< PreviousNetworking is changing at a fast pace in the data centre. The network architectures that make cloud possible are fun- damentally different from the highly over-subscribed, hierarchical and cost- ly legacy solutions of the past. In 2020, advanced technologies like 5G are ex- pected to be applied in the data centre, offering data centre providers greater opportunity to grow and enhance their business. While the benefits of these technologies may take at least a few years to come to fruition, data centre companies that incorporate them into their business strategy now will be the ones best positioned to reap the benefits down the road. The deployment of machine learning, deep learning and other artificial intel- ligence technologies is now mainstream, and these technologies power many of the cloud services we use every day, says Alastair Waite, data centre market devel- opment, CommScope. “Plan for change from day one, build with maximum flex- ibility and choose a good installation partner to support you, ” he adds. Networking cabling infrastructures in the DX age Increased adoption of high-perfor- mance servers and applications re- quiring higher bandwidth is driving adoption of 10 and 25 Gigabit Ethernet switching in combination with 40 and 100 Gigabit Ethernet. As a result, it has become increasingly necessary to in- clude network fabrics, software-defined networking, hyper-convergence, and software-defined storage technologies in the data centre. From a cabling stand- point, all this added complexity and modernisation of the data centre pro- motes the need for simplicity, reliability and high-density. To plan an upgrade or a new technol- ogy leap within the customer network, the technology of choice should have a proven stability record, be suitable for the new applications that keep coming out, and should be future-ready. Also, it more manageable and flexible manner. Furthermore, these systems enable data centres to easily migrate to 25, 100 and 200 Gb/s networks and solve some of the most critical network challenges.” Fibre: To be or not to be With the new Category 8 standards ca- pable of supporting up to 40 GbE, many are left undecided if there is still scope for copper in the data centre or whether fibre is the only way forward. Fibre optic cabling offers several ad- vantages over copper such as higher throughput, space savings, better security and future-proofing while copper cabling can only be deployed when it can reliably meet the requirements of a specific appli- cation. However, one reason why organi- sations still favour copper is that they tend to be a cheaper alternative to fibre. should be clear how the technology can be implemented or upgraded. In general, customers in the Middle East are aware of the importance of digital transforma- tion and organisations are increasingly taking steps to be prepared. Customers need a clear vision of what the final results should be and how to structure the upgrade process, to en- sure all steps are under control and dis- ruptions are minimised, explains Arafat Yousef, managing director MEA, Nex- ans Cabling Solutions. “It makes sense to choose solutions that can be upgraded on a modular ba- sis, allowing the customer to add or change features in line with require- ments. Things become even better when a solution allows changes to be made at components level, while the key frame- of-work remains fixed. This means bet- ter preparation for future expansions with minimal disruptions and accept- able cost,” adds Yousef. “We always find big crowds attending seminars and roadshows by all vendors, across vari- ous areas of interest. Here, people look forward to getting the latest updates about standards and industry trends, to plan upgrades to their current networks and the direction of new projects ac- cordingly.” Internal data centre traffic is ex- pected to grow by 80% over the next three years. Because of this, there is a real risk of networks becoming band- width bottlenecks. Reports indicate that 65% of system outages are related to cabling and that patching mistakes are the reason for 28% of downtime in data centres. However, when planning the installation or upgrade of network cabling, the actual cost of cabling typi- cally only accounts for just 4-5% of the total expense of the data centre. As a standard practice, organisations must move away from traditional low- density cabling to high-density modular structured cable solutions, says Nabil Khalil, executive vice president of R&M META. “By doing so, they can implement physical network infrastructure in a far Arafat Yousef, managing director MEA, Nexans Cabling Solutions. Nabil Khalil, executive vice president of R&M META. // SPECIAL REPORT / FUTURE OF CABLING // WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /// 30 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / MARCH 2020 /realise benefits for the owner/operator at various locations across their data centre operation. AIM can reduce time- intensive manual processes, minimise human error and network downtime. It can also offer visibility into end-to-end circuits. And, in the event of a network failure, a root cause analysis can be quickly established to help the network to get back online fast. As higher fibre densities and network virtualisation become prevalent at the core, the challenge of managing those assets also increases. Waite adds that single optical fibre can no longer be as- sociated with a single business process, with virtualised servers the data pack- ets running across a channel may be linked to many disparate elements of a business or even different customers in a cloud type deployment. Waite explains that there is still scope and demand for structured copper ca- bling in the data centre. “Customers still rely on copper to provide networks for out-of-band management of servers and switches, wireless access points, se- curity access systems, and the many IoT sensors that are located within the cabi- net, cage and all across the data hall to ensure the smooth and efficient running of the white space. New advances in PoE technology have also ensured that cop- per remains a relevant transport media all over the data centre campus.” Non-hyperscale data centres still use a great deal of copper cabling to connect servers. Economically, this makes per- fect sense. Copper Twisted pair runs at 1Gbps or 10Gbps today. 25GBase-T and 40GBase-T are defined as the next steps in Ethernet standards but are not yet de- ployed to the market, as the bandwidth demand in non-hyperscale data centres can still be satisfied with 10G per port. When it comes to future-readiness, fibre is currently hyperscale data cen- tres’ first choice, adds Yousef of Nexans. “However, when the need for higher speeds arrives, new cabling will clearly be required: Cat6A will no longer suffice.” Nexans recommends using Cat7A ca- bling as soon as twisted pair is capable of running beyond 10G. Cat7A supports 25GBASE-T. Cat8 cabling is required for 40GBASE-T, but the economics of sys- tem design have already made this speed obsolete. “We expect only 25GBase-T to hit the market in the future. Cat8 would be usable, but Cat7A is already sufficient and more affordable. R&M VP Khalil explains that copper and fibre both hold their ground de- pending on specific use cases. “Copper is still widely used, particularly in the 10G ports shipped globally, however, when the network team wants to pro- vide a backbone in 40G or 100G, they will need to start thinking about fibre cabling, especially when the distances involved exceed 30 meters. This is be- cause of the new Cat. 8 standards can provide 40G over 30 meters. So, it re- mains a cheaper and viable solution for small distances.” Fibre-only data centres may not be the most economical solution, but are usual- ly chosen based on other considerations. Consequently, the decision whether en- terprise data centres are better off with fibre or copper depends very much on the size, layout and speed requirements and should be studied carefully case by case. While fibre optic cabling will remain the medium of choice in the data centre backbone, Category 8 copper cabling is certainly a valuable consideration for the data centre edge where uplink speeds in switch-to-server connections are moving from 10 to 25 and 40 Gigabit Ethernet speeds, explains Prem Rod- rigues, director for the MEA & India/ SAAR, Siemon. Automated Infrastructure Manage- ment – a must for fibre systems in data centres? In the data centre world, gradual mi- gration to 100, 200 and 400 Gbit/s is underway. Consequences include high- er density and more cabling in racks. Today’s data centres may contain hun- dreds of thousands of ports and patch cords. The complexity and dynamism of the infrastructures is reaching a scale at which humans can no longer man- age them without remote-controlled hardware and software support. What’s more, there are significantly more serv- ers than can be managed on-site by qualified staff. We are also seeing data centres move towards low loss fibre connectivity, adds Rodrigues of Siemon. “A key driver for this development is the migration of transmission speeds from the current 40 and 100 Gb/s to the next generation 200 Gb/s and 400 Gb/s fibre applica- tions and from 8 Gb/s, to 16 Gb/s and to 32 Gb/s for fibre channel-based SANs and as bandwidth and speeds increase, insertion loss requirements become much more stringent.” Automated Infrastructure Manage- ment (AIM) is an essential tool that can Prem Rodrigues, director for the MEA & India/SAAR, Siemon. Alastair Waite, data centre market development, Commscope. // SPECIAL REPORT / FUTURE OF CABLING // MARCH 2020 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / 31// WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /Edge data centres can be situated in remote locations, taking a decentral- ised approach, or placed in urban ar- eas. These edge data centres would be smaller in size, but their numbers would be higher. The edge data centres need to be readily available and accessible for operation and maintenance purposes. Further, 5G will require the support of many edge data centre locations to sup- port low latency applications. Managing and maintaining such a large number of data centres poses a sig- nificant challenge, according to Yousef. “This requires the implementation of new practices on work orders for moves, adds, changes and fault detection. Fast- er MTTR would be a critical KPI for edge data centres.” At the edge, AIM can be used to re- motely track the utilisation of panels, cabling and switch ports, and provide a real-time view on how physical-layer assets are being used. Such a system also offers numerous extrinsic benefits, thanks to its ability to be combined with other management tools, thus enhanc- ing the security of edge data centres. In addition to facilitating the manage- ment of increasingly large and complex infrastructures, there are other benefits to the use of AIM solutions, explains Khalil. “Using a single, current, consist- ent database eliminates stranded capacity and facilitates end-to-end analysis, agile infrastructure management, predictive analysis, capacity utilisation and efficien- cy of operation and administration, and can bring 30 – 50% reduction in down- plethora of other high bandwidth low latency applications.” A network mesh with crisscrossing cabling guarantees that switches at ac- cess level are no longer more than a hop away from each other. All devices are the same number of segments. Unlike the classic three-tier architecture, this new topology has just two layers. The leaf layer is built up of access switches that connect to servers, edge routers, load balancers, firewalls and other de- vices. The network backbone is provid- ed by the spine layer, which consists of routing switches. “Meshed leaf-spine architectures, in- creasing fibre density, complex point-to- multipoint connections, and the fact that devices can be added or reallocated at any time make knowing the exact state of all connectivity elements at all times ex- tremely challenging. Changing network topologies, therefore, also warrants the use of AIM solutions,” says Khalil. The consequence of deploying this topology is that every cabling channel within the fabric, connecting the spine and leaf switches, must be able to sup- port precisely the same throughput of data. Therefore, each cabling channel must be designed to support the maxi- mum expected data rate; nothing less is acceptable. Commonly the fabric data rate used to be rated at 40GbE amongst many data centre owners. Today this rate no longer applies with many cus- tomers only considering 100Gb/s and above as the minimum standard for their fabric cabling going forward. time. System data can be used for budget- ing and IT infrastructure inventory.” Future steps in AIM include the use of artificial intelligence to ensure infrastruc- tures remain manageable. “AI can inde- pendently manage connectivity from the data centre to, for example, a smart city, making predictions based on monitoring and machine learning,” adds Khalil. New fibre network topologies The number of fibres used for trans- port is on the increase. 40 and 100 Gbit/s require eight fibres in parallel pairs. Fur- thermore, the traditional hierarchical network topology with core, aggrega- tion and access level can no longer cope with today’s needs, resulting in conges- tion along traffic routes. To ensure that data and applications are available in real-time at all times latencies have to be considerably reduced, calling for single- mode or multi-mode fibre and new kinds of network architecture. Spine and leaf, supported by a network fabric is the next-generation topology be- ing deployed to replace core, aggregation and access level switching. A spine-leaf architecture reduces latency and can be adapted to continuously changing needs. Waite adds that this is the most ef- fective way to enable east-west data flow in the data centre. “East-west flow of traffic describes the lateral flow of data across the networking layers within a data centre, allowing servers to quickly and efficiently communi- cate with one another in support of AI, machine learning, virtual reality and a // SPECIAL REPORT / FUTURE OF CABLING // WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /// 32 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / MARCH 2020 /Purpose-built, small form-factor devices that are optimised for DCI can reduce the cost/bit for transporting intercon- nect traffic. These devices are built for data centre environments, with front-to- back airflow and greater chassis depth up to 600mm. They enable high-capaci- ty services while reducing footprint and ongoing power consumption, and they are integrating more and more features to give customers added flexibility to address more applications. Programmable coherent optics DCI operators can overcome capacity limitations at any distance with ad- vanced coherent optical chipsets and high-speed electro-optics that integrate selectable baud and higher-order modu- lation to open the DCI application space to include any distance from metro to long-haul and subsea. New technolo- gies include probabilistic constellation shaping, non-linear compensation, and advanced soft-decision forward error correction (FEC). These enable a greater degree of bandwidth programmability and reach performance, giving operators The Data Centre Interconnect (DCI) market is growing to support the increasing number of data centres in the Middle East, where it is projected to grow at a CAGR of around seven percent between 2018 and 2024, backed by government and private sector initiatives. Smart city advancements in countries such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia and the increasing adoption of cloud computing services have led to a high up-take of co-location spaces across existing and upcoming data centres. The increased government support for the digital economy in the Middle East, the growth in cloud adoption, and mi- gration from on-premise infrastructure to co-location and managed services are also expected to drive the data centre investment in the region. Large global players such as IBM, Amazon, Oracle and Microsoft have all recently opened data centres across the GCC to provide cloud services to businesses and help accelerate their journey to the hybrid cloud. At the same time, the Internet of Things and 5G, connected cars, tel- emedicine and e-learning are all poised to add more demand on the network. All the content and information gener- ated by these applications, as well as by end-users, are stored in data centres and transported across the networks that interconnect them. But how can network operators keep up with growing demand? Here are a few examples of new technologies that are shaping the future of DCI networks. Application optimised platforms Technologies shaping the future of DCI networks Azz-Eddine Mansouri, general manager, Ciena ME highlights the new technologies that are shaping the future of DCI networks and how incorporating these while up- dating the network architecture will help facilitate DCI modernisation without risk finer granularity in capacity increments to choose from and the performance to push that capacity farther. Advanced software and network automation Automation is needed to accelerate time to service, enable scalability, and optimise network resource utilisation. New tools and capabilities can eliminate tedious, time-consuming manual steps required to design the network for DCI services. Furthermore, multi-domain service orchestration (MDSO) auto- mates service provisioning across layers and domains. It simplifies management complexity and service activation in complex networks, and improves the end-customer experience. Through advanced telemetry and analytics, real-time network health information can be extracted from the network, and analytics apps can provide the intelligence to optimise capacity, increase network visibility, and improve process automation. Advancements in DCI hardware, software and network automation have set new benchmarks for operational simplicity, scalability and virtualisa- tion to accelerate the pace of deploy- ment and time to market. In addition, openness and programmability speed up and simplify integration with exist- ing back-office tools and applications. DCI operators that incorporate these new technologies while updating their network architecture will have an easier experience facilitating DCI modernisa- tion without risk. Azz-Eddine Mansouri, general manager, Ciena ME. // MARCH 2020 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / 33// WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM / // SPECIAL REPORT / DCI NETWORKSData centres, and the wealth of information they contain, represent a tantalising prize for attackers. But unless the attacker gets lucky and finds an Internet-facing vulnerability, directly compromising a data centre takes a significant amount of effort and planning. As a result, cyber-attacks that target data centres tend to be patient, mature operations that emphasise persistence and require flying below the radar of se- curity teams. From our experience, here CRITICAL ATTACK VECTORS TO WATCH OUT FOR Cyber-attacks that target data centres tend to be patient, mature operations that emphasise persistence and require f lying below the radar of security teams. Matt Walmsley, EMEA director, Vectra highlights the techniques that sophisticated cyber attackers use against data centres are the six most critical attack vectors and techniques that sophisticated cyber attackers use against data centres. CO-OPTING ADMINISTRATIVE ACCESS Administrators have unparalleled ac- cess to the data centre and as a result are natural targets for attackers. Ad- ministrative protocols can give attack- ers backdoor access into the data centre without the need to directly exploit an application vulnerability. And by using standard admin tools such as SSH, Tel- net or RDP, attackers can easily blend in with normal admin traffic. CLOSING THE LOCAL AUTHENTICATION LOOPHOLE In addition to the standard paths uti- lised by administrators, many data cen- tres rely on local authentication options, that can be used in an emergency, to ac- cess the hosts and workloads they need to manage. However, these local authen- tication options are not logged, and the same login credentials are often shared across hosts and workloads for the sake 6 // WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /// 34 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / MARCH 2020 / // SPECIAL REPORT / DATA CENTRE SECURITYnetwork. Over time, attackers will map out the internal network, identify valu- able resources, and compromise devices and user credentials along the way. The most coveted stolen asset for an attacker is administrator credentials because they ensure near autonomy in- side the victim’s network. Administrator credentials are particularly essential for data centre attacks, since administrators are often the only individuals who can access data en masse. The key point is that an attack is typically at a mature stage by the time it reaches a private data centre. The hid- den command-and-control traffic, the reconnaissance, the lateral movement and the compromise of user and admin credentials are all prerequisites that lead up to the intrusion into the data centre. While most data centre security has focused on protecting the virtualised layers of the data centre and micro-seg- mentation, real-world attackers are in- creasingly subverting the physical infra- structure that the data centre depends on. The use of advanced attacker detec- tion models that expose hidden attacks against application, data and virtualisa- tion layers in the data centre, as well as the underlying physical infrastructure, will enable security teams to address critical vulnerabilities at every layer of the virtualised data centre, even when attackers use legitimate services and protocols for their illegitimate actions. of simplicity. When attackers find the credentials by compromising an admin- istrator, they can silently access the data centre without fear of their activity be- ing logged. THE ADMINISTRATIVE HARDWARE BACKDOOR Local authentication offers an example of a backdoor that administrators — and attackers — can use to gain access to a data centre. However, there are other examples that take the same approach and extend it deeper into the hardware. While the data centre is synonymous with virtualisation, the virtualised en- vironments and resources still need to run on physical hardware. Virtual disks are ultimately dependent on physi- cal disks, and the physical disks run in physical servers. Physical servers like- wise have their own management planes designed for lights-out and out-of-band management. The management planes have their own management protocols, power, processors, and memory, which allow admins to mount disks and re-im- age servers even when the main server is powered off. These actions are often performed via protocols such as the Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI). While many hardware vendors have their own branded versions of IPMI — such as Dell iDRAC or HPE Integrated Lights-Out (ILO) — they are all based on IPMI and perform the same functions. IPMI and its related protocols have well-documented security weaknesses and are often slow to receive updates and fixes. Additionally, there is current- ly a worrying 92,400 hosts’ IPMI inter- faces exposed to the internet. The com- bination of IPMI vulnerabilities and its immense power make it a major attack vector for bad actors that are trying to subvert the security of the data centre. ADVANCED ATTACKERS AIM LOW Unfortunately, hardware problems in the data centre don’t end with IPMI. Advanced attackers, including nation- states, increasingly target physical servers, routers, switches, and even firewalls. At a fundamental level the at- tackers use rootkits that sit below the level of the operating system, making them extremely difficult to detect using traditional methods. These techniques allow attackers to infect the very devices that are trusted and charged with protecting the net- work, and then use those devices to launch attacks deeper into the network. KEEPING AN EYE ON DATA The ultimate goal of most attacks is to steal data. Depending on their needs and skill level, attackers can use a variety of approaches to smuggle data out of the data centre. The most obvious approach involves moving data in bulk out of the data centre, either directly to the Inter- net or to an intermediate staging area in the campus network. Subtle attackers may attempt to stay low-and-slow by patiently exfiltrating data at rates that are less likely to be noticed or arouse suspicion. Efforts can also be made to obscure data exfiltration in hidden tunnels within normally al- lowed traffic, such as HTTP, HTTPS or DNS traffic. BLENDING PHYSICAL AND VIRTUAL CONTEXT Data centres are unique to their own or- ganisations and vary based on applica- tions and how users interact with them. The most common type of data cen- tre today is the private enterprise data centre. Attacks against these data cen- tres are typically extensions of attacks against the larger enterprise. For example, attackers may have initially compromised an employee lap- top via a phishing email or social engi- neering. Next, attackers typically look to establish persistence within the net- work by spreading from the initial vic- tim to other hosts or devices. To control the ongoing attack, attackers will plant backdoors or hidden tunnels to com- municate back and forth from inside the Matt Walmsley, head of EMEA Marketing - Vectra. // MARCH 2020 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / 35// WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM / // SPECIAL REPORT / DATA CENTRE SECURITY5G technology, with its speed 10 times faster than 4G LTE, can help businesses realise many long-held ambitions like real-time augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), distributed machine learn- ing within the Internet of Things (IoT), autonomous vehicles, smart cities, edge computing, etc. While 5G technology is imminent and likely to transform the pace of business operations, it will bring scalability challenges along with changes to networking architectures. IS YOUR NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE 5G-READY? Will 5G bring scalability challenges along with changes to networking architectures? CHALLENGES THAT THIS CHANGE WILL INTRODUCE Growth in technology leads to an in- crease in the number of transmitters and receivers required for effective connec- tivity, meaning a problem in any of these devices would not only affect connectivi- ty, but also all other dependent processes. SOFTWARE-DEFINED NETWORKING Software-defined networking (SDN) controllers, which manage flow control for improved network management and application performance, will kick in to control network traffic as network de- pendency will be more software oriented than hardware oriented. Many software-defined networks can track when and who makes changes, but businesses must carefully monitor who has access to the controller and keep ac- cess to it secure. Also, any configuration or programming error can result in the failure of SDN controllers, which will // TECHNOLOGY / 5G-READY NETWORK // WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /// 36 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / MARCH 2020 / Sivaramakrishnan M R, product consultant at Site24x7. lead to chaos in controlling traffic in net- works and sub networks. NETWORK FUNCTIONS VIRTUALISATION With network functions virtualisation (NFV), common functions like routing, load balancing, and securing firewalls will be replaced on traditional network devices with virtual machines perform- ing the same function. As NFV environments are more dy- namic than traditional ones, they require a complete overhaul of the existing pro- cesses, and both the traditional and vir- tual infrastructures should be managed simultaneously. Any down device, be it traditional or virtual, could inadvertently cripple the stability and functionality of a network. SOLUTIONS FOR BUSINESSES TO EMBRACE Major industries and business organisa- tions follow the simple policy of moni- toring everything in order to prevent any mishaps in their networks. To obtain a complete picture of what’s happening in a network, an effective monitoring solu- tion is indispensable. In addition to monitoring key parame- ters like status, performance metrics, and traffic, the monitoring tool should also be equipped with new capabilities that can cope with 5G technology. With 5G, wire- less wide area networks (WANs) could serve as a primary connectivity method, so measuring performance across these connections will become critical for en- terprises to ensure effective integration of 5G networks. The tool should be ca- pable of handling any bandwidth speed without compromising on performance. NEED FOR A NETWORK MAP The monitoring solution should also pro- vide a network map of basic information that displays an overview of the whole network at a glance. It should show the status of a net- work device and the actual traffic that flows through each device. Additionally, it should provide various performance metrics that will help track the overall performance of all devices in the net- work and should be quick enough to de- tect changes. TACKLING SOFTWARE-DEFINED NETWORKING The tool should have a tightly monitored security system so that access to the SDN controller is restricted. It should be able to efficiently back up the configuration and restore it when there is a failure in the SDN controllers. THE SOLUTION FOR NFV The monitoring tool should also ensure that the performance metrics of indi- vidual virtual network function (VNF) entities that relate to a service are asso- ciated correctly. For instance, the tool should be able to capture if a virtual domain name system (vDNS) is performing its functions cor- rectly, and measure the request and re- sponse time taken by the vDNS. NEED FOR AN ALERTING SYSTEM Above all, the solution should send alerts when devices go down, when config- ured thresholds are breached, and when the configuration of any device changes along with the details of the network ad- ministrator who made the change. Alerts should also be generated when the VNF association breaks, when there’s a breach in the SDN controllers’ security, or when the controllers fail. Last but not the least, the tool you choose should offer all these solutions in one place. To sum up, a cloud-based, scalable monitoring solution that provides access to data from any location is imperative for businesses to manage any growing network successfully. Many software- defined networks can track when and who makes changes, but businesses must carefully monitor who has access to the controller and keep access to it secure.” The monitoring tool should ensure that the performance metrics of individual virtual network function (VNF) entities that relate to a service are associated correctly.” // TECHNOLOGY / 5G-READY NETWORK // MARCH 2020 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / 37// WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /for the underlying cabling infrastruc- ture supporting them remain largely the same. While HDBaseT can run over Category 5e (to limited distances) and Category 6 copper cabling, the HDBa- seT Alliance and HDBaseT equipment vendors all recommend Category 6A twisted-pair unshielded cabling at a minimum to support the bandwidth re- quired for 4K signals and reach the full 100-meter distance. To ensure truly robust performance, however, many AV vendors recommend Category 6A or Category 7A shielded twisted-pair cable. This is because these shielded solutions provide much better resistance to alien crosstalk, which has a significant impact on HDBaseT signals wherever multiple cables are bundled together. Further, with remote power running to video displays at a higher level of 100W, shielded cabling offers much bet- ter heat dissipation and thermal stability. When it comes to network cabling media for SDVoE, Category 6A cabling is not just recommended; it’s a must. SDVoE requires a 10 Gb/s Ethernet network (10GBASE-T), which can only be supported by a minimum of Category 6A cable. And for the same reasons as HDBaseT, shielded cabling is recom- mended to eliminate crosstalk and provide superior heat dissipation and thermal stability for remote powering (90W PoE). From a connectivity point of view, video displays can be deployed much more rapidly if high-performance field- terminated plugs are used. These plugs are terminated at point of installation and eliminate the need for traditional outlets and patch cords. This At the very heart of every intelligent building lies an IP-based network powered by a high-performance cop- per cabling infrastructure that enables the convergence of multiple building services - and associated devices – onto one unified infrastructure. While in most smart buildings, the lighting, security, fire and safety systems, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) have long shifted to connecting via IP-based cabling, newer applications such as PoE-enabled computing are now emerging to take advantage of it too. But what about AV applications like video and projection displays, video con- ferencing and digital signage? Can they be considered a true IP system? The most popular AV protocol today is HDBaseT. It supports ultra-high- definition 4K video and audio along with 100 Mb/s Ethernet (100Base-T), USB, bidirectional control signals and 100W of power for distances up to 100 meters. Newer AV protocols include Software- Defined Video over Ethernet (SDVoE) which uses standards-based network ca- bling, Ethernet, TCP/IP and low-latency switching to transmit AV signals. SDVoE also eliminates the use of AV video matrix switches, which typically cost about 90 per cent more per port than a standard Ethernet switch. Most industry professionals today see SDVoE as the AV application that leverages network cabling and Internet Protocol (IP). Software-Defined Video over Ethernet supports uncompressed 4K video, audio, control and 1 Gb/s Eth- ernet (1000BASE-T). Regardless of whether an AV system is HDBaseT or SDVoE, the requirements Are you in the picture? Prem Rodrigues, director for the Middle East, Africa & India/SAARC at Siemon Prem Rodrigues of Siemon explains what is required from the IT network to embrace full AV convergence provides savings on material, time and labour, and it also offers a cleaner, more aesthetically pleasing look. FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS Shortly after the introduction of SDVoE, the HDBaseT Alliance introduced HDBaseT over IP to also leverage standards-based network infrastructures and 10 Gb/s Ethernet switches for cross- campus transmission, but it requires HDBaseT-to-HDBaseT-IP bridges and HDBaseT-IP switches. Besides, the market has seen the intro- duction of other AV over IP protocols, including the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) 2110 standard. It defines the uncompressed transmission of HD video over IP, JPEG- 2000 lightly compressed video over IP, and high-efficiency H.264 and H.265 video compression for video over IP. // INSIGHT / AV CONVERGENCE // WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /// 38 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / MARCH 2020 /However, the issue is complex and multifaceted – with many areas of ambiguity that could be stopping busi- nesses from acting. The very public backlash against Google, the fear of getting it wrong, and underlying issues & unfairness in soci- ety could make many hesitant to act. That said, much like climate change, if left unchecked, we risk only realising the impact of unethical and biased artificial intelligence when it has reached a tip- ping point beyond possible intervention. Therefore immediate action must be taken not just by companies, but by gov- ernments, regulators and individuals. Some immediate actions include: • More mainstream media attention given to the issue, creating greater transparency for the public • Consideration for, and implications of artificial intelligence issues to be introduced into the education system • Greater public education and aware- ness of the role individuals can play in safeguarding their own data • Creation of an environment where Artificial Intelligence is a game changer. It has the power to cut through mass amounts of data and be a real force for positive change. Already we’re witnessing artificial intelligence power initiatives to find cures for diseases, predict crop short- ages or improve business productivity. However, whilst there are positive asso- ciations, we cannot ignore the concerns. Biased data, deep fake videos, and electoral misuse are just some of the terms that are as (if not more so) pertinent when discussing artificial intelligence. Every industrial revolution brings societal concerns with it, and the age of data is no different. In the new decade and beyond, effective use of data and minimising bias with artificial intel- ligence will become reputational cur- rency for brands. Just as ethical behaviour improves perceptions of businesses, those paying the most attention to ethical data man- agement will be viewed more favourably. AI ETHICS: A BIG ISSUE FOR THE NEXT DECADE Patrick Smith, chief technology officer EMEA, Pure Storage. Will we ever know enough about artificial intelligence and its long-term effects to be able to make ethics in AI work effectively? Patrick Smith, chief technology of- ficer for EMEA at Pure Storage discusses companies are not afraid to try some- thing, and course correct if needed • Ethics panels that truly reflect a diverse society Will we ever know enough about artificial intelligence and its long-term effects to be able to make ethics in artificial intelligence work effectively? This issue is so complex and ever changing that it’s irresponsible to say we’ll ever have a definitive answer. Regardless, organisations and gov- ernments need to act now to do what they can to ensure the right motions are put into place. Will it be easy? No, but this isn’t just a policy change - it extends far beyond that. These conversations need to hap- pen now before the nightmare scenario comes true and we lose control of artificial intelligence. // VIEWPOINT / AI ETHICS // MARCH 2020 / NETWORK MIDDLE EAST / 39// WWW.NETWORKMIDDLEEAST.COM /Next >