Published SFF-8432 Rev 5.0
SFF Committee documentation may be purchased in electronic form.
SFF specifications are available at ftp://ftp.seagate.com/sff
SFF Committee
SFF-8432 Specification for
Improved Pluggable Formfactor
Rev 5.0 July 16, 2007
Secretariat: SFF Committee
Abstract: This specification defines the mechanical specifications for the Improved
Pluggable Formfactor (IPF).
The mechanical dimensioning allows backwards compatibility between IPF modules
plugged into most SFP cages which have been implemented to SFF-8074i. It is
anticipated that when the application requires it, manufacturers will be able to
supply cages that accept SFP style modules. In both cases the EMI leakage is
expected to be similar to that when SFP modules and cages are mated.
Superior EMI performance can only be expected with mated combinations of IPF modules
and cages.
This specification provides a common reference for systems manufacturers, system
integrators, and suppliers, of module style interconnects. This is an internal
working specification of the SFF Committee, an industry ad hoc group.
This specification is made available for public review, and written comments are
solicited from readers. Comments received by the members will be considered for
inclusion in future revisions of this specification.
The description in this specification does not assure that the specific component is
actually available from suppliers. If such is supplied it shall comply with this
specification to achieve interoperability between suppliers.
Support: This specification is supported by the identified member companies of the
SFF Committee.
POINTS OF CONTACT:
Michael D. Long I. Dal Allan
Amphenol Canada Corp Chairman SFF Committee
1408 Woodhaven Drive 14426 Black Walnut Court
Hummelstown, PA 17036 Saratoga CA 95070
Ph: 717-566-1665 Ph: 408-867-6630
michaello@amphenolcanada.com endlcom@acm.org
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EXPRESSION OF SUPPORT BY MANUFACTURERS
The following member companies of the SFF Committee voted in favor of this industry
specification.
Amphenol
EMC
Emulex
ENDL
ETRI
FCI
Finisar
Fujitsu CPA
Hewlett Packard
JDS Uniphase
Molex
Picolight
Samsung
Sumitomo
Sun Microsystems
Toshiba America
Tyco AMP
Unisys
Vitesse Semiconductor
The following member companies of the SFF Committee voted to abstain on this
industry specification.
AMCC
Avago
Brocade
Clariphy
Comax
Cortina Systems
Foxconn
Hitachi GST
Intel
LSI Logic
Seagate
The user's attention is called to the possibility that implementation to this
Specification may require use of an invention covered by patent rights. By
distribution of this Specification, no position is taken with respect to the
validity of this claim or of any patent rights in connection therewith. Members of
the SFF Committee which advise that a patent exists are required to provide a
statement of willingness to grant a license under these rights on reasonable and
non-discriminatory terms and conditions to applicants desiring to obtain such a
license.
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Foreword
The development work on this specification was done by the SFF Committee, an
industry group. The membership of the committee since its formation in August 1990
has included a mix of companies which are leaders across the industry.
When 2 1/2" diameter disk drives were introduced, there was no commonality on
external dimensions e.g. physical size, mounting locations, connector type,
connector location, between vendors.
The first use of these disk drives was in specific applications such as laptop
portable computers and system integrators worked individually with vendors to
develop the packaging. The result was wide diversity, and incompatibility.
The problems faced by integrators, device suppliers, and component suppliers led to
the formation of the SFF Committee as an industry ad hoc group to address the
marketing and engineering considerations of the emerging new technology.
During the development of the form factor definitions, other activities were
suggested because participants in the SFF Committee faced more problems than the
physical form factors of disk drives. In November 1992, the charter was expanded to
address any issues of general interest and concern to the storage industry. The SFF
Committee became a forum for resolving industry issues that are either not addressed
by the standards process or need an immediate solution.
Those companies which have agreed to support a specification are identified in the
first pages of each SFF Specification. Industry consensus is not an essential
requirement to publish an SFF Specification because it is recognized that in an
emerging product area, there is room for more than one approach. By making the
documentation on competing proposals available, an integrator can examine the
alternatives available and select the product that is felt to be most suitable.
SFF Committee meetings are held during T10 weeks (see www.t10.org), and Specific
Subject Working Groups are held at the convenience of the participants. Material
presented at SFF Committee meetings becomes public domain, and there are no
restrictions on the open mailing of material presented at committee meetings.
Most of the specifications developed by the SFF Committee have either been
incorporated into standards or adopted as standards by EIA (Electronic Industries
Association), ANSI (American National Standards Institute) and IEC (International
Electrotechnical Commission).
If you are interested in participating or wish to follow the activities of the SFF
Committee, the signup for membership and/or documentation can be found at:
www.sffcommittee.com/ie/join.html
The complete list of SFF Specifications which have been completed or are currently
being worked on by the SFF Committee can be found at:
ftp://ftp.seagate.com/sff/SFF-8000.TXT
If you wish to know more about the SFF Committee, the principles which guide the
activities can be found at:
ftp://ftp.seagate.com/sff/SFF-8032.TXT
Suggestions for improvement of this specification will be welcome. They should be
sent to the SFF Committee, 14426 Black Walnut Ct, Saratoga, CA 95070.
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SFF Committee --
Improved Pluggable Formfactor
1. Scope
This specification defines the terminology and mechanical requirements for a
pluggable transceiver module. This specification also includes critical dimensions
of the IPF cage. This specification is also intended to facilitate the
implementation of 1 x "n" ganged and the 2 x "n" stacked cage configurations.
The need for this specification became evident when it was realized that some SFP
modules and cage designs do not perform adequately in terms of EMI leakage, and
cannot meet the needs for higher data rates. The IPF is an improved transceiver
style which has tighter mechanical tolerances on the module and enhanced EMI
characteristics when mated with a cage designed for the IPF module. Please note that
there are additional cage requirements specified in this document to allow proper
function of the IPF modules in application. These improvements make the IPF
suitable for current SFP applications as well as those at higher transfer rates.
1.1 Description of Clauses
Clause 1 contains the Scope and Purpose.
Clause 2 contains References and Related Standards and SFF Specifications.
Clause 3 contains the General Description.
Clause 4 contains the Module Dimensions.
Clause 5 contains examples of Cage Requirements.
Clause 6 contains examples of Cage Configurations.
2. References
The SFF Committee activities support the requirements of the storage industry, and
it is involved with several standards.
2.1 Industry Documents
The following documents are relevant.
- ASME Y14.5.1M-1994, Mathematical Definition of Dimensioning and Tolerance
Principles
- INF-8074i 1.0 SFP (Small Formfactor Pluggable) Transceiver
- SFF-8083 0.8mm SFP+ Compliant Card Edge Connector
- SFF-8431 SFP+
2.2 SFF Specifications
There are several projects active within the SFF Committee. The complete list of
specifications which have been completed or are still being worked on are listed in
the specification at ftp://ftp.seagate.com/sff/SFF-8000.TXT
2.3 Sources
Those who join the SFF Committee as an Observer or Member receive electronic copies
of the minutes and SFF specifications (http://www.sffcommittee.com/ie/join.html).
Copies of ANSI standards may be purchased from the InterNational Committee for
Information Technology Standards (http://tinyurl.com/c4psg).
Copies of SFF, T10 (SCSI), T11 (Fibre Channel) and T13 (ATA) standards and standards
still in development are available on the HPE version of CD_Access
(http://tinyurl.com/85fts).
2.4 Conventions
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The American convention of numbering is used i.e., the thousands and higher
multiples are separated by a comma and a period is used as the decimal point. This
is equivalent to the ISO/IEC convention of a space and comma.
American: ISO:
0.6 0,6
1,000 1 000
1,323,462.9 1 323 462,9
2.5 Definitions
For the purpose of SFF Specifications, the following definitions apply:
Optional: This term describes features which are not required by the SFF
Specification. However, if any feature defined by the SFF Specification is
implemented, it shall be done in the same way as defined by the Specification.
Describing a feature as optional in the text is done to assist the reader. If there
is a conflict between text and tables on a feature described as optional, the table
shall be accepted as being correct.
Reserved: Where this term is used for defining the signal on a connector pin its
actual function is set aside for future standardization. It is not available for
vendor specific use. Where this term is used for bits, bytes, fields and code
values; the bits, bytes, fields and code values are set aside for future
standardization. The default value shall be zero. The originator is required to
define a reserved field or bit as zero, but the receiver should not check Reserved
fields or bits for zero.
Dimension, Reference: A dimension used for information purposes only. A reference
dimension is a repeat of a dimension or is derived from other values shown on the
drawing or on related drawings. It is considered auxiliary information and does not
govern production or inspection operations.
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3. General Description
This specification defines the complete mechanical dimensions of the IPF transceiver
module. The IPF module and cage system provide a superior alternative, in terms of
interoperability and EMI control, to the SFP system.
The dimensions for the module are normative.
FIGURE 3-1: TYPICAL MODULES
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4. IPF Module
The IPF module is described in Figure 4-1, Figure 4-2 and Figure 4-3.
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FIGURE 4-1: IPF MODULE
Published SFF-8432 Rev 5.0
FIGURE 4-2: LATCH POST DETAIL
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