See the Test section of the FOA Online Guide for much more detail. After fiber optic cables are installed, spliced and terminated, they must be tested. As the components like fiber, connectors, splices, LED or laser sources, detectors and receivers are being developed, testing confirms their performance specifications and helps. Selecting the right fiber optic connector in accordance with current IEC standards is crucial to the performance, reliability and future-proofing of a fiber optic infrastructure. Understanding commonly used connector families (LC, SC, FC, ST, MPO/MTP) supports compatibility with active. Visual inspection is the first step in testing fiber optic connectors. Inspectors should use a fiber optic microscope with a magnification of at least 200x to examine the connector.