800G Technology Redefines the Network Landscape
The introduction of 800G switch ports, optical modules and DAC presents a significant opportunity for service providers to upgrade network performance without waiting for the 800GE standard. The work of the IEEE 802.3df 800G and 1.6T working groups and the development of industry technology will ensure a strong roadmap for future upgrades. The rapid deployment of 400G shows that the industry can quickly deliver the latest solutions. And as service providers expand and upgrade their data centers, it's ready to support an equally rapid shift to 800G. The introduction of 25.6T switches with 800G ports creates new opportunities for data center operators to leverage networks that dramatically improve performance while reducing complexity, cost, and power consumption.
As shown in Figure 1, you can replace six 12.8T switches with a single 25.6T switch. Each 800G port on the 25.6T switch has eight 100G PAM4 channels and will support eight 100GE connections, two 400GE connections, or a single 800GE interface. By using the 100G PAM4 serial interface, the same number of signal channels are available on the 25.6T switch as on each of the six 12.8T switches, reducing the overall complexity of the solution. At the same 25.6T network capacity, replacing six switches with one will significantly reduce power consumption and cost.
Figure 1: Reduce complexity, cost, and power consumption with a 25.6T switch (From Earlswood Marketing)
Figure 2 shows a 25.6T platform with 800G ports, 32 800G ports in a compact 1RU package, and 64 400GE links or 256 100GE links supported using branch cables. Let's explore a few use cases that take advantage of this flexibility.
Figure 2: 25.6T platform with 32 800G ports
Figure 3 shows an 800G port to support two IEEE 400G BASE-FR4 connections up to 2km long, providing a high-density 400G interface. The configuration using branch cables doubles the number of 400GE links supported by a 1RU 25.6T switch system compared to a 12.8T system. Deployments using this common configuration are making progress in a variety of applications, including high-density AI/ML clusters in data centers and ultra-high-definition video processing.
A lower configuration uses dual IEEE 400G BASE-FR4 links for an 800G connection up to 2km long. Network deployments using this configuration are being rolled out for high performance computing (HPC) systems supporting scientific research and other extremely high processing applications.
Figure 3: 2 x400G QSFP-DD to 400GBASE-FR4 branch
Figure 4 shows an 800G port to support eight IEEE 100G BASE-DR (up to 500m) /IEEE 100GBASE-FR (up to 2km) /IEEE 100GBASE-lR (up to 10km) connections, providing a high-density 100G interface. The diagram shows eight separate 100G links for branches, two 400G connections for branches, and 800G direct connections. These configurations are ideal for upgrades to peer-to-peer/managed networks and distributed data centers that require many 100GE network connections.
Figure 4: 8x100G to 100GBASE-DR/FR branch
In the future digital era, 800G technology will undoubtedly become a huge driving force in the field of communications, leading us to an unprecedented high-speed, efficient and highly connected future. Its excellent transmission speed and huge bandwidth enable all walks of life to usher in new application scenarios and innovation opportunities.
