Purpose
This document is to help troubleshoot issues with fiber connections between the ASA 558x platforms and Cisco Switches. Specifically, issues with 10GB port connectivity.
ASA5580
The ASA5580 has several interface expansion cards (Listed below). There is only one interface card available for the 5580-20 and 5580-40 platforms.
Notes: SR = Short Range, LC = Lucent Connector (Small Form Factor or SFF)
| Product Name | Part Number |
|---|
| Cisco ASA 5580 4-port 10/100/1000 Ethernet interface card, RJ-45 | ASA5580-4GE-CU= |
| Cisco ASA 5580 4-port Gigabit Ethernet fiber interface card, SR, LC | ASA5580-4GE-FI= |
| Cisco ASA 5580 2-port 10 Gigabit Ethernet fiber interface card, SR, LC | ASA5580-2X10GE-SR= |
ASA5585
The Cisco ASA 5585-X supports 1G SX optic modules and 10G SR SFP+ optic modules. The ASA5585-S10 requires an additional license to activate the 10GB capabilities of its two 10GB ports.
Compatibility
Issues may be seen when attempting to connect a X2-10GB-LX4 to a ASA5580-2X10GE-SR or SFP-10G-SR. The SR means Short Range so it may not be able to handle the output from a LX4 connector. This means you should be using a Mode Conditioning Patch (MCP) cable. A 50 micron OM3 cable may work as well.
"1. Some customers might be tempted to connect 1000BASE-LX/LH devices
over short reaches of MMF jumper cables without MCP cables. There is a
risk associated to this type of nonstandard deployment, especially when
the jumper cable is an FDDI-grade or OM1 type. In such case the power
coupled directly into a 62.5-micron fiber could be as high as a few dBm
(typically 5 to 6 dBm), and if the jumper cable is short, the adjacent
receiver will be saturated, causing high bit error rate, and eventually
irreversibly damaged. We recommend the use of MCP, but if the customer
remains reluctant to the deployment of MCP, a 5-dB attenuator for 1300nm
should be used and plugged at the transmitter of the optical module on
each side of the link."
Troubleshooting
1) Check for any sharp bends or stress on the fiber optic cable.
2) Try swapping the fiber connectors at one end.
3) Check cable and interface compatibility.
Additional Information
