Fiber to the Curb (FTTC) & Fiber to the Premises (FTTP)

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• The major obstacle to providing internet access that can perform like a LAN is bandwidth in the last mile
  • the copper wiring infrastructure is often low-grade
  • projects to update this wiring to use fiber optic links are referred to by the umbrella term fiber to the X (FTTx)

Fiber to the Curb and VDSL

A fiber to the curb (FTTC) solution retains some sort of copper wiring to the customer premises while extending the fiber link from the point of presence to a communications cabinet servicing multiple subscribers.

• service providers with their roots in telephone networks use very high-speed DSL (VDSL) to support FTTC
  • achieves higher bit rates than other DSL types at the expense of range
  • supports two modes:
    • symmetric
      • 52 Mbps downstream
      • 6 Mbps upstream
      • 300 m (1,000 ft)
    • asymmetric
      • 26 Mbps in both directions
  • VDSL2
    • specifies a very short range (100 m/300 feet) rate of 100 Mbps (bidirectional)

Info

• Modem type must match the service
  • ADSL-only modem cannot use for VDSL service

Fiber to the Premises and Optical Network Terminals

A fiber to the premises (FTTP) Internet connection means that the service provider’s fiber optic cable is run all the way to the customer’s building.

• This full fiber connection type is implemented as a passive optical network (PON)
  • a single fiber cable is run from the point of presence to an optical line terminal (OLT)
    • located in a street cabinet
  • From OLT, splitters direct each subscriber’s traffic over a shorter length of fiber to an optical network terminal (ONT)
    • installed at customer’s premises
    • converts the optical signal to an electrical one
    • is connected to the customer’s router using an RJ45 copper wire patch cord