Glossary
Technology evolves at a rapid-fire pace. That’s why we’ve built an easy-to-use glossary to help you better understand the terms, technologies and trends that impact your business.Data center interconnect (DCI)
What is data center interconnect?
Data center interconnect (DCI) connects two or more data centers using high-capacity network links, typically over optical fiber. DCI can span short campus connections, metropolitan networks, regional routes, long-haul links and submarine networks.
These connections allow data centers to exchange large volumes of data and support applications such as distributed computing, cloud services, data replication and disaster recovery.
Why is DCI important?
AI and cloud workloads increasingly span multiple data centers, making fast, reliable connectivity between facilities essential. DCI provides the bandwidth and low latency needed to move data between distributed computing resources and scale infrastructure beyond a single facility.
As DCI networks move to 400G, 800G and eventually 1.6T, testing helps validate fiber infrastructure, Ethernet performance, coherent optics, latency and end-to-end service performance.
Learn more
- Scaling AI infrastructure: the growing role of fiber and data center interconnect
- Webinar: Can fiber keep up with AI? Rethinking data center interconnect
- EXFO solutions for data center interconnect
Discover EXFO test solutions
- LTS-1600 – 1.6T traffic generator and design-validation solution
- BA-1600 – 1.6T Bit Analyzer
- BA-4000 – Electrical 800G Bit Error Rate Tester
- BA-4000-L2 – BER tester with real traffic
- FIP-500 – Fiber inspection scope
- FLS-190 – High-power visual fault locator (VFL)
- FTBx-570 – Single-ended dispersion analyzer
- FTBx-88260 – 10M to 100G network tester
- FTBx-88480 Series – Dual port 1G-40G, 800-G ready tester
- FTBx-88810 Series – Complete lab-to-field testing
- FTBx-945 Telco OLTS
- iOLM – intelligent optical link mapper
- OTH-7000 - Optical test head
- EXFO RFTM – Remote fiber testing and monitoring