Transceiver (pluggable optics)

networking

Stands for: Pluggable transceiver form factors (GBIC to SFP, QSFP, OSFP)

The pluggable module that gives a switch port its personality - copper or fiber, short reach or long, one lineage from GBIC to OSFP.

Instead of fixing the optics at manufacture, ports take standardized pluggables: the chunky GBIC gave way to the SFP, then SFP+ (10G), SFP28 (25G), the quad-lane QSFP+ / QSFP28 (40/100G), and QSFP-DD and OSFP at 400G and beyond. The module choice - SR, LR, DAC twinax, RJ45 copper - decides medium and distance; the form factor decides what fits the port. Vendor lock-in games on 'unsupported' third-party optics are a running industry argument.

Also known as: transceiver, gbic, sfp+, qsfp, qsfp-dd, osfp, pluggable optics

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