<s>
A	O
fiber	B-Protocol
media	I-Protocol
converter	I-Protocol
is	O
a	O
simple	O
networking	B-Architecture
device	O
that	O
makes	O
it	O
possible	O
to	O
connect	O
two	O
dissimilar	O
media	O
types	O
such	O
as	O
twisted	O
pair	O
with	O
fiber	B-Architecture
optic	I-Architecture
cabling	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fiber	B-Protocol
media	I-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
support	O
many	O
different	O
data	O
communication	O
protocols	O
including	O
Ethernet	O
,	O
Fast	B-Protocol
Ethernet	I-Protocol
,	O
Gigabit	O
Ethernet	O
,	O
T1/E1/J1	O
,	O
DS3/E3	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
multiple	O
cabling	O
types	O
such	O
as	O
coax	O
,	O
twisted	O
pair	O
,	O
multi-mode	B-Device
and	O
single-mode	B-Device
fiber	I-Device
optics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Media	B-Protocol
converter	I-Protocol
types	O
range	O
from	O
small	O
standalone	O
devices	O
and	O
PC	B-Protocol
card	I-Protocol
converters	O
to	O
high	O
port-density	O
chassis	O
systems	O
that	O
offer	O
many	O
advanced	O
features	O
for	O
network	O
management	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
some	O
devices	O
,	O
Simple	B-Protocol
Network	I-Protocol
Management	I-Protocol
Protocol	I-Protocol
(	O
SNMP	B-Protocol
)	O
enables	O
proactive	O
management	O
of	O
link	O
status	O
,	O
monitoring	O
chassis	O
environmental	O
statistics	O
and	O
sending	O
traps	B-Application
to	O
network	O
managers	O
in	O
the	O
event	O
of	O
a	O
fiber	O
break	O
or	O
even	O
link	O
loss	O
on	O
the	O
copper	O
port	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fiber	B-Protocol
media	I-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
can	O
connect	O
different	O
local	B-General_Concept
area	I-General_Concept
network	I-General_Concept
(	O
LAN	B-General_Concept
)	O
media	O
,	O
modifying	O
duplex	O
and	O
speed	O
settings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Switching	B-Protocol
media	B-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
can	O
connect	O
different	O
speed	O
network	O
segments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
existing	O
half-duplex	O
hubs	O
can	O
be	O
connected	O
to	O
100BASE-TX	B-Protocol
Fast	B-Protocol
Ethernet	I-Protocol
network	O
segments	O
over	O
100BASE-FX	O
fiber	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
expanding	O
the	O
reach	O
of	O
the	O
LAN	B-General_Concept
to	O
span	O
multiple	O
locations	O
,	O
media	B-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
are	O
useful	O
in	O
connecting	O
multiple	O
LANs	B-General_Concept
to	O
form	O
one	O
large	O
campus	B-General_Concept
area	I-General_Concept
network	I-General_Concept
that	O
spans	O
over	O
a	O
limited	O
geographic	O
area	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
premises	O
networks	O
are	O
primarily	O
copper-based	O
,	O
media	B-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
can	O
extend	O
the	O
reach	O
of	O
the	O
LAN	B-General_Concept
over	O
single-mode	B-Device
fiber	I-Device
up	O
to	O
160	O
kilometers	O
with	O
1550nm	O
optics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Wavelength-division	B-Architecture
multiplexing	I-Architecture
(	O
WDM	O
)	O
technology	O
in	O
the	O
LAN	B-General_Concept
is	O
especially	O
beneficial	O
in	O
situations	O
where	O
fiber	O
is	O
in	O
limited	O
supply	O
or	O
expensive	O
to	O
provision	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
well	O
as	O
conventional	O
dual	O
strand	O
fiber	O
converters	O
,	O
with	O
separate	O
receive	O
and	O
transmit	O
ports	O
,	O
there	O
are	O
also	O
single	O
strand	O
fiber	O
converters	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
extend	O
full-duplex	O
data	O
transmission	O
up	O
to	O
120	O
kilometers	O
over	O
one	O
optical	B-Architecture
fiber	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
fiber	B-Protocol
media	I-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
pose	O
as	O
an	O
alternative	O
solution	O
for	O
switches	O
not	O
supporting	O
fiber	O
;	O
ordinary	O
switches	O
can	O
use	O
fiber	B-Protocol
media	I-Protocol
converters	I-Protocol
to	O
connect	O
to	O
a	O
fiber	O
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Simple	O
converters	O
–	O
when	O
the	O
speed	O
and	O
duplex	O
settings	O
on	O
both	O
media	O
is	O
identical	O
–	O
consist	O
of	O
two	O
pairs	O
of	O
transmitters/receivers	O
,	O
each	O
with	O
their	O
medium-dependent	B-Protocol
interfaces	I-Protocol
(	O
when	O
no	O
data	O
recoding	O
is	O
necessary	O
)	O
or	O
their	O
media-independent	B-Protocol
interfaces	I-Protocol
joined	O
together	O
back-to-back	O
in	O
a	O
dual-simplex	O
fashion	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Switching	B-Protocol
converters	O
contain	O
a	O
network	B-Protocol
bridge	I-Protocol
and	O
can	O
connect	O
two	O
half-duplex	O
segments	O
without	O
joining	O
their	O
collision	B-Protocol
domains	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Managed	O
converters	O
are	O
usually	O
of	O
the	O
switching	B-Protocol
kind	O
and	O
can	O
additionally	O
be	O
managed	O
by	O
a	O
network	O
connection	O
or	O
a	O
local	O
console	O
.	O
</s>
