DAC — Direct Attach Copper
Definition
A type of network cable with integrated transceivers (SFP+, SFP28, QSFP+, QSFP28) that uses copper conductors for short-distance interconnects.
Context & Usage
DAC cables are used for in-rack and adjacent-rack server-to-switch links. Reach: 1-7 meters (passive) or up to 15 meters (active). Lower power (0.5-1.5W per end vs 3-5W for optics), lower cost (~30-50% of optical equivalent), lower latency (~50ns vs 5μs). Vendor coding required for compatibility.
Examples
- Cisco SFP-H10GB-CU3M (3m 10 GbE DAC)
- Mellanox MCP1600-C003 (3m 100 GbE DAC)
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