Fiber to the x

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FTTB, FTTC, FTTH, FTTK, FTTN, and FTTP all redirect here. For airports with
those ICAO codes, see List of airports in Chad.
Fiber to the x (FTTx) is a generic term for any broadband network
architecture that uses optical fber to replace all or part of the usual
metal local loop used for last mile telecommunications. The generic
term originated as a generalization of several confgurations of fber
deployment (FTTN FTT! FTT" FTT#...) all starting by FTT but
di$erentiated by the last letter which is substituted by an x in the
generalization.
A schematic illustrating how FTTx architectures vary with regard to the distance
!etween the optical fi!er and the end"user. The !uilding on the left is the central office#
that on the right is one of the !uildings served !y the central office. $otted rectangles
represent separate living or office spaces within the same !uilding.
Contents
%hide&
' $efinition of terms
( )enefits of fi!er in the access networ*
+ Fi!er to the node
, Fi!er to the last amplifier
- Fi!er to the cur!
. Fi!er to the premises
o ..' FTT/ vs. FTT)
o ..( $irect fi!er
o ..+ 0hared fi!er
..+.' Active optical networ*
..+.( 1assive optical networ*
o .., 2lectrical portion
3 FTTx open 4uestions
5 0ee also
6 7otes and references
'8 2xternal lin*s
[edit] Defnition of terms
The telecommunications industry di$erentiates between several
distinct confgurations. The terms in most widespread use today are%
FTT7 " Fi!er"to"the"node " fi!er is terminated in a street ca!inet up to several
*ilometers away from the customer premises, with the final connection !eing
copper.
FTTC " Fi!er"to"the"ca!inet or fi!er"to"the"cur! " this is very similar to FTT7,
!ut the street ca!inet is closer to the user9s premises# typically within +88m.
FTT) " Fi!er"to"the"!uilding or Fi!er"to"the"!asement " fi!er reaches the
!oundary of the !uilding, such as the !asement in a multi"dwelling unit, with the
final connection to the individual living space !eing made via alternative means.
FTT/ " Fi!er"to"the"home " fi!er reaches the !oundary of the living space, such
as a !ox on the outside wall of a home.
FTT1 " Fi!er"to"the premises " this term is used in several contexts: as a !lan*et
term for !oth FTT/ and FTT), or where the fi!er networ* includes !oth homes
and small !usinesses.
To promote consistency especially when comparing FTT# penetration
rates between countries the three FTT# !ouncils of &urope North
'merica and 'sia()acifc have agreed upon defnitions for FTT# and
FTT"
*+,
. The FTT# !ouncils do not have formal defnitions for FTT! and
FTTN.
-t is worth pointing out that fber(to(the(telecommunications enclosure
(FTT&) is not considered to be part of the FTT. group of technologies
despite the similarity in name. FTT& is a form of structured cabling
typically used in the enterprise local area network where fber is used
to link the main computer e/uipment room to an enclosure close to the
desk or workstation
*0,
. 1imilarly in fber(to(the(desk a fber connection
is installed from the main computer room to a terminal at the desk.
[edit] Benefts of fber in the access
network
The speeds of fber optic and copper cables are both limited by length
but copper is much more sharply limited in this respect. For e.ample
gigabit &thernet runs over relatively economical category 2e category
3 or augmented category 3 unshielded twisted pair copper cabling but
only to +44 meters. #owever over the right kind of fber gigabit
ethernet can easily reach distances of tens of kilometers.
&ven in the commercial world most computers have copper
communication cables. "ut these cables are short typically tens of
meters. 5ost metropolitan network links (e.g. those based on
telephone or cable television services) are several kilometers long in
the range where fber signifcantly outperforms copper. 6eplacing at
least part of these links with fber shortens the remaining copper
segments and allows them to run much faster.
Fiber confgurations that bring fber right into the building can o$er the
highest speeds since the remaining segments can use standard
&thernet or coa.ial cable. Fiber confgurations that transition to copper
in a street cabinet are generally too far from the users for standard
&thernet confgurations over e.isting copper cabling. They generally
use 7819 at (downstream) speeds of several tens of megabits:sec.
Fiber is often said to be ;future proof; because the speed of the
broadband connection is usually limited by the terminal e/uipment
rather than the fber itself permitting at least some speed
improvements by e/uipment upgrades before the fber itself must be
upgraded.
[edit] Fiber to the node
Fiber to the node (FTTN) also called fber to the neighborhood or fber
to the cabinet (FTT!ab)
*<,
is a telecommunication architecture based
on fber(optic cables run to a cabinet serving a neighborhood.
!ustomers typically connect to this cabinet using traditional coa.ial
cable or twisted pair wiring. The area served by the cabinet is usually
less than +244 m in radius and can contain several hundred
customers. (-f the cabinet serves an area of less than <44 m in radius
then the architecture is typically called fber to the curb.)
*=,
Fiber to the node allows delivery of broadband services such as high
speed -nternet. #igh speed communications protocols such as
broadband cable access (typically 8>!1-1) or some form of 819 are
used between the cabinet and the customers. The data rates vary
according to the e.act protocol used and according to how close the
customer is to the cabinet.
?nlike the competing fber to the premises technology fber to the
node often uses the e.isting coa.ial or twisted pair infrastructure to
provide last mile service. For this reason fber to the node is less costly
to deploy. -n the long(term however its bandwidth potential is limited
relative to implementations which bring the fber still closer to the
subscriber.
[edit] Fiber to the last amplifer
FTT! is the acronym of the &nglish term Fiber To The 9ast 'mplifer.
The network cables being able to use several amplifers the FTT9'
aims at replacing the coa.ial cable to the last amplifer (towards the
subscriber) by optical fbre. -t acts as a new technology aiming at re(
using the network cables e.isting in particular on the fnal part while
installing of optical fbre more closer to the subscriber while using the
coa.ial cable of the networks cables for the @last mile@ or @last meters@
connected with the subscriber.
Fiber to the last amplifer (Ftt9') node is an eAcient tool to deploy fbre
deeper into the !'T7 network architecture and add most desirable
aspects of scalability (performance and reliability) which are necessary
when new services (i.e. triple play video on demand gaming) are
introduced.
FTT9' is a technology which assists hybrid fber(coa.ial !'T7 networks
to provide to their customers more bandwidth. ?sing a replacement of
all coa.ial active e/uipments by nodes (optical receiver) with high
power output (up to ++B d"u7). The coa.ial is maintained from the
node to the customer without any active e/uipment in between.
From the optical sender to the node it uses fbre which is split by = or
by C depending on the distance and on the output power of the optical
sender (from 3 to +3 d"m).
'lso -50 -5< and !:N are modifed for a better network and it also has
other benefts such as power saving in the network as the power
consumption is lower than a normal #F! network (up to =4D).
[edit] Fiber to the c"rb
Fiber to the curb (FTT!) is a telecommunications system based on
fber(optic cables run to a platform that serves several customers. &ach
of these customers has a connection to this platform via coa.ial cable
or twisted pair.
Fiber to the curb allows delivery of broadband services such as high
speed internet. #igh speed communications protocols such as
broadband cable access (typically 8>!1-1) or some form of 819 are
used between the cabinet and the customers. The data rates vary
according to the e.act protocol used and according to how close the
customer is to the cabinet.
FTT! is subtly distinct from FTTN or FTT) (all are versions of Fiber in the
9oop). The chief di$erence is the placement of the cabinet. FTT! will be
placed near the @curb@ which di$ers from FTTN which is placed far from
the customer and FTT) which is placed right at the serving location.
?nlike the competing fber to the premises (FTT)) technology fber to
the curb can use the e.isting coa.ial or twisted pair infrastructure to
provide last mile service. For this reason fber to the curb costs less to
deploy. #owever it also has lower bandwidth potential than fber to the
premises.
-n the ?nited 1tates of 'merica and !anada the largest deployment of
FTT! was carried out by "ell1outh Telecommunications. Eith the
ac/uisition of "ell1outh by 'TFT deployment of FTT! will end. Future
deployments will be based on either FTTN or FTT). &.isting FTT! plant
may be removed and replaced with FTT).
*2,
[edit] Fiber to the premises
Fiber to the premises is a form of fber(optic communication delivery in
which an optical fber is run from the central oAce all the way to the
premises occupied by the subscriber. Fiber to the premises is often
abbreviated with the acronym FTT). #owever this acronym has
become ambiguous and may instead refer to a form of fber to the curb
where the fber does not in fact reach the premises but instead
terminates at a utility pole.
[edit] FTT# $s% FTTB
Fiber to the premises can be categorized according to where the
optical fber ends%
FTT/ :fi!er to the home; is a form of fi!er optic communication delivery in
which the fi!er extends from the central office to the su!scri!er9s living or
wor*ing space.
%.&
<nce at the su!scri!er9s living or wor*ing space, the signal may
!e conveyed throughout the space using any means, including twisted pair,
coaxial ca!le, wireless, power line communication, or optical fi!er.
FTT) :fi!er to the !uilding, also called fi!er to the !asement; is a form of fi!er
optic communication delivery in which the optical fi!er terminates !efore actually
reaching the su!scri!ers living or wor*ing space itself, !ut does extend to the
property containing that living or wor*ing space. The signal is conveyed the final
distance using any non"optical means, including twisted pair, coaxial ca!le,
wireless, or power line communication.
%3&
)y definition, FTT) necessarily applies
only to those properties which contain multiple living or wor*ing spaces.
'n apartment building may provide an e.ample of the distinction
between FTT# and FTT". -f a fber is run to a panel at each subscriber;s
apartment this is FTT#. -f instead the fber goes only as far as the
apartment building;s shared electrical room then this is FTT".
[edit] Direct fber
The simplest optical distribution network can be called direct fber. -n
this architecture each fber leaving the central oAce goes to e.actly
one customer. 1uch networks can provide e.cellent bandwidth since
each customer gets their own dedicated fber e.tending all the way to
the central oAce. #owever this approach is about +4D more costly
due to the amount of fber and central oAce machinery re/uired.
*C,
The
approach is generally favored by new entrants and competitive
operators. ' beneft of this approach is that it doesn;t e.clude any
layer 0 networking technologies be they )assive optical network
'ctive >ptical Network etc. From a regulatory point of view it leads to
least implications as any form of regulatory remedy is still possible
using this topology.
*G,
.
[edit] &hared fber
5ore commonly each fber leaving the central oAce is actually shared
by many customers. -t is not until such a fber gets relatively close to
the customers that it is split into individual customer(specifc fbers.
There are two competing optical distribution network architectures
which achieve this split% active optical networks ('>Ns) and passive
optical networks ()>Ns).
[edit] !cti$e optical network
Comparison showing how a typical active optical networ* handles downstream traffic
differently than a typical passive optical networ*. The type of active optical networ*
shown is a star networ* capa!le of multicasting. The type of passive optical networ*
shown is a star networ* having multiple splitters housed in the same ca!inet.
'ctive optical networks rely on some sort of electrically powered
e/uipment to distribute the signal such as a switch router or
multiple.er. &ach signal leaving the central oAce is directed only to
the customer for which it is intended. -ncoming signals from the
customers avoid colliding at the intersection because the powered
e/uipment there provides bu$ering.
's of 044B the most common type of active optical networks are
called active &thernet a type of &thernet in the frst mile (&F5). 'ctive
&thernet uses optical &thernet switches to distribute the signal thus
incorporating the customers; premises and the central oAce into one
giant switched &thernet network. 1uch networks are identical to the
&thernet computer networks used in businesses and academic
institutions e.cept that their purpose is to connect homes and
buildings to a central oAce rather than to connect computers and
printers within a campus. &ach switching cabinet can handle up to
+444 customers although =44(244 is more typical. This neighborhood
e/uipment performs layer 0:layer < switching and routing oHoading
full layer < routing to the carrier;s central oAce. The -&&& C40.<ah
standard enables service providers to deliver up to +44 5bit:s full(
duple. over one single(mode optical fber to the premises depending
on the provider. 1peeds of +Ibit:s are becoming commercially
available.
[edit] 'assi$e optical network
=ain article: 1assive optical networ*
' passive optical network ()>N) is a point(to(multipoint fber to the
premises network architecture in which unpowered optical splitters are
used to enable a single optical fber to serve multiple premises
typically <0(+0C. ' )>N confguration reduces the amount of fber and
central oAce e/uipment re/uired compared with point to point
architectures.
8ownstream signal coming from the central oAce is broadcast to each
customer premises sharing a fber. &ncryption is used to prevent
eavesdropping.
?pstream signals are combined using a multiple access protocol
invariably time division multiple access (T85'). The >9Ts @range@ the
>N?s in order to provide time slot assignments for upstream
communication.
[edit] (lectrical portion
>nce on private property the signal typically travels the fnal distance
to the end user;s e/uipment using an electrical format.
' device called an >ptical Network Terminal (>NT) also called an
>ptical Network ?nit (>N?) converts the optical signal into an
electrical signal. (>NT is an -T?(T term whereas >N? is an -&&& term
but the two terms mean e.actly the same thing.) >ptical network
terminals re/uire electrical power for their operation so some
providers connect them to back(up batteries in case of power outages.
>ptical network units use thin flm flter technology to convert between
optical and electrical signals.
For fber to the home and for some forms of fber to the building it is
common for the building;s e.isting phone systems local area
networks and cable T7 systems to connect directly to the >NT.
-f all three systems cannot directly reach the >NT it is possible to
combine signals and transport them over a common medium. >nce
closer to the end(user e/uipment such as a router modem and:or
network interface module can separate the signals and convert them
into the appropriate protocol. For e.ample one solution for apartment
buildings uses 7819 to combine data (and : or video) with voice. Eith
this approach the combined signal travels through the building over
the e.isting telephone wiring until it reaches the end(user;s living
space. >nce there a 7819 modem copies the data and video signals
and converts them into &thernet protocol. These are then sent over the
end user;s category 2 cable. ' network interface module can then
separate out the video signal and convert it into an 6F signal that is
sent over the end(user;s coa.ial cable. The voice signal continues to
travel over the phone wiring and is sent through 819 flters to remove
the video and data signals. 'n alternative strategy allows data and : or
voice to be transmitted over coa.ial cable. -n yet another strategy
some oAce buildings dispense with the telephone wiring altogether
instead using voice over -nternet )rotocol phones that can plug directly
into the local area network.