Copyright 2017, 2018 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP
Notices
The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for Hewlett Packard
Enterprise products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements accompanying such products
and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. Hewlett Packard
Enterprise shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.
Confidential computer software. Valid license from Hewlett Packard Enterprise required for possession, use, or
copying. Consistent with FAR 12.211 and 12.212, Commercial Computer Software, Computer Software
Documentation, and Technical Data for Commercial Items are licensed to the U.S. Government under vendor's
standard commercial license.
Links to third-party websites take you outside the Hewlett Packard Enterprise website. Hewlett Packard Enterprise
has no control over and is not responsible for information outside the Hewlett Packard Enterprise website.
The transceivers listed in this document represent the currently available and End of Sale products at the time of
this publication. Not all transceiver products are supported in every switch available from Aruba. Consult the
QuickSpecs for the applicable switch product for a list of supported transceiver products. QuickSpecs can be
found at http://www.hpe.com/networking/resourcefinder
Conventions
This section describes the conventions used in the documentation.
Note on product images
Product images in this guide may differ from actual product.
Port numbering in examples
The port numbers in this document are for illustration only and might be unavailable on your device.
Symbols
Table 1: Symbols
ConventionDescription
An alert that calls attention to important information that if not
understood or followed can result in personal injury.
An alert that calls attention to important information that if not
understood or followed can result in data loss, data corruption, or
damage to hardware or software.
An alert that calls attention to essential information.
NOTE:An alert that contains additional or supplementary information.
An alert that provides helpful information.
Chapter 1 Overview5
Types of transceiver modules and network cables
Table 2: Types of transceiver modules and network cables
Transceiver module typeConnector head
QSFP28 module (transceiver)QSFP28 optical transceiver moduleMPO 12-strand or LC 2-strand
SFP+ DAC (copper cable for
interconnecting devices)
Small form-factor pluggable (SFP)
module (transceiver)
100-Megabit SFP optical
transceiver module
Gigabit SFP optical transceiver
module
Gigabit SFP copper transceiver
module
N/A
N/A
N/A
LC 2-strand
RJ-45
•The available transceiver modules and network cables vary by device models and are subject to
change over time. For the most up-to-date list of transceiver modules and network cables, contact
your Aruba sales representative or technical support engineer.
•For information about the transceiver modules and network cables available for each device
model, see the QuickSpecs for the applicable switch product.
Data rate
Data rate is the number of bits transmitted per second. The unit of measure for data rate is Megabits per second
(Mbps) or Gigabits per second (Gbps). Optical transceiver modules available for products provide the following
levels of data rates:
•100 Gbps
•40 Gbps
•10 Gbps
6ArubaOS-Switch and ArubaOS-CX Transceiver Guide
•1000 Mbps (also known as Gigabit)
•100 Mbps
Transmission distance
The transmission distance of optical transceiver modules is divided into short and long-range types. A distance of
2 km (1.24 miles) and below is considered a short-range type. A distance of 10 km (6.21 miles) is considered a
long-range type. Transmission distances provided by optical transceiver modules are limited by certain loss and
dispersion suffered during the transmission of fiber signals over fibers.
•Loss is the optical energy loss due to the absorption, dispersion, and leakage over the media when light
travels through optical fibers. This loss increases in direct ratio to transmission distance.
•Dispersion occurs mainly because light waves of different wavelengths travel at different rates over the same
medium. This causes different wave components of optical signals to reach the receiving end early or late as
the transmission distance increases causing impulse broadening. Impulse broadening makes the signal values
indistinguishable (data loss). Different wavelengths traveling down the same fiber are called modes, and this
data loss is known as intermodal dispersion.
To meet different transmission distance requirements, choose suitable optical transceiver modules according to
actual networking conditions.
Central wavelength
Central wavelength (wl) represents the wave band used for optical signal transmission. The following central
wavelengths are available for common optical transceiver modules representing three wavebands:
•850 nm waveband: Used for short-reach transmission.
•1310 nm waveband: Used for middle-reach and long-haul transmission.
•1550 nm waveband: Used for middle-reach and long-haul transmission.
Fiber
Fiber types
Fibers are classified as multimode fibers and single-mode fibers.
•Multimode fibers
Multimode fibers (MMFs) have thicker fiber cores and can transport light in multiple modes. However, the
intermodal dispersion is greater and worsens as the transmission distance increases.
Multimode fibers can be classified into multiple grades according to their diameters and modal bandwidth. For
more information, see Table 2. The modal bandwidth of a multimode fiber is determined by the expression of
the maximum modulation frequency pulse that can pass a fiber × the fiber length. The modal bandwidth is a
comprehensive index reflecting the optical characteristics of a multimode fiber.
International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defines multimode fiber types in its G series standards. The
commonly used multimode fiber is defined in the ITU G.651 standard. The G.651-compliant fiber transmits
light at the wavelength range 800 nm to 900 nm or 1200 nm to 1350 nm.
Chapter 1 Overview7
Table 3: Multimode fiber grades
Fiber modeFiber gradeFiber diameter (μm)Modal bandwidth at 850 nm
(MHz*km)
Multimode fiberOM162.5/125200
OM250/125500
OM350/1252000
OM450/1254700
Other factors that influence the transmission distance of multimode fibers include interface type, central
wavelength, and fiber grade. The modal bandwidth values shown above are for the fiber grades listed. There
are multimode fibers that have different modal bandwidth characteristics and do not necessarily match the
OM1 - OM4 grades.
Table 4: Multimode fiber specifications
Interface typesCentral wavelength
(nm)
1000BASE-SX850OM1< 275 m (902.23 ft)
10GBASE-SR850OM1< 33 m (108.27 ft)
10GBASE-LRM1310OM1< 220 m (721.78 ft)
•Single-mode fibers
Single-mode fibers (SMFs) have a small core size, typically 9 μm or 10 μm, and can transmit light in only one
mode. Single-mode fibers suffer little intermodal dispersion and are suitable for long-haul communication.
Single-mode fibers transmit light at the central wavelength of 1310 nm or 1550 nm.
Fiber gradeTransmission distance
OM2< 550 m (1804.46 ft)
OM2< 82 m (269.03 ft)
OM3< 300 m (984.25 ft)
OM4< 400m (1312.34 ft)
OM2< 220 m (721.78 ft)
OM3< 220 m (721.78 ft)
OM4< 220 m (721.78 ft)
SMF<300m (987.25 ft)
Telecommunication Industries Alliance (TIA)/Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) defines that single-mode fibers
use yellow outer jackets with the mark "SM".
ITU defines single-mode fiber types in its G series standards. The most commonly used single-mode fibers are
defined in ITU G.652 and G.655 standards. The following table describes features of the G.652 and G.655compliant fibers.
8ArubaOS-Switch and ArubaOS-CX Transceiver Guide
Table 5: Features of G.652- and G.655-compliant fibers
modules with a central
wavelength of 1310 nm or
1550 nm.
For 1550 nm wavelength-
1550 nm
division multiplexing (WDM)
transmissions.
Fiber diameter
Fiber diameter is expressed as core diameter/cladding diameter, in μm. For example, 9/125 μm means that the
fiber core diameter is 9 μm and the fiber cladding diameter is 125 μm.
For the HPE devices, the following fiber diameters are recommended:
•G.652 standard single-mode fiber: 9/125 μm
•G.655 non zero dispersion shifted single-mode fiber: 9/125 μm
•G.651 standard multimode fiber: 50/125 μm or 62.5/125 μm
Connector
Cover the connector with a dust cap when it is not connected to any optical fibers.
Connectors connect transceiver modules to the corresponding transmission media. The transceiver modules
available for Aruba products use the following types of connectors:
•Lucent connector or local connector (LC).
Single LC connectors (also known as Simplex) are typically used for 1G & 10G BiDi (Bidirectional) optics.
Dual LC connectors (Duplex) are typically used in normal optical types.
Chapter 1 Overview9
40G BiDi uses only Duplex fiber versus MPO (see below) for 40G SR4 applications.
Figure 1: LC connector (a simplex connector is shown)
•Multifiber Push On (MPO) connector.
Figure 2: MPO connector
The 40G QSFP+ MPO transceiver modules use only female MPO connectors, which have guide holes in the
end face of the MPO connector (the transceiver has guide pins within the MPO receptacle).
MPO connectors are classified as the following types based on the polish type:
◦Physical contact (PC): End face polished flat.
◦Angle-polished contact (APC): End face polished with an angle, typically 8°.
MPO connectors are available with 12 fibers or 24 fibers:
12-fiber MPO connector (40G, SR4, eSR4, and 100G SR4 transceivers use 8 of the available 12 fibers. The
four center fibers are unused. )
Figure 3: End face of a 12-fiber connector and channel assignment
MPO transceivers typically use four channels to communicate. These channels are assigned using the outer
eight fibers (the center four are unused).
Transmit channels are one set of four fibers, and the receive channels are on the other set of four fibers.
Because of this, the cables used and fiber cable connections from endpoint to endpoint effectively create a
crossover connection.
Be aware that using two crossover cables in series cancels this effect and no connection will be established.
An odd number of crossovers combined with straight-thru fiber connections will effect a crossover connection.
10ArubaOS-Switch and ArubaOS-CX Transceiver Guide
The channel layout indicates that the left four fibers are Transmit, and must reach the opposite transceiver
Receive channels (and in proper channel order).
Optical parameters
This guide provides average transmit and receive power ranges for transceiver modules.
Transmit power
Transmit power is the power at which the transmitter of an optical transceiver module transmits optical signals, in
dBm.
Receive power
Receive power is the power at which the receiver of an optical transceiver module receives optical signals, in
dBm.
Use of attenuators
Transceivers are designed to transmit light pulses at a power level that accounts for loss in the fiber optic cabling,
and meets the receiver input thresholds of the link partner optical transceiver.
If you are using a fiber cable with less light loss than expected (for example, in a test environment and you do not
have a 40km spool of SMF available), use attenuators to affect the transmit level to within the receive sensitivity of
the other transceiver -- you will need to condition both fibers (sends in both directions). If you do not, you risk
overdriving the Receive end and permanently damaging the transceiver. For example, a 40GER4 has a highest
transmit level of 4.5dBm, but the Receive Sensitivity can be no higher than -4.5dBm. That means that there must
be at least a 9dBm loss on the light level to be within the standards (4.5 - (4.5) = 9dBm required).
Copper transceiver modules
Copper transceiver modules transmit signals over Category-5 unshielded twisted pair (UTP). UTP transmission
cover shorter distances than fiber transmission and can be used in small-sized networks only.
Copper transceivers are supported in 1G SFP and 10G SFP+ ports where listed in the Support Matrix tables.
Transmission distance
Through UTP cables, signals can be transmitted over a distance of 100 m (328.08 ft.) only. This behavior occurs
because signals attenuate during transmission through the UTP cables.
Attenuation refers to the dissipation of the power of a transmitted signal as it travels over a cable. Attenuation
occurs because signal transmission suffers certain resistance from the cable, which weakens the signals as they
travel over the cable. When signals are transmitted over a long distance, signal strength decreases significantly,
causing the signal-to-noise ratio to drop below the accepted level. This decrease makes it impossible to
distinguish between signals and noise, which results in data loss.
Patch panel and punch down blocks also affect attenuation; that is, they can be a source of issues resulting in
shorter distances or data loss.
Chapter 1 Overview11
Connector
Registered Jack-45 (RJ-45) twisted-pair connectors are used as connectors for copper transceiver modules.
Figure 4: RJ-45 connector
Table 6: RJ-45 GE connector pin assignment for Gigabit connections
PinSignalFunction
1MX_0+Data transmit/receive
2MX_0-Data transmit/receive
3MX_1+Data transmit/receive
4MX_2+Data transmit/receive
5MX_2-Data transmit/receive
6MX_1-Data transmit/receive
7MX_3+Data transmit/receive
8MX_3-Data transmit/receive
Identification of 4x4 part numbers
A SKU# may be fulfilled by two or more vendor parts providing similar functionality. A 4x4 part number is of the
form nnnn-nnnn and is on the transceiver or DAC label. For example, JL309A can have a 1990-4680 or
1990-4678 4x4 part number.
4x4 part numbers are referenced in the
•specification tables, to identify parts that support DOM (Digital Optical Monitoring) capabilities. (Some older
vendor parts do not support DOM.)
•compatibility tables, where necessary, to identify supported combinations of switch or module with the
identified transceiver, along with the minimum software version required.
In December 2017, Aruba introduced Revision D versions of 100M, 1G, and 10G products. Revision D products
are structured to be specific alternative vendors as sources for the SKU#. Earlier Revision A, B, or C product may
have alternative vendors that Aruba no longer actively ships, but remains as fully supported in earlier and current
products.
12ArubaOS-Switch and ArubaOS-CX Transceiver Guide
Some switch products will specify Revision D transceivers for full support, while other products may support
earlier (older) revision transceivers – and some with specific 4x4 part numbers.
Always refer to the Datasheet or QuickSpecs for the switch product to see the current list of supported
transceivers. Refer to the compatibility tables within this document to cross-reference the Transceiver/DAC
product against the switch product to identify the minimum software required for transceiver support.
To use CLI commands to display data for an installed transceiver, see the following examples.
Aruba-5406Rzl2# show interfaces transceiver f2 det
Transceiver in F2
Interface Index : 162
Type : QSFP+SR4
Model : JH231A
Connector Type : MPO
Wavelength : 850nm
Transfer Distance : 100m (50um OM3), 150m (50um OM4)
Diagnostic Support : DOM
Serial Number : XX57nnnnnn
Status
Temperature : 33.332C
Voltage : 3.3208V
Tx Bias Rx Power Tx Power
Channel# (mA) (mW/dbM) (mW/dbM)
--------- -------- -------------- --------------
1 6.904 0.5622, -2.501 0.5822, -2.349
2 6.706 0.5922, -2.275 0.5856, -2.324
3 6.894 0.6321, -1.992 0.5813, -2.356
4 6.792 0.5111, -2.915 0.5651, -2.479
Current Alarms:
Channel 1 :
Tx bias low alarm
Rx power low warning
Channel 2 :
Tx bias low alarm
Rx power low warning
Current Errors:
Channel 1 :
Rx Loss of Signal
Channel 2 :
Rx Loss of Signal
Channel 3 :
Rx Loss of Signal
Channel 4 :
Rx Loss of Signal
Chapter 1 Overview13
QSFP28 modules
QSFP28 optical transceiver modules that use MPO
connectors
See Chapter 1, "Overview", for information regarding MPO connectors and cable requirements.
Figure 5: QSFP28 optical transceiver module that use MPO connectors
Chapter 2
Models and specifications
QSFP28 optical transceiver modules provide a transmission rate of 100 Gbps and use MPO connectors.
Table 7: Specifications for QSFP28 optical transceiver modules that use MPO connectors (1)
QSFP+ optical transceiver modules that use MPO
connectors
See Chapter 1, " Overview", for information regarding MPO connectors and cable requirements.
Figure 8: QSFP+ optical transceiver module that uses MPO connectors
Models, specifications, and compatibility
Chapter 3
QSFP+ optical transceiver modules provide a transmission rate of 40 Gbps and use MPO connectors. 40G SR4
and eSR4 are not supported for use over MMF OM1 or OM2 quality fiber.
Table 15: Specifications for QSFP+ optical transceiver modules that use MPO connectors (1)
Product name
(SKU)
HPE X142 40G
QSFP+ MPO SR4
Transceiver
(JH231A)
HPE X142 40G
QSFP+ MPO
eSR4 300M XCVR
(JH233A)
DOM - Digital
Optical
Monitoring
(4x4 part #)
YES
(1990-4554)
YES
(1990-4555)
Central wl
(nm)
850MMF50/1252000 (OM3)
850MMF50/1252000 (OM3)
Fiber
mode
Fiber
diameter
(µm)
Modal
bandwidth
(MHz*km)
4700 (OM4)
4700 (OM4)
Transmission
distance
100 m (328.08 ft)
150 m (492.12 ft)
300 m (984.25 ft)
400 m (1312.33 ft)
Chapter 3 QSFP+ modules17
Table 16: Specifications for QSFP+ optical transceiver modules that use MPO connectors (2)
Product name (SKU)ConnectorOptical parameters (dBm)
Transmit powerReceive power
HPE X142 40G QSFP+ MPO
SR4 Transceiver (JH231A)
HPE X142 40G QSFP+ MPO
eSR4 300M XCVR (JH233A)
MPO (PC polished, 12-fiber)–7.6 to 0–9.5 to +2.4
MPO (PC polished, 12-fiber)–7.6 to 0–9.9 to +2.4
Table 17: Compatibility for the QSFP+ optical transceiver modules that use MPO connectors
Product name (SKU)Minimum software requiredComments