INDUSTRY

The University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) has completed the first full-scale multi-vendor interoperability test of the newly ratified IEEE standard for interconnecting systems at high speeds (10 Gigabit/sec) over copper cable. The IEEE standard, IEEE Std 802.3ak(TM) (10GBASE-CX4), was approved in late February. The technology provides an affordable way for Ethernet routers, switches and server clusters located within 15 meters of each other to exchange data at 10 Gb/sec over copper twinaxial cables. "Ethernet's success has been the direct result of a thorough standardization process and the dedication and willingness of the industry to vigorously test the conformance and verify the interoperability of their products," said Bob Noseworthy, UNH-IOL 10 Gigabit Ethernet Consortium manager. "Ultimately this translates to the low cost reliable technology that the world has come to expect from Ethernet. This week we have shown that CX4 is ready to continue this fine tradition." The event ran March 22-26 at the UNH-IOL and included products from: BitBlitz Communications, Broadcom Corporation, Cisco Systems, Fujitsu, LEONI High Speed Cables GmbH, Molex Connector Corporation, Mysticom Semiconductor, PMC-Sierra, Quake Technologies, Spirent Communications, and W.L. Gore. "We expect to see much broader adoption of 10 Gigabit Ethernet now that a lower cost physical layer is available," said Dan Dove, Chair, IEEE 802.3ak Task Force and Principal Engineer, HP ProCurve Networking Business. "HP is committed to the development of innovative industry standards - such as 10GBASE-CX4 - to help meet customers' needs for secure, mobile, multi-service networking solutions. Not only will this technology spur a growth in 10Gb/sec networking, it will also allow IT managers to deploy Gigabit edge switches in a cost-effective, and high performance way." The UNH-IOL is a leading 10 Gigabit Ethernet test and development laboratory. The UNH-IOL has aided the 10 GE industry in numerous ways: Contributing significantly to the standards process both as document editor and technical commenting; Hosting the first 10GbE XAUI technical feasibility demonstration in July 2001; aiding the former 10 Gigabit Ethernet Alliance with all of their hotstaging and tradeshow demonstrations; hosting XAUI and XFP plugfests; and developing the industries most detailed and thorough testing of the 10 GE interfaces. "CX4 technology is another innovative addition to Cisco's Catalyst product line which is leading the widespread adoption of 10GbE. CX4 offers our customers a low priced 10 GbE interface for building high performance intelligent networks for their enterprise and data center needs," said Jeff Cain, hardware engineering manager for Catalyst 6500 of Cisco Systems. The 10GBASE-CX4 test event was open to all test equipment and networking equipment vendors in the industry. Test events are free for members of the UNH-IOL's 10GE Consortium. Companies interested in joining future group tests should contact Bob Noseworthy or visit the UNH-IOL Web site for more information, at the following URL: http://www.iol.unh.edu/consortiums/10gec/index.html