GigaBlox SFP does not work

BotBlox Hardware
1

Hello,

It seems that the SFP interface on the GigaBlox SFP board we purchased is not working as expected.

My test setup is:

  • 2 Windows PCs
  • 1 GigaBlox SFP
  • 1 ONVIF 5-port switch with SFP uplink (ONV1110S-SLX-S4-A)

The connection is:

PC → Switch → SFP → 1 m fiber cable → SFP → GigaBlox SFP → PC

With this configuration, I cannot establish communication between the two PCs.

If I connect both PCs to the GigaBlox using standard Ethernet ports only, communication works correctly. The issue only appears when using the optical fiber connection.

The SFP modules have been tested successfully with other switches, so they appear to be functional. The modules are:

  • 1000Base-BX BiDi SFP 1310/1550 nm, 10 km, DOM
  • 1000Base-BX BiDi SFP 1550/1310 nm, 10 km, DOM

One additional observation is that the SFP LED on the GigaBlox board turns on when the sfp is connected. However, the LINK LED on the ONVIF switch never turns on, indicating that the Ethernet link is not being established.

I have not found anything in the documentation that could explain why the fiber link does not come up.

Are there any specific requirements, compatibility limitations, supported SFP modules, or diagnostic procedures that I should check?

Any help would be appreciated.

Best regards,

2

Thanks for the additional details.

I checked the ONV documentation for this product family. I initially thought this was a mismatch between the ONV SFP port not being fixed at 1000BASE-X (GigaBlox SFP only works with devices that are fixed at 1000BASE-X). The ONV fiber port does appear to be a Gigabit/1000BASE-X interface, so this is unlikely to be a 100M-versus-1G speed mismatch. The ONV unit is also listed as unmanaged / plug-and-play, so there may not be any way to change configurations.

One detail that may be important is the exact ONV model variant. You mentioned ONV1110S-SLX-S4-A. In the ONV documentation, the “S” and “A/B” variants appear to refer to single-fiber optical versions, with the A version listed as 1310 nm and the B version listed as 1550 nm. This may be different from the standard ONV1110-SLX-S4 dual-fiber variant.

Could you please confirm whether the ONV unit has a removable SFP module installed, or whether the optical interface is fixed/integrated into the ONV unit? A photo of the ONV front panel and the SFP/optical module labels would be very helpful.

If the ONV unit is the fixed/single-fiber A-side version, then the GigaBlox-side BiDi SFP must be the complementary wavelength side. In that case, the fact that the two standalone SFP modules work with other switches may not fully prove compatibility with the ONV unit, because the ONV optical interface may not be using the same removable SFP module pair.

Please also confirm the power supply being used for the GigaBlox SFP. The GigaBlox SFP should be powered from a 5–60 V DC supply, and the supply should be capable of providing around 3–4 W of output power. If the supply is marginal, the board may power up and detect the SFP module, but the SFP link may not operate reliably.

Could you send:

  1. A photo of the ONV front panel / optical port.

  2. The exact label or part number on the ONV unit.

  3. The exact labels or part numbers on both SFP modules.

  4. The voltage and current rating of the GigaBlox power supply.

  5. Could you also test the connection with..
    a) Replace the ONV switch with a GigaBlox SFP (use two GigaBlox SFP switches)
    b) Replace the GigaBlox SFP switch with an ONV switch (use two ONV switches).

With those details we should be able to determine whether this is a wavelength-side mismatch, an ONV variant issue, or a GigaBlox-side SFP compatibility problem.

Best regards,
Josh

3

Hello Josh,

Thank you for your reply.

I have attached a photo showing the ONV switch connected to the GigaBlox SFP board during the test.

Additional details:

  • The ONV unit uses a standard removable SFP module (not an integrated optical interface).

  • The GigaBlox SFP board is powered from a regulated laboratory power supply at 24 VDC.

  • During the test, the measured current consumption was approximately 50 mA at 24 V (about 1.2 W).

The reason I believe the ONV switch and the optical link are working correctly is that the same ONV switch, the same fiber cable, and the same pair of BX transceivers successfully establish a link when tested with other equipment.

However, when connected to the GigaBlox SFP board, the ONV switch never indicates link on its SFP port.

In the attached photo, the GigaBlox board is powered and its LEDs are illuminated, suggesting that the SFP module is detected and powered. Nevertheless, the ONV switch still does not report an Ethernet link on the SFP port.

Based on these observations, it appears that:

  • The fiber cable is functional.

  • The ONV SFP port is functional.

  • The pair of BX transceivers is functional.

  • The issue seems to occur specifically when the GigaBlox SFP board is connected to the link.

Unfortunately, I cannot perform a GigaBlox-to-GigaBlox test because I currently only have a single GigaBlox SFP unit available. We purchased this unit specifically to evaluate the product and determine whether it can be integrated into our systems.

Thank you for your help.

Best regards,

IMG20260611104135
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4

For reference, these are the two SFP modules used during all tests:

  • 1000Base-BX BiDi SFP TX1550/RX1310, 10 km

  • 1000Base-BX BiDi SFP TX1310/RX1550, 10 km

These modules have been tested successfully with other equipment and are able to establish a working optical link.

I am attaching a photo showing the labels of both transceivers.

Best regards,

IMG20260610111422
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