Thinking of starting a data center? Choosing the right wires and cables is critical for the successful functioning of your data center. In fact, the demand for data center cables becomes more and more sophisticated because the amount of data that goes into the racks continues to grow. At the same time, the pool of available resources for data centers is shrinking because of the increasing demand. Because of this, there is a need to upgrade high-speed interconnect links of your data center continuously. The trend for high-density data centers is on the rise because of the change in demand. Read this blog to learn how to make a cabling system choice for your data center.

What Is A Data Center?

A data center is a building with a complicated infrastructure containing the equipment for storing and processing various data and apps. The data stored in the datacenters is usually of paramount importance to the organization, and the equipment in the data center is necessary to keep the data safe. 

There are various types of data centers out there, including corporal data centers of the organization that store their data for internal purposes, data centers that rent their space, managed service data centers that provide services to third parties, and cloud data centers.

What To Consider Before Choosing Cables For Data Centers?

The expected lifespan of the cable network is an imported criterion when choosing what is right for your particular data center. Before buying cables, one should take time to design the plan of a data center infrastructure to make sure that all needs are taken into consideration. Space planning is one of the central components of the overall planning process.

Decisions on the right cabling system affect the operation of the data center for decades to come. To increase the chances of success, it is crucial to invest in a structured cabling system that is maintained through a patch panel. It helps to manage the data center more efficiently and saves money spent on unnecessary energy. Aside from cables, high-quality patch panels are a vital investment to make.

DAC Copper vs. Fiber Optic Cables

The most popular solutions for data hub cabling are fiber optic cables, copper wires & cables, or the combination of the two. Major tech giants rely on the fiber optic cabling system because FO cables have higher bandwidth and are more suitable for long-haul data transmission. However, a major drawback of fiber optic systems is their high cost both at the time of the installation and later because they consume a lot of power. The owners of smaller data centers may discover that it is way too expensive to rely on fiber optic cable systems.

 Luckily, good-quality copper cabling is a good solution for most data hubs. As a bonus, copper cabling systems can be up to six times cheaper compared to their fiber-optic counterpart. Depending on the size of the data center, this can mean huge savings for the company that decides to go for this solution. Moreover, copper wires do not require much energy in the process of cooling, which can help to save costs on the cooling solutions for data centers.

In fact, copper cables even have benefits over fiber optic cables when it comes to some specific applications. While fiber optic cables are mostly used in the backbone and long-distance applications, copper cables are more well-suited for server-to-switch applications. The benefits of copper wiring include low cost upon installation, the potential to deliver high rates of data, and flexibility when installing. The reliability that is measured in the meantime between failure is much higher for copper cables compared to fiber-optic ones. Copper wires are impressive at decreasing downtime.

Active Twinax Copper Cables vs. Passive Twinax Copper Cables

Data copper cables used in data centers can be categorized as either active or passive. These are mainly twinax cables, the subtype of a coaxial cable with two conductors instead of one. The difference between active and passive cables is that a passive copper cable carries a signal over a short distance without any additional components that help to make the signal stronger, whereas active twinax cables have special components that help to boost the level of the signal.

In the past, when the demand for data was significantly less than it currently is, passive twinax copper cables were mostly used because they were cheap and met most of the requirements. Nowadays, active copper cables are more widely used because they prevent data loss by using electrical repeaters. Compared to passive cables, active copper twinax cable has a more extended reach (5 million versus 15 million). Another definite plus of active copper wires is that they are eligible for the same connectors as fiber optic cables, including SFP and SFP+, which makes for an easy replacement of wires. The most important plus of copper wires is that they do not consume a lot of power.

A brand new modern, cost-effective technology for data center cabling is QSFP+ direct attach copper cables fitted for very short distances. Basically, these are passive copper cables that are used to connect racks.

Types of Copper Cables Used in Data Centers

Different types of cables have proven to be efficient in data centers, but they have to be flexible and reliable. Cables in data centers can be categorized into data cables and power cables.

Power Cables

Types of power cables used in data centers include G-GC, W, tray cables, THHN THWN-2, and XHHW.

G-GC cables are effectively used in grounding systems. High-quality grounding is essential for the life of a data center because it has a significant influence on safety. Issues with grounding are very hard to track down if they occur. The inefficient grounding can damage the equipment within the data center. Grounding also has an impact on the uptime of the data hubs. Therefore, installing high-quality certified G-GC cables is a crucial measure.

Type W cables make for a popular power portable cord solution in data hubs because they are versatile and can be used in different power circuits with their 2000 voltage rate. Type W cables are flexible, reliable, and highly mobile.

Tray cabling systems are an essential component of any data centers; therefore, it is crucial to use high-quality tray cables. Overhead tray systems help to save energy because they lower the position of the cooling fan and decrease energy consumption. Tray cables are a versatile product that supports connections inside a data center. Therefore, power connections within the center depend on the tray cabling system to a large extent.

Building wires, such as THHN THWN-2 and XHHW, are used in the process of building construction. They can also be applied for miscellaneous purposes because of their universality. Just as with other data center cables, one of the most practical advantages of copper building wires is that they are very reliable. They are used in branch circuits, electrical distribution, and service cable trays.

Unusual Power Cables Used in Data Centers

Depending on the type of the data center, some less usual power cable solutions may be applied. These include submarine power cables, such as Okoguard Submarine Cable, for powering of underwater data centers, Solar Wire & Cable if the data center is powered by photovoltaics, etc.

Data Cables

Data cables used in contemporary data centers are Cat 5e, Cat 6, Cat 6a, Cat7, Cat 7a, twinaxial, and fiber optic cables. All of the Cat cables are used for ethernet and gigabit ethernet. Cables starting from Cat 6a onward are suitable for 10Gig Ethernet, whereas Cat7a is used for 40 or 100Gig Ethernet. 

For high-speed ethernet, twinaxial and fiber optic cables are available. Single-mode fiber optic cables are for high-speed internet over long distances, whereas multimode fiber optic cables are applied over short distances. 

Where to Buy?