[AusNOG] TX/RX Conventions

[Mark Newton]

On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 08:21:36AM +1000, Tom Sykes wrote:

 > I'm interested to understand which conventions/standards (if any) are
 > being used by operators to identify the TX/RX in fibre patching
 > panels/trays - in environments like a meet me room or datacentre.

It's really variable, Tom.  And even if it's consistent within a site,
the contractor or datacentre operator who has sold you a cross connect
has probably flipped it around anyway.

It also probably only matters if the commissioning process for a new
link is, "Connect fibres with the ports shut down, then schedule an
appointment to un-shut them."  If the fibres are wrong, that means
you need to send someone physically onsite to reverse them to get the
link up.

A better commissioning process might be, "Place the port into a 
quarantine VLAN, then unshut it.  Connect fibres and have the 
contractor verify the presence of a link light before leaving the
site.  Schedule an appointment to reconfigure the port into a 
production VLAN."

That'd obviate the need for consistency, save a lot of time, and
a lot of frustration in cases where the usual standard is, for
whatever reason, reversed.

Regards,

  - mark