Businesses and organisations are becoming ever hungrier for ultra-high data rates and reliable connectivity. Widely available optical networks (such as FTTH), while powerful, can sometimes feel restrictive. Dark fibre offers an alternative to those requiring full control and flexibility in building their own, customised network infrastructure.
What is dark fibre?
Dark fibre, also known as unlit fibre, refers to unlit optical fibres within a cable that are not currently equipped with active transmission equipment. In other words, dark fibre is a strand of fibre which is made available without active termination points on an exlusive basis. These cables are pre-laid underground or strung overhead, but the individual fibres remain inactive – essentially dark – without any signal transmission.
Unlike FTTH connectivity (provided by a network operator or an ISP) that comes pre-configured with specific data rates and service packages, dark fibre requires you to lease the fibre-cable from a provider and install your own equipment to transmit data.
How does dark fibre differ from traditional optical networks?
The use of dark fibre has several advantages and benefits – here are the five key advantages
- Unmatched data rates: Dark fibre boasts phenomenal capacity, ideal for high-data-rate applications like data centres, research institutions, and large enterprises that require expedite transfer of large amounts of data.
- Customisation and control: Dark fibre is a blank canvas that allows for a solution tailored to your specific needs. You have complete control over the network design and equipment, whether you are focusing on unparalleled end-to-end security and encryption, or establishing high-speed connectivity between geographically dispersed offices.
- Enhanced security and privacy: Dark fibre provides a private network with dedicated physical resources (which is not the case with the shared FTTH infrastructure). This reduces the risk of breaches and unauthorised access.
- Cost-effective high usage: In the long run, dark fibre can be very cost-effective for organisations with very high data-rate needs, and benefits can outweigh the initial investment if dark fibre's potential and scalability are fully exploited.
- Scalability and extendibility: As data-rate needs grow, it is possible to add additional equipment and capacities to the leased fibre. Similarly, dark fibre can host emerging transport and networking technologies not yet supported in commercial FTTH networks.
At the same time, dark fibre also comes with certain drawbacks
- Higher initial cost: While cost-effective in the long run for high usage, the initial investment for leasing the fibre, buying and installing equipment, as well as training the personnel can be substantial or even prohibitive for businesses with limited budgets.
- Complexity: Setting up and maintaining a dark-fibre network requires significant technical expertise in fibre optics and networking technologies. It is not a plug-and-play solution, and cannot be approached as a DIY project.
- Limited availability: Finding available dark fibre, a provider of it might be challenging depending on specific geographical location.
Applications of dark fibre across industries
The applications of dark fibre extend across various industries, and are not limited to telecommunications alone.
- Telecommunications operators: Dark fibre provides the operators with the flexibility to create high-capacity backhaul networks, connecting mobile infrastructure or data centres efficiently. This translates to higher internet data rates and improved network performance.
- Enterprise businesses: Large organisations with substantial needs for data transfer can leverage dark fibre to establish private, secure networks for internal communication, cloud connectivity or mission-critical applications.
- Healthcare: Hospitals and healthcare facilities can utilise dark fibre to build networks for secure transmission of patient data, telemedicine applications and real-time medical imaging.
- Educational institutions: Dark fibre provides universities and research institutions with the scalability and security needed to support high-data-rate connections for data analysis, resource sharing and collaboration.
- Government agencies: Government institutions can employ dark fibre for secure communication between different departments, data centres, and emergency services.
Where dark fibre makes sense in telecommunications networks
In the networks of operators and service providers, dark fibre delivers its specific advantages.
- High-data-rate, private networks: Leasing dark fibre allows business requiring high data rates and complete control to create private, point-to-point connections with minimal latency for use in applications such as data centres, financial institutions and research facilities. They can manage their own equipment and protocols on the leased fibre, ensuring maximum security and customisation.
- Backhaul networks: Operators can utilise dark fibre for backhaul networks, which connect their core network to access points such as mobile towers or ISPs.
- Future-proof scalability: Dark fibre offers data-rate scalability, letting operators follow the demand and extend dark-fibre connectivity by activating additional capacities within the cable with additional fibres.
- Wholesale connectivity: Service providers can lease dark fibre from wholesale carriers which allows them to offer high-data-rate services without the upfront cost of deploying their own fibre infrastructure.
Dark fibre is the better option for high-data-rate applications for businesses with large data needs
In conclusion, dark fibre offers a valuable option for operators and service providers seeking high-data-rate, private networks, scalable backhaul solutions, future-proof infrastructure and wholesale connectivity. However, the decision to utilise dark fibre should be based on specific needs and technical capabilities.
While the widely available, pre-packaged FTTH may be the best choice for home users and businesses with moderate requirements, dark fibre is likely the better option for high-data-rate applications for businesses with large data needs, when security is paramount, or for those requiring maximum control and customisation.
Ultimately, the decision to employ dark fibre or commercial FTTH choice depends on specific needs and priorities, while taking into account the available budget, technical expertise, data-rate requirements and the required level of control. Understanding specific expectations and requirements, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of both approaches, each business is able to choose the technology that best meets the needs for ultrafast connectivity.