10GBase-T Adapters Debut

Two adapter vendors, Chelsio and Tehuti Networks, are claiming to have the first 10-Gbit/s Ethernet cards to work with Category 6 and 7 copper cabling. But it may be awhile before users see real benefits. (See Chelsio Unveils Adapters and Tehuti Adds Three to Family.)

Both vendors have implemented the new IEEE 10GBase-T standard for transmission over copper, which is being touted as a low cost-alternative to fiber and a way for users to overcome the distance limitations of existing CX4 copper cabling.

This could be a real plus in enterprise data centers, according to Bob Wheeler, senior analyst at the Linley Group consultancy. "It gets away from the cost issues involved with fiber, specifically the cost of the optical modules," he says, adding that 10GBase-T can be used over distances up to 100 meters, compared to the 15-meter limit for CX4 cabling.

Claims by Chelsio and Tehuti to be first with 10GBase-T may be splitting hairs. Chelsio's adapters are single-port, while Tehuti claims first with dual-port, ostensibly nodding to its rival's claim to be the official "first." Chelsio says it will ship its wares in March, while Tehuti can only claim the more general "2Q 2007" timeframe.

March/April is being targeted by another player, Neterion, for its own 10GBase-T adapter. Like Chelsio and Tehuti, Neterion will base is wares on a TeraPHY TN1010 transceiver from Teranetics.If all this seems to indicate major momentum, think again. Until multiple 10GBase-T vendors can demonstrate interoperability, enthusiasm is premature. "Being the first is great, [but] no switch vendors have announced any 10GBase-T support, so there's nothing to plug these things into," says Wheeler.

Neterion's director of marketing Philippe Levy thinks switch support is at least a year away. "I think that Q1 of 2008 is the quarter of 10GBase-T," he asserts.

Don't look to Cisco for answers. A spokesperson for the supplier, which was involved in developing the standard, told Byte and Switch that the technology is "an area of importance" for Cisco, but she would not say when the vendor is likely to have 10GBase-T products on the market.

The IEEE only ratified the 10GBase-T standard last summer, so in many ways, it is hardly surprising that the technology is still a work in progress. "The standard is done, but the problem is that, until multiple vendors have done an implementation, there could be issues with interpretation," Levy says. "It's always very difficult to nail down every detail of the operation on something this complex."

The Linley Group's Wheeler told Byte and Switch that despite the current interoperability issues, 10GBase-T will still make its presence felt. "10GBase-T will be reaching the market in fairly short order -- by the end of the year we will see multiple vendors that have demonstrated IEEE interoperability and compliance," he says.Chelsio is meanwhile touting its new offerings as a way for users to connect servers and storage directly into a 10-Gbit/s switch backbone via RJ-45 connectors, fiber, or copper cabling. "They could use it on the server side for running clustering applications, or for storage applications running iSCSI," says Kianoosh Nagshineh, the startup's CEO.

The exec told Byte and Switch that Chelsio will be announcing some OEM partnerships for the product over the next few months, although he would not reveal the identities of the firms involved.

Chelsio's new wares include the S310e-BT storage adapter and the N310e-BT server adapter, both of which support PCI-Express. The S310e-BT uses Chelsio's Terminator 3 (T3) ASIC, which the vendor says offloads TCP/IP, iWARP RDMA, and iSCSI processing from the host. The S310e is priced at $1,995 and the N310e-BT is priced at $1,295.

Tehuti Networks is offering three reference-design PCI-Express adapters: the TN75888-S, a single-port NIC; the TN7588-D, a dual-port NIC; and the TN7585-D, a duel-port CX4 adapter for low-profile servers. Like Chelsio, Tehuti has powered the adapters with its own components -- in this case, controllers that offload processing from the host. The vendor suggests using the adapters in high-volume servers, and it boasts of low-power consumption to match its 4.6-inch-by-2.5-inch form factor.

Tehuti will offer its TN7585-D adapters in pairs as a kit with two CX4 cables and documentation for $1,500. Individual adapters will cost $500 when they ship in the second quarter. Pricing for the TN7588 series is not being made public.At a minimum, the appearance of 10GBase-T on the radar reflects the growing momentum behind 10-Gbit/s Ethernet. A recent report from Heavy Reading predicted major growth from the sector with 10-Gbit/s over copper, in particular, poised to move ahead. (See Cheaper Chips Drive Sales.)

By the way, check out our recent poll to weigh in on 10-Gbit/s Ethernet.

James Rogers, Senior Editor, and Mary Jander, Site Editor, Byte and Switch