Expanding a PXIe-1095

[CptHornblower]

I have a PXIe-1095 with a PXIe-8881 embedded controller. However, I have 7 more modules than can actually fit in the 1095. Is it possible to utilize the 8881 to externally control an additional chassis like a PXIe-1092?

[Captain_K · Accepted solution]

Sure can! You can utilize the Thunderbolt ports on the front of the 8881 to connect to another chassis that has a PXIe-8301 installed. The PXIe-8301 is a Thunderbolt Remote Controller module that would fit into Slot 1 of the whatever downstream chassis you choose. Then you just connect the two with a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 cable.

[CptHornblower]

Thank you.

[santo_13]

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@Captain_K wrote:

Sure can! You can utilize the Thunderbolt ports on the front of the 8881 to connect to another chassis that has a PXIe-8301 installed. The PXIe-8301 is a Thunderbolt Remote Controller module that would fit into Slot 1 of the whatever downstream chassis you choose. Then you just connect the two with a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 cable.

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This is a creative new style of expansion, whereas the traditional way is to daisy-chain the chassis through  PXIe-8394 and  PXIe-8398.

This Thunderbolt method is cheaper because you need to buy only one 8301 card.

Can you provide any additional comments on the pros and cons of these two methods?

[Captain_K]

Sure! Going with a more traditional method of using the PXIe-8394 for chassis expansion does have a couple benefits.

1. Higher bandwidth from downstream connections.
   1. The 8301 tops out at just under 2GB/s. If you need more data throughput from your downstream chassis, then going with the 8394/8398 connection might be better. With The 8394 can connect to the chassis backplane with an 8GB/s connection. Granted, this 8GB/s may be shared with other modules depending on slot placement and what else in installed in the upstream chassis.
2. Further expansion
   1. If you only need one additional chassis, then the Thunderbolt connection may be the way to go, but if you need more than that, then it's probably better to go with the 8394.
   2. You should only really connect one chassis per Thunderbolt port on the 8881. The resources allocated to Thunderbolt ports aren't really enough to create large PXIe setups. So if you need 3 or more chassis, it's pretty much guaranteed that you'll need the 8394/8398 setup.

Using the Thunderbolt connection is cheaper, though, and does free up a PXIe slot in the upstream chassis that would have otherwise been used from the 8394.

Those are the main points that I can quickly think of off the top of my head.