability to monitor link performance
Latching mechanism
Physical dimensions:
Figure 38: QSFP Connector-Dimensions
QSFP to CX4 cables are available to connect 4700 equipped with QSFP with legacy
DDR/SDR systems equipped with CX4 connectors.