Data Centre Interconnect on the Move to 800Gbps

Data Centre Interconnect not only has to deal with many challenges such as bandwidth, latency and security, but the demand for high bandwidth and low latency is gradually growing as enterprises increasingly demand data processing speed and accuracy. While 400G Ethernet optical transceivers are currently the mainstream choice for hyperscale data centres, and many enterprises still employ 40G or 100G technologies in their operations, the trend of data centre interconnection technology is clearly moving toward 800G.

The Current State and Future Trends of Data Centre Interconnect

At present, cloud computing, intelligence and other emerging businesses are growing rapidly, and the number of related applications is also increasing rapidly, and these applications are strongly dependent on data centres. As a result, the scale of business undertaken by data centres is growing rapidly, and the resources of individual data centres will soon be insufficient. Due to the constraints of data centre construction and energy supply and other factors, it is not possible to expand the capacity of a single data centre indefinitely, and when the scale of business grows to a certain extent, it is necessary to build multiple data centres in the same city or in different places. At this time, multiple data centres need to be interconnected and work together to complete business support.

Data centre networks will continue to evolve and develop in the future. Data centre interconnects will focus on the adoption of higher bandwidth, lower latency technologies such as 800G or even higher speed Ethernet technology and optical transport. With software-defined networking (SDN) and network function virtualisation (NFV), data centres can achieve more flexible and automated network configuration and management. This flexibility not only improves the efficiency of data centre interconnections, but also allows network resources to be quickly adjusted as needed to meet changing demands. Therefore, SDN and NFV will become a non-negligible development direction for future data centre networks.

Data Centre Interconnect Is Moving to 800G

The amount of data handled by data centres continues to increase and the need for higher bandwidth and more efficient data transfer has become imperative. 800G technology provides a forward-looking solution for data centres, primarily for large data centres, cloud service environments and applications requiring high bandwidth. Significantly improving data centre performance by accelerating data transfer speeds and processing power, 800G technology delivers higher throughput and lower latency to data centres. While the initial investment in 800G technology can be high, the total cost of ownership can be significantly reduced over the long term due to the long-term viability of the investment and the ability to adapt to future technology developments.

Current 800G Ethernet uses eight channels at 100Gbps per channel. doubling the PAM4 (Pulse Amplitude Modulation 4-level ) speed to 100Gbps compared to the previous generation. the next-generation 800G transceiver will enable rates up to 200Gbps per channel, which poses a significant challenge, as it will require simultaneous increases in both the higher-order modulation and the PAM4 data rate.

Challenge 1：Switch Silicon SerDes

High-speed network switch chips facilitate low-latency switching between elements within data centres, which is crucial for supporting high-performance computing and large-scale data transmission. Currently, the power consumption of SerDes has become a significant component of the total system power usage. The next generation of switch chips will double the bandwidth once again, with 102.4T switches featuring 512 channels of 200 Gb/s SerDes, and a substantial increase in SerDes power will be observed.

Challenge 2：Pulse Amplitude Modulation

PAM4 can be compatible with previous generations and, compared to higher modulation schemes, provides a better signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), thereby reducing the overhead of forward error correction (FEC) that causes latency. However, achieving PAM4 requires a superior analogue front end (AFE), due to analogue bandwidth constraints and the implementation of advanced equalisation through innovative Digital Signal Processing (DSP) schemes. Should higher-order modulation schemes such as PAM6 or PAM8 be adopted, this would increase the transmission rate per symbol but also bring about higher complexity.

FS 800G Solutions for Data Centres

Nowadays, the large bandwidth, wide connectivity and low latency of 5G networks have greatly increased the volume of data communication. The formation of information technology platforms, e-commerce, social networking and other areas of data centralization and virtualization trends have made the need for 800G data optical modules increasingly urgent for intra-data centre connectivity. FS can offer different networking solutions based on the type of business, recommend the right products, and ensure seamless integration and continuous performance of 800G technology in data centres with the most cost-effective design solutions. For users planning to deploy interconnects in an 800G data centre, it is essential to understand the internal deployment of the data centre.

Data Centre Upgrade

In deploying data centre interconnection scenarios, the first step is to ensure that the internal architecture of each data centre has been adapted to the 800G network. Considering the trade-off between cost investment and business growth, the Data Centre Upgrade scheme uses a step-by-step upgrade approach. FS is deeply involved in the high-performance networking industry, introducing a variety of 800G network solutions. FS can provide upgrade solutions to facilitate the smooth upgrade of data centres to 800G.

First, the core layer switches are upgraded to 800G, and the efficient connection to the lower layer 400G spine switches is achieved through the Breakout technology, which sets the stage for the subsequent full upgrade to 800G. For different layers of the network, appropriate optical modules are chosen to ensure the high performance of the network. 800G 2xFR4/2xLR4 modules are used in the core layer, 400G FR4/LR4 modules are used in the Spine layer, and 400G DR4 modules are maintained in the Leaf layer. FS leverages efficient bandwidth and network modifications and focuses on low-power performance to provide a cost-effective, energy-efficient, and highly reliable upgrade path for data centre networks.

Newly Established Data Centre

If you plan to build a new high-performance data centre with 800G as the core to meet the rapid growth of your business, FS can also provide you with a tailor-made 800G solution. The following solution is suitable for the network architecture of new data centres. The solution uses 800G 2xFR4/2xLR4 modules at the Core & Spine switch level, while the Leaf switches will use 800G DR8 or 800G SR8 modules to interface with Top-of-Right switches (ToR). This networking model not only meets the needs of high-speed data transmission, but also optimizes the energy efficiency of the data centre and reduces costs.

The FS 800G SR8 transceiver enables HPC data centres to meet growing bandwidth demands at lower cost and power consumption. OSFP 800G SR8 PAM4 is embedded with Broadcom 7nm DSP chip, with a maximum power consumption of 15W. Maximize power efficiency while maintaining high performance. The overall bandwidth is also doubled compared to a 400G/port network architecture. In addition, OSFP 800G SR8 modules are currently in sufficient stock to meet your huge business needs.

Choosing FS as a partner with strong supply chain support ensures fast and stable delivery of optical modules to meet your urgent upgrade and transformation needs. In addition, FS has strong product customisation capabilities to meet your high requirements in terms of optical module capacity, cost, power consumption and quality.

• The high-density QSFP-DD800 packaging enhances product port density, increasing transmission capacity.

• Selectable transmission distances provide ample margin to mitigate the risk of reduced link budgets due to device degradation over time and ageing of fibre links.

• In-house developed chips ensure production capacity and delivery capability.

• Excellent compatibility, verified through product certification testing by leading industry equipment vendors.

Future of Data Centre Interconnect

Many organisations have multiple data centres and are increasingly moving towards developing hybrid, multi-cloud infrastructures spanning multiple countries/regions. As a result, the 800G data centre interconnect has become critical. This high-speed, efficient and reliable connection can meet the continuously growing bandwidth demand and facilitate real-time data exchange, application deployment and resource sharing. As a result, it enhances business responsiveness, reduces network latency, and drives organisational innovation and competitiveness.

Ready to elevate your network experience? From cutting-edge R&D to global warehouses, we provide effective data centre interconnect solutions tailored to your needs. Seize the opportunity – register now for enhanced connectivity or apply for a personalized high-speed solution design consultation. Transform your network with FS today.