Which SFP+ 10GBE cables are compatible?

Notice: Page may contain affiliate links for which we may earn a small commission through services like Amazon Affiliates or Skimlinks.

rmzg

New Member
Feb 8, 2017
8
3
3
38
This is a rather vague question since I don't actually know enough to ask a better question yet, but to make it short and simple, I too am embarking on the great voyage known as 10Gbit ethernet, I bought one of the quanta lb6m 10gbe sfp+ switches and some mellanox sfp+ cards but once I started looking into the cables to connect them I quickly became confused by the various available options. For example, the different standards listed at 10 Gigabit Ethernet - Wikipedia

So my question is, how do I know which cable/standards will work with my switch and cards? Will any cable with a SFP+ transceiver work? Is it just a question of matching the transceivers on both ends of the cable? And given the above equipment if I wanted to run a moderately long, but inside the home, link between the switch and a card, say between 50m and 100m, what would be the best and cheapest cable to do it with?

Edit: Also when do I need to care about the difference between multimode and singlemode fiber?
 

i386

Well-Known Member
Mar 18, 2016
4,220
1,540
113
34
Germany
single mode: long distances
multi mode: short distances (<100-300m)
om3: 10gbe up to 300m
om4: 10gbe up to 400m

I don't have a lb6m so can't say anything about the compatibility, but the mellenaox cards support almost any transceiver you can find.
At home I use Cisco branded transceivers (10gbase-sr) and cheap/no name om3 fibers.
 
  • Like
Reactions: leonman

Jerry Renwick

Active Member
Aug 7, 2014
200
36
28
43
Q1: how do I know which cable/standards will work with my switch and cards?
Your cards and switches are supporting up to 10Gbps, you can definitely use the 10G optical transceivers and cables. You can purchase them from ebay, amazon or fs.com. However, I am worried about the compatibility issue here. So it is advisable to consult with the rep.

Q2: Will any cable with a SFP+ transceiver work?
No, usually single-mode fibers work with single-mode transceivers (10GBASE-LR), multimode fibers (OM3/OM4) operate over multimode transceiver modules(10GBASE-SR). Sometimes, single-mode fibers will work over multimode transceivers? But it is not an advisable solution.

Q3: Is it just a question of matching the transceivers on both ends of the cable?
Yes, matching transceivers on both ends of the cable matters.

For your situation, you can use the 10GBASE-SR SFP+ transceivers and OM3 cables. No need for single-mode cabling.
 
  • Like
Reactions: leonman

pc_doom

Member
Nov 2, 2016
50
17
8
29
1. The easiest way to ensure your cable and transceiver can work with your switch and card is to buy the same branded cables and modules as your switch and cards, but you must know that original-branded modules are very expensive, and currently most users prefer to use 3-rd party optics. FS.COM is the very choice. A 10G SR optics is just $16. Cisco SFP-10G-SR 10GBASE-SR SFP+ Transceiver | FS.COM

2. How to choose fiber patch cables for your transeiver, you can check this post. Patch Cable Selection for Optical Transceiver

3. 50m and 100m connection, you should use short distance modules: 10GBase-SR SFP+ and multimode duplex LC fiber patch cable.
 
  • Like
Reactions: leonman