July/August/September 2021 I 25
when troubleshooting, allowing them to easily identify
exactly what when wrong and where. For example,
by comparing the original trace acquired during testing
to the new trace, it can be easy to see if a new event
occurred due to poor cable management or if a connection
point increased in loss over time due to contamination or
other post-installation issue. For these reasons, data center
owners should pay close attention to the application used
to document the testing results.
In conclusion, as data centers evolve to support
digital transformation, MPO and polarity testing has
become essential, reflectance is now a vital consider-
ation, and cleaning and inspection are more important
than ever. The use of both an OLTS and OTDR now
perform a complementary rather than mutually exclusive
role in the fiber testing process. When these two testing
solutions work in tandem with integrated documented
results, the benefits and the industry's reputation
are greatly enhanced.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY: Mark Mullins is one of the founding
members of Fluke Networks since 1993. He has been involved
in all key areas of the business, including cable testing, network
troubleshooting, and analysis. He frequently presents on topics
including application and network analysis and basic trouble-
shooting, He holds a B.S. in computer science and an MBA
from the University of Washington. Mark can be reached
at mark.mullins@flukenetworks.com.
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