In Gigabit Ethernet applications, either SFP port, RJ45 port or GBIC port is used in different Gigabit devices, such as switches, routers, servers and storages. And some latest wireless access points (APs) are also equipped with SFP port. Since all these three port types only support 1Gbit and do not go any higher, why are they created instead of using only one type?
A slot port uses a wall of the box as one (or more) port walls and requires a correction in the calculation a square port uses none of the box walls. Has 4 pieces of wood to make the port). There is no difference between round and slot. YOu get the same tuning effects when tuned to a specific frequency. People are under the impression that round ports give more port noise. THis isnt always the truth. I can tell you why. If you use a small round port, yes you are likely to have more port velocity then that of a larger.
SFP port and GBIC port can be found in a variety of equipment, including Ethernet switches, routers, network interface cards, servers, etc. Today most Ethernet switches are designed with as least one or two Gigabit SFP uplink slots. What is SFP port? As the name implies, SFP port is intended for taking in SFP (mini-GBIC) fiber modules with small form-factor (SFF) connectors, while GBIC port is for accepting GBIC modules.
The two types of ports can provide the same data rates and same distances in Gigabit applications, but the same number of SFP ports uses less space than that of GBIC ports. Since they have the equal functionality, SFP has gradually taken the place of the older GBIC in Gigabit networking for space-saving and economical reasons. The table below is a comparison of SFP port vs. GBIC port.
Parameter | SFP Port | GBIC Port |
Supported Optical Modules | SFP transceiver (single-mode/multimode, simple/duplex, CWDM/DWDM) | GBIC transceiver (single-mode/multimode, simple/duplex, CWDM/DWDM) |
Transceiver Receptacle Type | LC, RJ45 | SC, RJ45 |
Supported Standards | 1000BASE-T, 1000BASE-SX, 1000BASE-LX, 1000BASE-LX10, 1000BASE-LX/LH, 1000BASE-LH, 1000BASE-EX, 1000BASE-ZX, 1000BASE-BX, 1000BASE-CWDM, 1000BASE-DWDM. | |
Supported Distances | Up to 100 m, 300 m, 2 km, 10 km, 20 km, 40 km, 80 km, 100 km, 150 km. | |
Module DOM Function | Modules support digital optical monitoring (DOM) function, providing real-time monitoring of transceiver’s operation temperature, optical input, optical output, laser bias current and supply voltage. |
If you want to know more about the SFP types that the SFP port support and their detailed specifications, such as wavelengths and distances, you can read: How Many Types of SFP Transceivers Do You Know.
The RJ45 ports in Gigabit networking devices follow the 1000BASE-T Ethernet standard. They only support twisted pairs for network connections, and the distance is limited to 100 m (330 feet). RJ45 port uses Category 5/5e/6 and higher level copper Ethernet cables for 1Gbit transmission. Compared with switch using only RJ45 port, SFP port switch supports more types of communication cables and longer reaches of links. Here are the differences between SFP vs. RJ45 port.
Parameter | SFP Port | RJ45 Port |
Connection Cable Types | Multimode fiber cable, single-mode fiber cable, twisted pairs (Cat5, Cat6 or higher). | Twisted pairs (Cat5, Cat6 or higher). |
Max. Transmission Distance | MMF (550 m), SMF (150 km), Cat5 (100 m) | 100 m (330 ft) |
Data Rate | 1000 Mbps (1G) | 1000 Mbps (1G) |
Since most end-points at the customer’s are still using RJ45 port, in order to retaining the convenience of RJ45 port while providing the advantage of SFP network to customers, some switches include combo SFP/RJ45 ports. So users can choose to utilize either the SFP port or the RJ45 port at a time for short-distance connections.
Unlike the combo SFP/RJ45 port which is actually a link shared by two different ports, a dual-rate SFP port is one single SFP slot that can be configured to support two different data rates. Generally a dual-rate SFP slot can set to be either 1G mode or 10G mode, i.e., an SFP module or an SFP+ module can be installed in it. But the actual data rate of the transmission depends on the mode being settled and the transceiver module being used. There are several cases:
The three port types—SFP port, RJ45 port and GBIC port—are used in different networking equipment. The SFP port is now more commonly used than GBIC port since the former one provides the same function and is more compact. When SFP port vs. RJ45 port, SFP port supports connectivity through varieties of fiber cables and the copper twisted pairs, and a wide range of link distances, but RJ45 port accepts only twisted pair cables and a shorter distance. Since every thing has both two sides, it is not always the best to choose SFP slot. The two articles: GBIC vs SFP: When It’s Best to Use GBIC and When to Use SFP, and RJ45 vs SFP: Which Should I Use to Connect Two Switches, specifically discussed when to use which port/module type.
Are you confused about PCI and PCIe? If you don't know how to distinguish them, you can read this post, in which MiniTool explains their differences to you from 4 aspects: function, appearance, speed, and compatibility.
In the computer, if different devices want to exchange data, they must do that via a certain channel, that is, bus. Bus is a common communication trunk line for transmitting information between various functional parts of a computer. It is a transmission wiring harness composed of wires. Both PCI and PCIe are buses.
PCI is shorthand for Peripheral Component Interconnect, which is a local bus in PC. Then, how does it work in computers? I will explain that in this part.
Many years ago (around 2000-2010), the computer motherboard is constructed like the following picture:
This structure is a typical North-South Bridge chip structure based on PCI bus. CPU and Northbridge chip are connected via FSB (Front Side Bus). The Northbridge chip is mainly responsible for controlling data exchange between CPU and high-speed devices (AGP graphics card, memory).
Then, Southbridge is connected to Northbridge via an internal bus (like Hub-Link). The Southbridge chip is mainly responsible for data exchange of low-speed devices like floppy drive, hard disk, keyboard, and add-in card.
Where is PCI? It's under Southbridge. Under Southbridge, there are many buses: PCI, LPC (Low Pin Count), SATA, USB, etc. PCI bus is mainly responsible for connecting devices like network card, audio card, and SCSI card. LPC bus is mainly responsible for connecting common low-speed devices like BIOS, keyboard, mouse, floppy disk, etc.
This article explains deeply what SATA SSD and M.2 SSD are. It touches upon SATA Bus standard, PCI-E Bus standard, AHCI protocol, and NVMe protocol.
What is PCI Express? PCI Express, also called PCIe/PCI-E, is the successor of PCI and AGP. In addition, it is gradually taking place of SATA and USB buses. A typical motherboard structure based on PCIe is shown like the following picture:
The above picture shows the structure of Intel Z390 motherboard that was launched at October 8, 2018. In this motherboard, Northbridge is totally integrated into CPU, so there are only two main parts: CPU and Southbridge (Intel calls it I/O Control Hub or Platform Controller Hub).
Similarly, the graphics card and memory are directly connected to CPU. But there are two points you should pay attention to: a. the graphics card is connected to CPU via PCIe bus; b. the motherboard supports direct connection between CPU and PCIe SSD.
Then, Intel Z390 chipset (Southbridge) is connected to CPU via DMI (Direct Media Interface) 3.0 bus that is based on PCIe bus. The Southbridge distributes 24 PCIe lanes used for connecting hard drives, USB devices, network card, audio card, etc. It can be said that PCIe is not just a local bus. It is already a system bus.
When you read here, you might be thinking 'where is my M.2 PCIe SSD plugged in?' Actually, there are two situations:
In most cases, your computer takes the second layout. Even though PCIe SSDs share throughput with other devices, they are still faster than other SSDs like SATA SSDs. Besides, the additional devices on the Southbridge will not operate all together usually, so the throughput of DMI 3.0 is sufficient.
This post introduces NVMe vs M.2 vs PCIe in detail. After reading this post, you can know the differences between them clearly.
In this part, I will explain PCI vs PCI Express from 3 aspects. Read on to learn about differences between PCI and PCIe further.
In this part, I will show you what PCI and PCIe slots look like. The first one I will introduce is PCI slot. This slot has two types: 32-bit slot with 124 pins and 64-bit slot with 188 pins. The former is usually used in general desktop computers and the latter is generally used on servers. The PCI slot looks like the following picture:
Then, it's the turn to introduce PCIe slot. This slot has 7 versions: x1, x2, x4, x8, x12, x16, and x32, corresponding to 1/2/4/8/12/16/32 lanes, respectively. Among them, PCI-E x32 is only used in some special occasions due to its large size and there is almost no corresponding mass-production product.
PCI-E x12 is mainly used in servers and will not appear on consumer platforms. PCI-E x2 is mainly used for internal interfaces rather than expansion slots. Even if some motherboards provide this interface, PCI-E x2 basically appears in the form of M.2 interface instead of PCI-E slot.
Therefore, the mainstream PCI-E slots on the motherboard are basically concentrated on the four types: PCI-E x1 / x4 / x8 / x16. Let's introduce them in more detail:
Then, the PCI-E x1 / x4 / x8 / x16 slot looks like the following picture:
In this part, I will explain PCI vs PCI-E speed. After learning about their speed differences, you will know why PCI interface is replaced by PCIe interface.
The 32-bit PCI speed is 133 MB/s, while the 64-bit PCI speed is 266 MB/s. As for PCIe speed, it varies depending on lanes and versions. Let's look at the PCIe performance diagram offered by Wikipedia:
At present, most computers use PCIe 3.0 version. With this version, even PCIe x1 can be much faster than 64-bit PCI. In terms of PCI vs PCI-E speed, PCI-E is winner and it totally takes the place of PCI.
Do you know what SSD drive is? This article will explain some SSD Terminologies and help you to fully understand SSD disk.
In terms of compatibility, there are several points you should remember:
After learning about PCIe vs PCI, you may want to use PCIe produces. If your computer has PCI-E interface, you can certainly enjoy the high speed of PCIe. In this part, I will show you how to migrate OS to a PCIe SSD with MiniTool Partition Wizard. In this way, you can use your PC on new hard drive without reinstalling OS.
This post provides a step-by-step guide on how to install a second hard drive in the laptop and desktop PC.
Here is the tutorial:
Step 1: Click the above button to buy MiniTool Partition Wizard. Install it and then open it to get its main interface. Click on Migrate OS to SSD/HDD in the toolbar.
Step 2: Choose the right method to migrate the system disk and click Next.
Option A: to replace the system disk with another hard disk: The entire system disk will be copied to the new SSD. The data includes system files and your personal files on other partitions.
Option B: to move operating system to another hard disk: Only the system and boot partitions required for OS are copied to the new SSD. Your personal files are still on the original disk.
Step 3: Choose the new SSD to migrate Windows to and click Next. A warning window will pop up. Read it and click Yes.
Step 4: Choose right copy options and adjust the target disk layout, and then click Next.
(1). Fit partitions to entire disk: All the partitions on the original disk are shrunk or extended by an equal proportion to fill the entire target disk.
(2). Copy partitions with resizing: All the partitions on the original disk are copied into the target disk without changes in size or location.
(3). Align partitions to 1 MB: It is recommended for improving computer performance.
(4). Use GUID partition table for the target disk: MBR can only recognize and use 2TB disk space at most. This option can convert MBR to GPT, thus users can use the disk space beyond 2 TB.
Step 5: Read the note and click Finish, then click Apply on the toolbar to execute the pending operations.
Step 6: MiniTool Partition Wizard will ask for a reboot. Click Restart Now.
Has this post helped you learn about PCI vs PCIe? Do you have any opinions about PCI and PCIe? Please give us feedback in the following comment zone. Besides, if you have difficulty in migrating OS to PCIe SSDs, you can contact us via [email protected]. We will reply to you as soon as possible.