Operational notes
Operational notes.
Guides and insights from the field: optical fibre, networks, IT and AI applied to infrastructure. No jargon, no promises.
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SINFI 4.0 and network nodes: one boolean for cyber vulnerability, one for early warning
Network nodes in SINFI 4.0: amplifiers, monitoring, electricity users. For class ND_COM these are proposals still to be agreed, not obligations.
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Testing multifibre links: loss is not enough, end-face geometry decides
IEC 61300-3-30:2026: end-face geometry of rectangular ferrules, x116 and x132 regions, tables for 16, 24 and 32 fibres. What to put in the specification.
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B2ca vs Cca vs Dca vs Eca: which cable class do you actually need?
B2ca or Cca? Cca or Dca? What really separates the CPR cable classes, who sets the minimum class, and how to check it on the DoP.
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The closure is IP68. But does it actually seal, and after how many re-entries?
Fibre splice closures: what the IP68 rating does not say, which tests really qualify a closure under ITU-T L.201 and IEC 61753, and what to demand in the specification.
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SINFI 4.0: “optical fibre” is no longer enough for Italy’s network cadastre
SINFI specification 4.0, AgID determination 129/2026: transmission medium now mandatory to ITU-T, new subsea classes, status attribute. What to record on site.
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Can you run an OTDR on a live fibre without taking the customer down?
In-service testing: the 1650 nm maintenance band, the cut-off filter at the user end, and the ITU-T L.313 (ex L.66) requirements for your specification.
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Data centres in Italy: what to attach to the single authorisation application
The first MASE operational guidance on the PUCD: assessment fees paid by two separate transfers, planning conformity, grid works and when the clock restarts.
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Which technologies reach your address? Your provider now has to tell you
Article 13(1)(b) of decree-law 19/2026: technologies available at the address must be disclosed to consumers. AGCOM reads it as covering rival operators.
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Fibre connections up to forty metres: eight days’ notice by certified email and the site opens
Article 49, paragraphs 7-bis and 7-ter of the Italian code: ultra-broadband customer connections up to forty metres need one certified email, eight days ahead.
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New builds and renovations: fibre has been mandatory since 12 February 2026
Regulation (EU) 2024/1309, Article 10: new buildings and major renovations must be fibre-equipped. Who is bound, which exemptions apply, what to specify.
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Is it dangerous to look into an optical fibre? It depends on what is upstream
Laser safety on fibre networks: IEC 60825-1 and 60825-2, hazard levels at each accessible location, and the duties and penalties of Italy’s d.lgs. 81/2008.
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Which one is fibre 7 in this cable? It depends on the colour code you are using
Fibre and buffer tube colour codes: why no universal scheme exists, what IEC TR 63194 and TIA-598 say, and what to demand in the specification and the as-built.
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Why does a brand-new fibre link fail its test? Look at the connector end face
Contaminated connector end faces: what IEC 61300-3-35:2022 asks for, why loss and reflectance fail together, and what to demand in the specification.
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Duct installation: what is the maximum pulling tension on an optical fibre cable?
ITU-T L.100 sets the pulling rating at 1.5 times the weight of 1 km of cable, capped at 2700 N: bend diameters, lubricant and when blowing is better.
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Will the fibre you already have take the step up to 100G and 400G?
Chromatic dispersion and PMD on existing runs: what coherent transceivers change, what to measure before deciding, and what to put in the specification.
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Data centres of national strategic interest: the Government commissioner
Italy declares Equinix and Cavour Hyperscale Campus of national strategic interest: how the Government commissioner works and what to check before you bid.
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DWDM or CWDM: which ITU-T grid to link two company sites?
The ITU-T G.694.1 (DWDM) and G.694.2 (CWDM) grids: channels, spacing, and why the multiplexer's loss threshold is set by the specification, not the standard.
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OTDR dead zones: how to choose the pulse width and stop losing events
Event and attenuation dead zones, pulse width converted into metres, launch fibres of 1-2 km: how an OTDR is set up and what to write into the specification.
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Cybersecurity Act: high-risk vendors out of the network
The revised Cybersecurity Act aims to remove Huawei and ZTE from European networks within three years: the real GSMA figures and what to check in tenders.
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Eca, Cca, B2ca: what the CPR says, and what to put in the spec
EU Regulation 305/2011 (CPR): the seven fire-reaction classes for cables, real FIGRA and THR values, smoke, droplets, acidity, and what to put in the spec.
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How many dB does a PON splitter lose? The ITU-T G.671 thresholds
The ITU-T G.671 (11/2025) tables on insertion loss for PON splitters 1:8, 1:16, 1:32 and 1:64: the right values for optical budget and ODN specifications.
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How Do You Calculate the Optical Budget of a Fibre Link?
The optical budget decides whether a fibre link passes testing: the formula, attenuation values, connectors, splices and the right design margin.
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Data centres: a single permit, but the 90-day window will not wait
MASE publishes the first rules for the single data-centre permit: a ten-month procedure, but a peremptory 90-day window for the EIA dossier after the STMG.
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G.652 or G.657: Which Fibre to Specify for Tight Bends?
G.652.D and G.657 A1/A2/B2/B3: minimum bend radii, macrobend loss values in dB and what to specify for dense patch panels, racks and building entries.
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A Fibre Network Without As-Built Records Is an Asset No One Can Read Anymore.
As-built records, labelling and the fibre asset register: how network documentation cuts fault-repair times and sets the real value of the infrastructure.
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Digital Networks Act: Copper Switches Off Area by Area, Not on One Date
The Digital Networks Act sets 2035 as the threshold for switching off copper, not a single deadline: what changes today for specs and migrations in Italy.
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Fibre-Optic Tapping: the Risk Sits in the Splice, Not in the Cable.
Fibre tapping, bend couplers, unattended splice closures: how an optical fibre is actually tapped, and how to detect it before it becomes a problem.
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Fibre on the factory floor: why plant networks are not office networks
Electromagnetic immunity, redundant rings, hostile-environment installation: why fibre, not copper, is the standard for industrial networks and Industry 4.0.
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Micro-trenching and mini-trenching: fast fibre laying still follows strict rules.
Micro-trenching and mini-trenching for fibre optics: what the 2013 excavation decree says, which permits are required, and how road reinstatement works.
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Heading to 800G: Projects Fail on the Cabling, Not the Technology
In 2026 data centres move from 400G to 800G: OM4, OM5, 8, 12 or 16-fibre MPO. Speed is set by the transceivers, but the project is made by the fibre.
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Severed Submarine Cables: Network Resilience Is Physical
Anchors severing cables in the Baltic and the Red Sea, and the EU's plan for cable security: why real redundancy is engineered into trenches, not routers.
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EN 50600: the four availability classes for a data centre, in practice
What the EN 50600 series actually requires: availability classes 1 to 4, redundant pathways, cabling to EN 50173/50174, and what to put in the specification.
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GPON or XGS-PON: Symmetrical 10-Gigabit Fibre Has Arrived — Is Your Site Ready?
XGS-PON delivers symmetrical 10 Gbit/s on the same fibre: what changes compared with GPON, when it is worth it, and why the bottleneck is internal cabling.
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Italy's data centre boom: €25 billion, and every megawatt means fibre
Record investment in Italian data centres: Milan heading towards 1 GW, double-digit growth driven by AI. What changes for those who build, cable and connect.
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Italy 1 Gigabit Plan: Deadline Passed, What Changes for Businesses
June 2026 was the PNRR ultra-broadband deadline: 700,000 addresses deferred to 2030, new tenders and mixed technologies. What to do if you are out.
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OTDR Certification: How to Actually Read a Test Report
Tier 1 and tier 2, dead zones, bidirectional measurement: how to read an OTDR report, spot a poorly executed test, and what to ask whoever hands it to you.
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Fusion or mechanical splicing: what to put in the spec
Fusion versus mechanical splicing: typical loss, reflectance and lifespan compared, when mechanical makes sense, and which values to demand in the spec.
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