Description of Business and Basis of Presentation	12 Months Ended
May 03, 2015
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Description of Business and Basis of Presentation	Description of Business and Basis of Presentation Description of Business Finisar Corporation (the “Company”) was incorporated in California in April 1987 and reincorporated in Delaware in November 1999. The Company is a leading provider of optical subsystems and components that are used in data-communication and telecommunication applications. The Company's optical subsystems consist primarily of transmitters, receivers, transceivers, transponders and active optical cables which provide the fundamental optical-electrical or optoelectronic, interface for interconnecting the electronic equipment used in building these networks, including the switches, routers and servers used in wireline networks as well as the antennas and base stations for wireless networks. These products rely on the use of digital and analog RF semiconductor lasers in conjunction with integrated circuits and novel optoelectronic packaging to provide a cost-effective means for transmitting and receiving digital signals over fiber optic cable at speeds ranging from less than 1 gigabit per second, or Gbps, to more than 100 Gbps, over distances of less than 10 meters to more than 2,000 kilometers, using a wide range of network protocols and physical configurations. The Company supplies optical transceivers and transponders that allow point-to-point communications on a fiber using a single specified wavelength or, bundled with multiplexing technologies, can be used to supply multi-terabit per second, or Tbps, bandwidth over several wavelengths on the same fiber. The Company also provides products known as wavelength selective switches, or WSS. In long-haul and metro networks, each fiber may carry 50 to more than100 different high-speed optical channels, each with its own specific optical wavelength. WSS are switches that are used to dynamically switch network traffic from one optical fiber to multiple other fibers without first converting the optical signal to an electronic signal. The wavelength selective feature means that WSS enable any wavelength or combination of wavelengths to be switched from the input fiber to the output fibers. WSS products are sometimes combined with other components and sold as linecards that plug into a system chassis referred to as a reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexer, or ROADM. The Company's line of optical components consists primarily of packaged lasers and photodetectors for data communication and telecommunication applications. Demand for the Company's products is largely driven by the continually growing need for additional network bandwidth created by the ongoing proliferation of data and video traffic driven by video downloads, Internet protocol TV, social networking, on-line gaming, file sharing, enterprise IP/Internet traffic, cloud computing, and data center virtualization that must be handled by both wireline and wireless networks. Mobile traffic is increasing as a result of proliferation of smartphones, tablet computers, and other mobile devices. The Company's manufacturing operations are vertically integrated and include internal production, assembly and test capabilities for the Company's optical subsystem products, as well as key components used in those subsystems. The Company produces many of the key components used in making its products including lasers, photodetectors and integrated circuits, or ICs, designed by its internal IC engineering teams. The Company also has internal assembly and test capabilities that make use of internally designed equipment for the automated testing of the optical subsystems and components. The Company sells its products primarily to manufacturers of storage systems, networking equipment and telecommunication equipment such as Alcatel-Lucent, Brocade, Ciena, Cisco Systems, Coriant, EMC, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard Company, Huawei, IBM, Juniper, Nokia and QLogic, as well as their contract manufacturers. These customers in turn sell their systems to businesses and to wireline and wireless telecommunication service providers and cable TV operators, collectively referred to as carriers. Basis of Presentation The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Finisar Corporation and its controlled subsidiaries (collectively “Finisar” or the “Company”). Non-controlling interest represents the minority shareholders' proportionate share of the net assets and results of operations of the Company's majority-owned subsidiary, Finisar Korea, prior to its sale in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Fiscal Periods On March 6, 2013, the Company's Board of Directors determined to change the fiscal year of the Company from a year ending on April 30 of each year to a year ending on the Sunday closest to the last day of April in each year. This change was effective with the fiscal year ended April 28, 2013. Fiscal 2015 had 53 weeks, fiscal 2014 had 52 weeks, and fiscal 2016 will have 52 weeks. Prior to this change, the Company maintained its financial records on the basis of a fiscal year ending on April 30, with fiscal quarters ending on the Sunday closest to the end of the period (thirteen-week periods). The first three quarters of fiscal 2015 ended on July 27, 2014, October 26, 2014 and January 25, 2015, respectively. The first three quarters of fiscal 2014 ended on July 28, 2013, October 27, 2013 and January 26, 2014, respectively. The first three quarters of fiscal 2013 ended on July 29, 2012, October 28, 2012 and January 27, 2013, respectively. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could differ from these estimates.

Description of Business and Basis of Presentation

Description of Business

Finisar Corporation (the “Company”) was incorporated in California in April 1987 and reincorporated in Delaware in November 1999. The Company is a leading provider of optical subsystems and components that are used in data-communication and telecommunication applications. The Company's optical subsystems consist primarily of transmitters, receivers, transceivers, transponders and active optical cables which provide the fundamental optical-electrical or optoelectronic, interface for interconnecting the electronic equipment used in building these networks, including the switches, routers and servers used in wireline networks as well as the antennas and base stations for wireless networks. These products rely on the use of digital and analog RF semiconductor lasers in conjunction with integrated circuits and novel optoelectronic packaging to provide a cost-effective means for transmitting and receiving digital signals over fiber optic cable at speeds ranging from less than 1 gigabit per second, or Gbps, to more than 100 Gbps, over distances of less than 10 meters to more than 2,000 kilometers, using a wide range of network protocols and physical configurations. The Company supplies optical transceivers and transponders that allow point-to-point communications on a fiber using a single specified wavelength or, bundled with multiplexing technologies, can be used to supply multi-terabit per second, or Tbps, bandwidth over several wavelengths on the same fiber. The Company also provides products known as wavelength selective switches, or WSS. In long-haul and metro networks, each fiber may carry 50 to more than100 different high-speed optical channels, each with its own specific optical wavelength. WSS are switches that are used to dynamically switch network traffic from one optical fiber to multiple other fibers without first converting the optical signal to an electronic signal. The wavelength selective feature means that WSS enable any wavelength or combination of wavelengths to be switched from the input fiber to the output fibers. WSS products are sometimes combined with other components and sold as linecards that plug into a system chassis referred to as a reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexer, or ROADM. The Company's line of optical components consists primarily of packaged lasers and photodetectors for data communication and telecommunication applications. Demand for the Company's products is largely driven by the continually growing need for additional network bandwidth created by the ongoing proliferation of data and video traffic driven by video downloads, Internet protocol TV, social networking, on-line gaming, file sharing, enterprise IP/Internet traffic, cloud computing, and data center virtualization that must be handled by both wireline and wireless networks. Mobile traffic is increasing as a result of proliferation of smartphones, tablet computers, and other mobile devices.

The Company's manufacturing operations are vertically integrated and include internal production, assembly and test capabilities for the Company's optical subsystem products, as well as key components used in those subsystems. The Company produces many of the key components used in making its products including lasers, photodetectors and integrated circuits, or ICs, designed by its internal IC engineering teams. The Company also has internal assembly and test capabilities that make use of internally designed equipment for the automated testing of the optical subsystems and components.

The Company sells its products primarily to manufacturers of storage systems, networking equipment and telecommunication equipment such as Alcatel-Lucent, Brocade, Ciena, Cisco Systems, Coriant, EMC, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard Company, Huawei, IBM, Juniper, Nokia and QLogic, as well as their contract manufacturers. These customers in turn sell their systems to businesses and to wireline and wireless telecommunication service providers and cable TV operators, collectively referred to as carriers.

Basis of Presentation

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Finisar Corporation and its controlled subsidiaries (collectively “Finisar” or the “Company”). Non-controlling interest represents the minority shareholders' proportionate share of the net assets and results of operations of the Company's majority-owned subsidiary, Finisar Korea, prior to its sale in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Fiscal Periods

On March 6, 2013, the Company's Board of Directors determined to change the fiscal year of the Company from a year ending on April 30 of each year to a year ending on the Sunday closest to the last day of April in each year. This change was effective with the fiscal year ended April 28, 2013. Fiscal 2015 had 53 weeks, fiscal 2014 had 52 weeks, and fiscal 2016 will have 52 weeks. Prior to this change, the Company maintained its financial records on the basis of a fiscal year ending on April 30, with fiscal quarters ending on the Sunday closest to the end of the period (thirteen-week periods). The first three quarters of fiscal 2015 ended on July 27, 2014, October 26, 2014 and January 25, 2015, respectively. The first three quarters of fiscal 2014 ended on July 28, 2013, October 27, 2013 and January 26, 2014, respectively. The first three quarters of fiscal 2013 ended on July 29, 2012, October 28, 2012 and January 27, 2013, respectively.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could differ from these estimates.