Infinera’s second-generation Cloud Xpress 2 delivered up to 1.2 Tb/s of data-center-interconnect throughput in a single rack unit (1RU), compared with 500 Gb/s in 2RU for the original Cloud Xpress. That was more than twice the bandwidth in half the rack space. The compact optical platform was designed to link separate data centers, not to connect devices within one facility.
What is Infinera Cloud Xpress 2?
Cloud Xpress 2 is a compact optical data-center-interconnect (DCI) appliance. Infinera introduced it in September 2016, and it became generally available in June 2017. It was aimed at organizations that needed to move large volumes of data between data centers, including cloud and internet-content providers, colocation operators, communications service providers, enterprises, and educational or research networks.
Infinera described the platform as a compact 100GbE DCI system and said it incorporated its Infinite Capacity Engine. The company’s announcement attributed a 4.8x increase in density to that technology. Infinera’s 2016 announcement provides the product context.
How much more throughput did it provide?
Cloud Xpress 2 reached 1.2 terabits per second (Tb/s) of aggregate throughput in one rack unit, versus 500 gigabits per second (Gb/s) for the first-generation Cloud Xpress. The new model therefore offered more than twice the predecessor’s bandwidth while occupying half as many rack units.
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- 【What You Get】: 2pcs Gigabit Multi-Mode Ethernet SFP Slot media converters; 2pcs 1.25Gbps SFP Multi-Mode transceivers; 2pcs AC/DC Power Supply; 1 x User’s Manual. Supports wide power supply voltage (100V-240V), Power Supply: 5V-1A, UL Certified. Perfect for large data transfers in data centers and business networks.
- 【Fiber Optical Port】: 1.25Gbps SFP port, compatible with Multi-Mode LC transceivers up to 550M (2 SFP SX Transceivers included); Fiber Type: MMF, Cable Type: UTP/STP Cat.5e for 100 meters.
- 【RJ45 Port】: 10M/100M/1000M Auto-negotiation, full Duplex or half Duplex, Auto-negotiation, Supports MDI/MDIX auto-crossover, Complies with IEEE 802.3/802.3u/802.3z/802.3ab.
- 【Plug & Play】: Plug and play setup with no software installation required. Simply connect the optical port and RJ45 port for immediate operation. Status LEDs provide easy network status monitoring.
- 【Durable and Reliable】: Operates within a temperature range of 0°C to 60°C, supporting jumbo frame size 9K bytes, making it ideal for industrial and commercial applications.
| Platform | Aggregate throughput | Rack space |
|---|---|---|
| Original Cloud Xpress | 500 Gb/s | 2RU |
| Cloud Xpress 2 | 1.2 Tb/s | 1RU |
These are platform throughput figures, not a claim that every individual connection or wavelength ran at 1.2 Tb/s. Infinera’s announcement reported the 4.8x density increase; Data Center Knowledge’s 2017 report described the new platform’s 1.2 Tb/s throughput as more than twice the original product’s 500 Gb/s.
What did 1.2 Tb/s DCI mean in practice?
DCI carries traffic between distinct data centers. According to Infinera product marketing quoted by Data Center Knowledge, a Cloud Xpress 2 installation could connect to another data center up to 130 km away and carry 1.2 Tb/s over a single fiber pair, without an external multiplexer or amplifier. That is a vendor-reported reach and configuration claim, not a guarantee for every fiber route or deployment.
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- 10GBASE-SR SFP+ to LC Optical 10 Gigabit Ethernet Fiber transceiver module, 10GbE Multimode SFP+(compatible with both 62.5um and 50um LC cables; supports OM1/OM2/OM3/OM4 fiber cables), Duplex LC connector, 850nm, DDM, up to 300m.
- [Wide Compatibility] Compatible with Cisco SFP-10G-SR, Meraki MA-SFP-10GB-SR, Ubiquiti UniFi UF-MM-10G, Fortinet, Mikrotik, Netgear, D-Link, Supermicro, TP-Link and Other Open Switches.
- [Easy to Use] Easy installation, plug and play, fully hot-pluggable with ESD protection. Widely used in network switch, server, or NIC with SFP+ to a 10 Gigabit fiber channel network with multimode LC for Network Attached Storage(NAS), Storage Area Network(SAN), and High Performance Computing(HPC) applications.
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Contemporary coverage also reported that Cloud Xpress 2 used half the power of its predecessor for the comparable platform role. The available figures do not specify an absolute wattage or a power-per-bit measurement, so they should not be treated as a universal estimate of operating consumption.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is Cloud Xpress 2 for links inside a data center?
No. Cloud Xpress 2 was designed for inter-data-center links. This differs from intra-data-center optics, which connect equipment within a facility and may target different distances and deployment needs. For example, Infinera’s later ICE-D line addresses intra-data-center interconnect and was described in a 2024 release as supporting 1.6 Tb/s and greater. That later product category should not be confused with Cloud Xpress 2’s 2017 DCI specifications.
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- What You Get: 2pcs Gigabit Multi-Mode Ethernet SFP Slot media converters; 2pcs SFP BiDi LC Dual Multi-Mode transceiver; 2pcs AC/DC Power Supply; 1 x User’s Manual. Support wide power supply voltage (100V-240V), Power Supply: 5V-1A, UL Certified.
- Fiber Optical Port: 1.25Gbps SFP port, connecting the BiDi Multi-Mode LC Dual transceivers up to 550M(2 SFP LX Transceiver included); Fiber Type: MMF, Cable Type: UTP/STP Cat.5e for 100 meters.
- RJ45 Port: 10M/100M/1000M Auto-negotiation, full Duplex or half Duplex, Auto-negotiation, Supports MDI/MDIX auto-crossover, Complies with IEEE 802.3/802.3u/802.3z/802.3ab.
- Plug & Play: Simply plug in optical port and RJ45 port, and it will work immediatelly. Status LED's for TX, FX LINK/ACT, POWER, FDX to easily monitor network status. Supports jumbo frame size 9K bytes; Supports working temperature range from 0°C to 60°C.
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The same 2024 Infinera release cited Cignal AI projections for high-speed (800G-plus), intermediate-reach intra-data-center interconnect demand: about 300,000 units in 2023 rising to more than 2.5 million in 2027, with a market opportunity above $2.2 billion. Those figures describe a later market forecast, not Cloud Xpress 2 sales or demand in 2017.
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- Data Rate: 10gb/s data transfer rate.
- Duplex LC: Supports OS2/OS3 dual LC single mode fiber cables, SMF, 1310nm, up to 10km.
- Plug and Play: Support Hot-pluggable, no need to shut down the network or device reboot. DDM support.
- DDM: This 10G Single Mode SFP+ LC Module supports digital optical monitoring capability for strong diagnostic capabilities.
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- 2. Wide Compatibility Compatible with a range of brands including Cisco SFP-10G-LR, Ubiquiti UniFi UF-SM-10G, Meraki MA-SFP-10GB-LR, Mikrotik, Netgear, Fortinet, Supermicro, D-Link, TP-Link and more, this module fits seamlessly into various open equipments with 10Gb SFP+ ports.
- 3. Plug and Play Convenience: With hot-swappable functionality and advanced Digital Diagnostic Monitoring (DDM) for real-time parameter monitoring, installation is hassle-free. It complies with SFP+ MSA and SFF-8431 standards as well as IEEE 802.3ae. Efficient Power Usage: Featuring low power consumption of less than 1.05 watts, this module helps save costs while providing reliable performance. It also boasts low EMI and advanced ESD protection.
- 4. Versatile Usage: The SFP 10GBase-LR module is versatile, catering to various networking needs including data center connectivity, wide area network (WAN) connections, remote monitoring systems, enterprise and campus networks, as well as cloud computing and virtualization environments. It seamlessly integrates with a wide range of devices such as fiber media converters, routers, servers, fiber switches, storage devices, network interface cards (NICs), video surveillance equipment, virtual machines, and cloud computing equipment, ensuring high-speed and reliable data transmission across different network infrastructures.
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