During a fiber retrofit in a crowded 42U rack, a systems administrator must land 32 duplex 10 Gbps links from SFP+ transceivers on a single 1U patch panel while reserving space for future growth. Which fiber-optic connector type should the administrator specify to maximize port density and remain compatible with the SFP+ modules?
The duplex LC is a small-form-factor connector that uses a 1.25 mm ferrule, allowing roughly twice as many ports per rack unit as older 2.5 mm connectors. LC receptacles are built into almost all SFP and SFP+ optical transceivers, so patch cables terminated with LC connectors plug directly into the modules without adapters. SC, ST, and FC connectors are physically larger, consume more panel space, and are not present on modern SFP+ cages, so they would not satisfy either the density or compatibility requirement.