
This is the second in a series of articles about computer networking for filmmaking and post production. Last time we took a broad look at the different technologies available, and the bandwidth speeds that different formats and workflows might require. It this article we will take a closer look at the oldest and most popular networking option for achieving bandwidths greater than 1 gigabit per second. Ten Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) has been available in some form for nearly 20 years, but it was not widely used outside of server rooms until the last five years or so, and even now it is by no mean ubiquitous, even in media and post production environments. I believe the main obstacle has been pricing, specifically on the part of switches. 10GbE network interface cards (NICs) have been available at reasonably affordable prices for years, and are now finally starting to appear as integrated solutions built into high end motherboards, but the switches to connect these together have remained more than 10 times as expensive as their gigabit counterparts. So users have to really know what they are getting from 10GbE, and how it will help them, before shelling out the money for that upgrade. But there is a way to leverage the performance and bandwidth offered by 10GbE without investing hundreds or thousands of dollars in an expensive switch.
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