EXFO launches compact 10-Gigabit Ethernet tester

NOVEMBER 1, 2006 -- EXFO Electro-Optical Engineering Inc. (search for EXFO) today announced the launch of a compact 10-Gigabit Ethernet (10-GbE) device for performance assurance and quality-of-service (QoS) testing in local and wide area networks.

The FTB-8510G Packet Blazer 10-Gigabit Ethernet module, currently supported in the FTB-400 Universal Test System, now can be housed in the FTB-200 Compact Platform, thus extending EXFO's extensive 10-GbE test capabilities to a convenient, lightweight, and compact form factor, say company representatives.

The increase in IP-based applications has placed additional bandwidth and performance requirements on supporting Ethernet services. Delay-sensitive applications like voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) demand that service-level agreements (SLAs) are validated and maintained throughout the network.

The FTB-200 Compact Platform, equipped with both the FTB-8510 and FTB-8510G Packet Blazers, provides users with the capability to fully test and validate Ethernet services from 10 Mbit/sec through 10 Gbits/sec, says the company. Features like multi-stream generation and analysis, expert mode, and service-disruption measurements, along with RFC 2544 testing, packet jitter measurement, and bit-error-rate testing, enable customers to thoroughly validate the performance of their 10-GbE links. The FTB-8510G Packet Blazer also offers both LAN and WAN PHY interfaces within the same module, covering all networking applications. At the increased rate in which 10-GbE networks are being deployed, this combination offers field technicians another unique capability in testing performance and efficiency, says EXFO.

"Coping with the increasing number of 10-Gigabit Ethernet networks being deployed, service providers are faced with the challenge of turning up and validating networks at a much faster rate," explains Etienne Gagnon, EXFO's vice president of protocol and optical product management. "Adding the FTB-8510G Packet Blazer to the FTB-200 Compact Platform provides a feature-rich Ethernet test solution required to effectively and efficiently validate Ethernet services covering rates from 10 Mbits/sec to 10 Gbits/sec, and all this at approximately half the size and weight of the nearest competitor," he adds.

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