Configurable communication device that operates with asymmetric and symmetric data rates

A communication system, comprising:

• a first communication device coupled to a cable, the first communication device having a first Ethernet interface device configured to receive in a first direction via the cable and transmit in a second direction via the cable at different data rates;
• and
• a second communication device coupled to the cable, the second communication device having a second Ethernet interface device configured to selectively operate according to a plurality of modes, including i) an asymmetric first mode in which the Ethernet interface transmits in the first direction via the cable and receives in the second direction via the cable at different data rates, and ii) a symmetric second mode in which the Ethernet interface transmits in the first direction via the cable and receives in the second direction via the cable at a same data rate, wherein the second Ethernet interface device operates according to the asymmetric second mode when communicating with the first communication device via the cable, the second Ethernet interface device including:
• a first Physical Coding Sublayer (PCS) circuit configured to perform PCS operations specified by a communication protocol corresponding to transmitting in the first direction at a first data rate, including encoding a first bit stream to generate a first output data stream for transmission at the first data rate,
• a framing and mapping (framing/mapping) circuit configured to encode the first bit stream to generate a second output data stream for transmission at a second data rate that is different than the first data rate, and
• a second PCS circuit configured to perform PCS operations specified by the communication protocol corresponding to receiving in the second direction at the first data rate, including decoding an input data stream at the first data rate;
• wherein the second Ethernet interface device is configured to i) generate a transmit signal using the first output data stream when operating in the symmetric first mode, and ii) generate the transmit signal using the second output data stream when operating in the asymmetric second mode.

A method for operating a communication device that includes an Ethernet interface device having i) a first Physical Coding Sublayer (PCS) circuit configured to perform PCS operations specified by a communication protocol corresponding to transmitting via a cable in a first direction at a first data rate, including encoding a first bit stream to generate a first output data stream for transmission at the first data rate, and ii) a framing and mapping (framing/mapping) circuit configured to encode the first bit stream to generate a second output data stream for transmission at a second data rate that is different than the first data rate, the method comprising:

• determining, at the communication device, a selected mode of operation from amongst multiple modes of operation according to which the Ethernet interface device is configured to operate, the multiple modes of operation including i) an asymmetric first mode in which the Ethernet interface transmits in the first direction via the cable and receives from the link partner in a second direction via the cable at different data rates, and ii) a symmetric second mode in which the Ethernet interface transmits to the link partner in the first direction via the cable and receives from the link partner in the second direction via the cable at a same data rate;
• selecting, by the Ethernet interface device and according to the selected mode of operation, a selected data stream, from amongst multiple data streams, for transmission via the cable in the first direction, the multiple data streams including:
• the first output data stream corresponding to an output of the first PCS circuit, and
• the second output data stream corresponding to an output of the framing/mapping circuit;
• and
• receiving, by the Ethernet interface device, a receive signal via the cable in the second direction.