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2–Planning
Fibre Channel Switches Required for VPGroups
2-2 ISR651101-00 G
Fibre Channel
The Fibre Channel ports automatically discover all Fibre Channel target devices,
whether connected directly (loop) or by fabric (switch).
iSCSI
The iSCSI ports automatically present targets discovered on the Fibre Channel
ports. If the Fibre Channel target’s LUN 0 is a controller LUN, it becomes
accessible (mapped) to all iSCSI initiators. All data LUNs are inaccessible until
mapped. The exception is if LUN 0 is a controller LUN, it is mapped automatically
to allow for management of the Fibre Channel target controller.
When an iSCSI initiator logs on, the router records the initiator’s iSCSI name and
IP address. The management interface—CLI and SANsurfer Router
Manager—uses the initiator information to simplify the mapping process.
Fibre Channel Switches Required for VPGroups
iSR6200 uses QLogic Host Bus Adapter technology and is compatible with all
Fibre Channel switches from Brocade, Cisco, McData, and QLogic. If you want to
use more than one VPGroup, you must use Fibre Channel switches.
Fibre Channel Performance
The iSR6200 router supports Fibre Channel service at transmission rates of 2, 4,
or 8 Gbps with a maximum frame size of 2,148 bytes. Related performance
characteristics include the following:
Distance
Bandwidth
Latency
Distance
Consider the physical distance between Fibre Channel devices. Choose SFP
transceivers that are compatible with the cable type and distance.
Each Fibre Channel port is supported by a data buffer with a three-credit capacity;
that is, three maximum-sized frames. For fibre optic cables, this enables full
bandwidth over approximately 2.5 kilometers at 2Gbps (1.2 credits/Km).
Beyond these distances, however, the connection loses some efficiency because
the transmitting port must wait for an acknowledgement before sending the next
frame.