Optovalley

Media converters work on the physical layer of the network. They receive data signals from one media and convert them to another device. They make one cable "look" like another cable without changing the nature of the network.

In its simplest form, a media converter is a small device with two media-dependent interfaces and a power supply. It can be installed almost anywhere in a network. The style of connector depends on the selection of media to be converted by the unit. In a Fast Ethernet environment, a 100Base-TX to 100Base-FX Media Converter connects a 100Base-TX twisted-pair device to a 100Base-FX compliant single or multimode fiber port that has a fiber-optic connector. In a Gigabit Ethernet, a media converter commonly is deployed to convert multimode to single-mode fiber or vice versa.