While we think of optical connections as cutting edge, they're positively decrepit in server rooms; current fiber interconnect technology got its start in the 1980s. Intel may soon drag servers into the modern era with its just-teased MXC format, however. The standard (not pictured here) will combine both silicon photonics and a new form of Corning fiber to link servers at 1.6Tbps -- more than quick enough to eliminate many data bottlenecks. The connectors themselves are smaller, too. Intel won't say more about MXC until the Intel Developer Forum next month in San Francisco, but we already suspect that supercomputer operators will be happy with all that extra bandwidth.
Filed under: Desktops, Networking, Intel
Via: PCWorld
Source: Intel