Fibre Channel is a gigabit-speed network technology primarily used for storage networking. Fibre Channel is standardized in the T11 Technical Committee of the InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards (INCITS), an American National Standards Institute (ANSI)–accredited standards committee. It started for use primarily in the supercomputer field, but has become the standard connection type for storage area networks (SAN) in enterprise storage. Despite common connotations of its name, Fibre Channel signaling can run on both twisted pair copper wire and fiber-optic cables. In computing, a storage area network (SAN) is an architecture to attach remote computer storage devices such as disk arrays, tape libraries and optical jukeboxes to servers in such a way that, to the operating system, the devices appear as locally attached devices. ... // The International Committee for Information Technology Standards, or INCITS (pronounced insights [1]), is an ANSI-accredited forum of IT developers. ... INCITS stands for INterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards ... The American National Standards Institute or ANSI (pronounced an-see) is a nonprofit organization that oversees the development of standards for products, services, processes and systems in the United States. ... A supercomputer is a computer that led the world (or was close to doing so) in terms of processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation, at the time of its introduction. ... In computing, a storage area network (SAN) is an architecture to attach remote computer storage devices such as disk array controllers, tape libraries and CD arrays to servers in such a way that to the operating system the devices appear as locally attached devices. ... Enterprise storage is the field of information technology focused on the storage, protection, and retrieval of data in large-scale environments. ... 25 Pair Color Code Chart 10BASE-T UTP Cable Twisted pair cabling is a common form of wiring in which two conductors are wound around each other for the purposes of cancelling out electromagnetic interference known as crosstalk. ... For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... A wire is a single, usually cylindrical, elongated strand of drawn metal. ... Fiber-optic communication is a method of transmitting information from one place to another by sending light through an optical fiber. ... 6 or 15cm outside diameter, oil-cooled cables, traversing the Grand Coulee Dam throughout. ...

Fibre Channel Protocol (FCP) is the interface protocol of SCSI on the Fibre Channel. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

History

Fibre Channel started in 1988, with ANSI standard approval in 1994, as a way to simplify the HIPPI system then in use for similar roles. HIPPI used a massive 50-pair cable with bulky connectors, and had limited cable lengths. Fibre Channel was primarily concerned with simplifying the connections and increasing distances, as opposed to increasing speeds. Later, designers added the goals of connecting SCSI disk storage, providing higher speeds and far greater numbers of connected devices. HIPPI (HIgh Performance Parallel Interface) is a computer bus for the attachment of high speed storage devices to supercomputers. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

It also added support for any number of "upper layer" protocols, including SCSI, ATM, and IP, with SCSI being the predominant usage. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is a cell relay, packet switching network and data link layer protocol which encodes data traffic into small (53 bytes; 48 bytes of data and 5 bytes of header information) fixed-sized cells. ... The Internet Protocol (IP) is a data-oriented protocol used for communicating data across a packet-switched internetwork. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Fibre Channel topologies

There are three major Fibre Channel topologies, describing how a number of ports are connected together. A port in Fibre Channel terminology is any entity that actively communicates over the network, not necessarily a hardware port. Port is usually implemented in a device such as disk storage, an HBA on server or a Fibre Channel switch. It has been suggested that TCP and UDP port be merged into this article or section. ... Ports on the Apple iBook (Early 2003) In computer hardware, a port serves as an interface between the computer and other computers or devices. ... In general terms, a Host Bus Adapter (HBA) is any adapter that allows a computer bus to attach to another bus or channel. ... A Fibre Channel switch is a computer storage device that allows the creation of a Fibre Channel fabric. ...

• Point-to-Point (FC-P2P). Two devices are connected back to back. This is the simplest topology, with limited connectivity.

• Arbitrated loop (FC-AL). In this design, all devices are in a loop or ring, similar to token ring networking. Adding or removing a device from the loop causes all activity on the loop to be interrupted. The failure of one device causes a break in the ring. Fibre Channel hubs exist to connect multiple devices together and may bypass failed ports. A loop may also be made by cabling each port to the next in a ring.
  • A minimal loop containing only two ports, while appearing to be similar to FC-P2P, differs considerably in terms of the protocol.
• Switched fabric (FC-SW). All devices or loops of devices are connected to Fibre Channel switches, similar conceptually to modern Ethernet implementations. The switches manage the state of the fabric, providing optimized interconnections.

Point-To-Point is a Fibre Channel topology where two devices are directly connected to each other. ... Arbitrated loop, also known as FC-AL, is a Fibre Channel topology that requires no fibre channel switches. ... Token-Ring local area network (LAN) technology was developed and promoted by IBM in the early 1980s and standardised as IEEE 802. ... A Fibre Channel fabric is a network of Fibre Channel devices enabled by a Fibre Channel switch using the FC-SW topology. ... A Fibre Channel switch is a computer storage device that allows the creation of a Fibre Channel fabric. ... Ethernet is a large, diverse family of frame-based computer networking technologies that operate at many speeds for local area networks (LANs). ...

Fibre Channel layers

Fibre Channel is a layered protocol. It consists of 5 layers, namely:

• FC0 The physical layer, which includes cables, fiber optics, connectors, pinouts etc.
• FC1 The data link layer, which implements the 8b/10b encoding and decoding of signals.
• FC2 The network layer, defined by the FC-PI-2 standard, consists of the core of Fibre Channel, and defines the main protocols.
• FC3 The common services layer, a thin layer that could eventually implement functions like encryption or RAID.
• FC4 The Protocol Mapping layer. Layer in which other protocols, such as SCSI, are encapsulated into an information unit for delivery to FC2.

FC0, FC1, and FC2 are also known as FC-PH, the physical layers of fibre channel. The Fibre Channel electrical interface is one of two standards that can be used to physically interconnect computer devices. ... The Fibre Channel FC1 data link layer implements the 8b/10b encoding and decoding of signals. ... Communication between devices in a fibre channel network uses different elements of the Fibre Channel standards. ...

Fibre Channel routers operate up to FC4 level (i.e. they are in fact SCSI routers), switches up to FC2, and hubs on FC0 only.

Fibre Channel products are available at 1 Gbit/s, 2 Gbit/s, 4 Gbit/s, 8 Gbit/s and 10 Gbit/s. 10 Gbit market is currently still developing. Products based on the 1, 2, 4 and 8 Gbit/s standards should be interoperable, and backward compatible. The 10 Gbit/s standard, however, is not backward compatible with any of the slower speed devices, as it differs considerably on FC1 level (64b/66b encoding instead of 8b/10b encoding). A gigabit per second (gbps or gbit/s) is a unit of data transmission equal to 1,000 megabits per second or 1,000,000 kilobits per second or 1,000,000,000 bits per second. ... In data networking and transmission, 64B/66B is a line code that transforms 64-bit data to 66-bit line code to achieve DC-balance and bounded disparity, and yet provide enough state changes to allow reasonable clock recovery. ...

Ports

FC topologies and port types

The following types of ports are defined by Fibre Channel: Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 439 pixelsFull resolution (925 × 508 pixel, file size: 33 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 439 pixelsFull resolution (925 × 508 pixel, file size: 33 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

• node ports
  • N_port is a port on the node (e.g. host or storage device) used with both FC-P2P or FC-SW topologies. Also known as Node port.
  • NL_port is a port on the node used with an FC-AL topology. Also known as Node Loop port.
• switch/router ports (used with FC-SW topology only)
  • F_port is a port on the switch that connects to a node point-to-point (i.e. connects to an N_port). Also known as Fabric port. An F_port is not loop capable.
  • FL_port is a port on the switch that connects to a FC-AL loop (i.e. to NL_ports). Also known as Fabric Loop port. Note that a switch port may automatically become either an F_port or an FL_port depending on what is connected.
  • E_port is the connection between two fibre channel switches. Also known as an Expansion port. When E_ports between two switches form a link, that link is referred to as an inter-switch link (ISL).
  • EX_port is the connection between a fibre channel router and a fibre channel switch. On the side of the switch it looks like a normal E_port, but on the side of the router it is a EX_port.
  • TE_port is a term used for multiple E_ports trunked together to create high bandwidth between switches. Also known as Trunking Expansion port.
• general (catch-all) types
  • G_port or generic port on a switch can operate as an E_port or F_port.
  • L_port is the loose term used for any arbitrated loop port, NL_port or FL_port. Also known as Loop port.

Optical Carrier Medium Variants

Typical Fibre Channel connectors - modern LC on the left and older SC (typical for 100 MB/s speeds) on the right

Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 620 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1002 × 969 pixel, file size: 181 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Conectores de cable de fibra óptica. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 620 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (1002 × 969 pixel, file size: 181 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Conectores de cable de fibra óptica. ... An optical fiber connector constitutes a fiber-to-fiber interconnection and aligns the fiber core of two optical fibers. ... An optical fiber connector constitutes a fiber-to-fiber interconnection and aligns the fiber core of two optical fibers. ... In fiber optics, a single-mode optical fiber is an optical fiber in which only the lowest order bound mode can propagate at the wavelength of interest. ... Multi-mode optical fiber (multimode fiber or MM fiber) is a type of optical fiber mostly used for communication over shorter distances, e. ...

Fibre Channel Infrastructure

Fibre Channel switches are divided into two classes. These classes are not part of the standard, and the classification of every switch is a marketing decision of the manufacturer.

• Directors offer a high port-count in a modular (slot-based) chassis with no single point of failure (high availability).

• Switches are typically smaller, fixed-configuration (sometimes semi-modular), less redundant devices.

Brocade, Cisco and QLogic provide both directors and switches. Brocade, Inc. ... Cisco may refer to: Cisco Systems, a computer networking company Cisco IOS, an internet router operating system CISCO Security Private Limited, a security company in Singapore Commercial and Industrial Security Corporation, a statutory board in Singapore Abbreviation for San Francisco, California Cisco (wine) The Cisco Kid, a fictional character created... QLogic Corporation NASDAQ: QLGC is a California-based manufacturer of storage networking infrastructure solutions. ...

If multiple switch vendors are used in the same fabric (i.e. fabric is heterogenous), the fabric will default to "interoperability mode", that is to a pure standarized Fibre Channel protocol. Some proprietary, advanced features may be disabled.

Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters

Fibre Channel HBAs are available for all major open systems, computer architectures, and buses, including PCI and SBus (obsolete today). Some are OS dependent. Each HBA has a unique World Wide Name (WWN), which is similar to an Ethernet MAC address in that it uses an Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI) assigned by the IEEE. However, WWNs are longer (8 bytes). There are two types of WWNs on a HBA; a node WWN (WWNN), which is shared by all ports on a host bus adapter, and a port WWN (WWPN), which is unique to each port. Some Fibre Channel HBA manufacturers are Emulex, LSI, QLogic and ATTO Technology. In computer hardware, a host adapter or host bus adapter (HBA) connects a host system (the computer) to other network and storage devices. ... Open systems are computer systems that provide either interoperability, portability, or freedom from proprietary standards, depending on users perspective. ... 64-bit PCI expansion slots inside a Power Macintosh G4 The Peripheral Component Interconnect, or PCI Standard (in practice almost always shortened to PCI), specifies a computer bus for attaching peripheral devices to a computer motherboard. ... SBus is a computer bus system that was used in most SPARC-based computers from Sun Microsystems during the 1990s. ... A World Wide Name (WWN) or World Wide Identifier (WWID) is a unique identifier in a Fibre Channel or Serial Attached SCSI storage network. ... In computer networking a Media Access Control address (MAC address) or hardware address or adapter address is a quasi-unique identifier attached to most network adapters (NICs). ... Organizationally Unique Identifier (or OUI) is a term referring to a 24-bit number assigned to a company or organization for use in various computer hardware products, including ethernet Network Interface Cards and Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters. ... The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers or IEEE (pronounced as eye-triple-ee) is an international non-profit, professional organization incorporated in the State of New York, United States. ... Emulex (NYSE: ELX) is a California based manufacturer of storage networking infrastructure solutions. ... LSI was founded in Milpitas, CA by Wilfred Corrigan in 1981 after he left an executive position with Fairchild Semiconductor. ... QLogic Corporation NASDAQ: QLGC is a California-based manufacturer of storage networking infrastructure solutions. ... ATTO Technology is a manufacturer of storage adapters, interface-briding appliances, Enterprise-class ATA-base RAID arrays, and management software with starage interface connectivity to SCSI, SATA, iSCSI, Gigabit Ethernet, NDMP, SAS and Fibre Channel. ...

See also

In computing, a storage area network (SAN) is an architecture to attach remote computer storage devices such as disk array controllers, tape libraries and CD arrays to servers in such a way that to the operating system the devices appear as locally attached devices. ... In general terms, a Host Bus Adapter (HBA) is any adapter that allows a computer bus to attach to another bus or channel. ... // Fiber Channel Frame is the frame format which should be followed by all FC-2 frames. ... Communication between devices in a fibre channel network uses different elements of the Fibre Channel standards. ... The Fibre Channel FC1 data link layer implements the 8b/10b encoding and decoding of signals. ... The Fibre Channel electrical interface is one of two standards that can be used to physically interconnect computer devices. ... A Fibre Channel fabric is a network of Fibre Channel devices enabled by a Fibre Channel switch using the FC-SW topology. ... Fibre Channel logins takes place after a link is operational. ... A Fibre Channel switch is a computer storage device that allows the creation of a Fibre Channel fabric. ... Fibre Channel zoning has a similar meaning to other uses of the word - it focuses certain groups of resources together. ... A VSAN (Virtual Storage Area Network) mainly allocate ports across different physical fabrics to create a virtual fabric. ... This article needs to be wikified. ... Fabric Shortest Path First is a routing protocol used in Fibre Channel networks. ... The FC-PH standard defines three time-out values used for error detection and recovery: E_D_TOV, R_A_TOV, and R_T_TOV. E_D_TOV stands for Error Detect TimeOut Value. ... A World Wide Name (WWN) or World Wide Identifier (WWID) is a unique identifier in a Fibre Channel or Serial Attached SCSI storage network. ... ATA cables: 40 wire ribbon cable top, 80 wire ribbon cable bottom Advanced Technology Attachment (ATA), is a standard interface for connecting storage devices such as hard disks and CD-ROM drives inside personal computers. ... ATA cables: 40 wire ribbon cable top, 80 wire ribbon cable bottom Advanced Technology Attachment (ATA) is a standard interface for connecting storage devices such as hard disks and CD-ROM drives inside personal computers. ... A SATA power connector. ... 2. ... ATA over Ethernet (AoE) is a network protocol developed by Coraid, Inc. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Internet SCSI (iSCSI) is a network protocol standard, officially ratified on 2003-02-11 by the Internet Engineering Task Force, that allows the use of the SCSI protocol over TCP/IP networks. ... PCI Express (formerly known as 3GIO for 3rd Generation I/O, not to be mistaken with PCI-X) is an implementation of the PCI computer bus that uses existing PCI programming concepts and communications standards, but bases it on a much faster serial communications system. ... Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP or FC/IP, also known as Fibre Channel tunneling or storage tunneling), is an Internet Protocol (IP)-based storage networking technology developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). ... Internet Fibre Channel Protocol (iFCP) is a gateway-to-gateway protocol, which provides fibre channel fabric services to fibre channel devices over a TCP/IP network. ... Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) is a proposed mapping of Fibre Channel over selected full duplex IEEE 802. ... IPFC stands for IP over Fibre Channel See also Fibre Channel over IP External links Internet Draft - Transmission of IPv6, IPv4 and ARP Packets over Fibre Channel RFC 3831 - Transmission of IPv6 Packets over Fibre Channel RFC 2625 - IP and ARP over Fibre Channel ... Serial Storage Architecture (SSA) is serial transport protocol used to attach disk drives to servers. ... 2005 FC-SATA (under development) FC-PI-2 INCITS 404 2004 FC-SP ANSI INCITS 1570-D FC-GS-4 ANSI INCITS 387. ... This is a list of device bandwidths: the channel capacity (or, more informally, bandwidth) of some computer devices employing methods of data transport is listed by bit/s, kilobit/s (kbit/s), megabit/s (Mbit/s), or gigabit/s (Gbit/s) as appropriate and also MB/s or megabytes per...

References

This article includes a list of references or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. You can improve this article by introducing more precise citations.

• Clark, T. Designing Storage Area Networks, Addison-Wesley, 1999. ISBN 0-201-61584-3

Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ...

External links

• Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA)
• INCITS technical committee responsible for FC standards(T11)
• IBM SAN Survival Guide
• Fibre Channel overview
• Fibre Channel tutorial (UNH-IOL)
• Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA)