Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!ames!lll-winken!tekbspa!optilink!brad
From: brad@optilink.UUCP (Brad Yearwood)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.lans
Subject: Ethernet across the street
Message-ID: <2335@optilink.UUCP>
Date: 14 Sep 89 02:34:24 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: Optilink Corporation, Petaluma, CA
Lines: 28


In the near future, we will be expanding operations into a second building
located about 300 meters away, across a city street from our present
location.  Both properties would be leased from the same owner.

We would like to extend our Ethernet between the two buildings.  I
foresee much of the traffic being NFS, which seems to argue for a
10Mbit/sec facility rather than a bridge to something slower, like T1.

I can see several ways of doing this and would appreciate hearing of anybody's
experience with the advantages and problems of each, and of any recommendations
(or condemnations) of equipment and service suppliers:

  1.  Run fiber optic cable under the street.  Does anybody know
      what sort of permissions and processes would be necessary to
      do this, or is it something that only Pacific Bell can do?

  2.  Use an air path laser system.  This area gets fairly dense fog from
      maybe 10PM-10AM several weeks of the year - is this likely to disable
      the link?

  3.  Use a microwave system.  Would dense fog disable microwave (maybe at
      23GHz)?  What are the licensing issues?

Brad Yearwood
Optilink Corp.   {pyramid, tekbspa, pixar}!optilink!brad
Petaluma, CA
(707) 795-9444