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Nowadays, most vendors understand that optical transceiver is largely standardized and interchangeable. But, when user try to use a third-party GLC-SX-MMD SFP transceiver plugs into Cisco Catalyst switches that might results in an UNSUPPORTED_TRANSCEIVER error. This paper is goint to discuss the way to handle these errors.
Receive an Unsupported Transceiver Error
According to the message you get, there are some methods to address unsupported transceiver errors. For instance, owners of Cisco Catalyst switches are finding that they are not "supposed to" use any SFPs except those produced by Cisco. If you receive this error, "3750e-sw1(config)#service unsupported-transceiver [1]", you should think about whether the error was a result of customer installation or if it was a defective product. If the product is defective, consider contacting someone who can help with the warranty.
Most error messages arise once the device is not certified. If the third-party device has not been sourced from a channel partner, other issues may arise also. Solving the router issue is not really easy. It often requires a transceiver of the same manufacturer as the router to deal with the issue. This is often the best way to resolve the issue. Although, many designers have used "hack codes" to force the devices to work.
Making Catalysts GLC-SX-MMD Optics Compatible
There are just a couple commands you need to enter in the IOS command line interface. First:
# service unsupported-transceiver
This undocumented command puts up an error message which says, in brief, you'll get no support from Cisco in what you're doing and are risking voiding your warranty if the SFP breaks the Catalyst.
# no errdisable detect cause gbic-invalid
And this command disables the port-shutdown upon insertion of an unsupported transceiver. At this point, your Catalyst should happily accept any good quality SFP you plug into it without giving any more back talk.
Benefits of Third-Party Transceiver Optics
The primary benefit is the cost savings. Generally speaking, the cost of an original brand SFP module is more costly than a 3rd party one. Take Cisco 1000BASE LX LH SFP transceiver module (GLC-LH-SMD) for example, the list price of Cisco is around $ 500.00, however, you can simply find a 3rd party SFP modules which takes a price reduction at up to 90% off. Because transceiver costs are a significant part of the total system cost, it's important for designers to minimize these costs. With the significant savings, designers can reinvest and make their designs better.
Avoiding Unsupported Errors By Choosing Reliable SFP Manufacturers
Keep in mind that it is very necessary to use quality assurance SFP modules. Actually, there are some high quality SFP modules OEM vendors, such as Fiberstore, Inc. You would not worry about the compatibility of the usage. Because there is a perfect system from the production to shipment. All the products are tested before they shipped and ensure the 100% compatible and high quality.