Fibre Channel Hba

Will Fibre Channel Survive the Ethernet?

The tech industry is rife with examples of manufacturers cannibalizing profitable but aging technology in favor of new and improved systems. And while it’s too early to say whether Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) will put an end to native Fibre Channel hardware in the data center, there are a number of compelling reasons to think it could happen relatively quickly.

The heart of the matter is whether data center operators will still find value in discrete FC networks once they have the option of layering it onto the Ethernet. So while most pundits are busy trying to figure out whether FCoE is better or worse than iSCSI, I think an equally intriguing question is whether FCoE is better or worse than native FC.

Ultimately, that question won’t be answered until the FCoE standard is ratified and systems are being deployed in real-world environments. But it is possible to piece together some strong indications based on what we know of the standard so far and the initial devices that have made it off the production line.

Jay Kidd, chief marketing officer at NetApp, lays out the primary benefits of FCoE in a recent article on eWeek. He’s looking at major improvements in data center efficiency through the implementation of lossless 10 GbE fabrics, transparent storage management, lower capital and energy costs and increased application availability. And with new Ethernet extensions like Data Center Bridging (DCB) and Converged Enhanced Ethernet (CEE), FCoE will have access to logical pause capabilities and other traffic prioritization techniques.

In a number of ways, combining Fibre Channel and the Ethernet overcomes some of the deficiencies of both technologies, according to Joseph F. Kovar over at ChannelWeb. Native Fibre Channel performance lags 10 GbE in many respects, particularly as the industry preps for 40 and even 100 GbE. Fibre Channel also is limited to about six miles, after which you need an IP gateway to communicate with remote SANs.

Of course, if the idea of a unified fabric appeals to you, then Voltaire CEO Ronnie Kenneth wants you to consider both FC and Ethernet sitting on top of a 20 Gbps Infiniband network. He says the technology is ready to go today – no need to wait for standards committees to dot every i and cross every t. The company just came out with new lines of 10 GbE and FC storage gateway systems aimed at linking corporate LANs through the company’s director-class Infiniband switches.

Regardless of the risks to established product lines, virtually everyone with a stake in Fibre Channel is moving headlong into FCoE. Earlier this month, I asked Shaun Walsh, vice president of corporate marketing at Emulex, whether native Fibre Channel was in danger of fading away. This is what he said:

“The world doesn’t know yet. FCoE is new technology and we are a strong advocate for it, but the market place will ultimately decide. But you have to remember that this is not a NIC technology, it’s an HBA technology. FCoE will not be on every port in the data center. It will still be a premium service. The difference between a NIC and an HBA is how it deals with error handling, software management and storage management. The values of those things don’t change whether you’re on the Ethernet or native. We don’t expect the market to change radically, so there’s no reason to expect the current investment in Fibre Channel equipment won’t be valuable in the future because FCoE will be fully compatible with 8G and 16G Fibre Channel.”

In the short term, I can easily imagine mixed FC/Ethernet environments. But in the longer term, I still come back to the question, why would anyone want to invest in more Fibre Channel hardware when they can have all that and more on the Ethernet?

About the Author

Arthur has served as editor of numerous publications covering everything from audio/video production and distribution, multimedia and the Internet to video gaming. Read Arthur's blog, Archi-TECH on IT Business Edge.

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SUN Dual Port Fibre Channel HBA 594145701 $242.81 SUN Dual Port Fibre Channel HBA 594145701

IBM SMB 2-Gbps Fibre Channel HBA 13N1873 $22.82 IBM SMB 2-Gbps Fibre Channel HBA 13N1873

HP 2GB Fibre Channel HBA 366027001 $318.25 HP 2GB Fibre Channel HBA 366027001

HP 2GB Fibre Channel HBA A729863001 $120.36 HP 2GB Fibre Channel HBA A729863001

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Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA QLE220DEL $167.25 Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA QLE220DEL

HP/Compaq FCA2408 2GB PCI-X Fibre Channel HBA 347575-001 $125 HP/Compaq FCA2408 2GB PCI-X Fibre Channel HBA 347575-001

Emulex LP9002C-E LightPulse 2GB/s Fibre Channel HBA 3U compactPCI LP9002C-E $599 Emulex LP9002C-E LightPulse 2GB/s Fibre Channel HBA 3U compactPCI LP9002C-E

Emulex LP9002DC-E IS A 2GB/s FC-PCI HBA Fibre Channel LP9002DCE $1100 Emulex LP9002DC-E IS A 2GB/s FC-PCI HBA Fibre Channel LP9002DCE

Emulex LightPulse HBA Fibre Channel PCI-Express x4 2-Ports LP10000EXDCM2 $1999.97 Emulex LightPulse HBA Fibre Channel PCI-Express x4 2-Ports LP10000EXDCM2

QLogic 4GB Fibre Channel to PCI Express HBA QLE200 $148.5 QLogic 4GB Fibre Channel to PCI Express HBA QLE200

Emulex LP9002L-E 2GB/s Fibre Channel PCI HBA FC102003401F $346.86 Emulex LP9002L-E 2GB/s Fibre Channel PCI HBA FC102003401F

Emulex LightPulse 4GB/S Fibre Channel HBA PCI-E 4x LPE1150 $164.46 Emulex LightPulse 4GB/S Fibre Channel HBA PCI-E 4x LPE1150

LSI Logic LSI7004G2-LC 2GB Quad Fibre Channel Card HBA LSI7004G2-LC $35 LSI Logic LSI7004G2-LC 2GB Quad Fibre Channel Card HBA LSI7004G2-LC

HP LightPulse 2GB Fibre Channel PCI-E HBA 384068-001 $463.32 HP LightPulse 2GB Fibre Channel PCI-E HBA 384068-001

Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA YY004 $152.25 Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA YY004

Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA NP870 $152.25 Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA NP870

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Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA DR345 $152.25 Dell 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA DR345

IBM SMB 2Gbps Fibre Channel HBA Network Adapter PCI-X 13N1873 $27.38 IBM SMB 2Gbps Fibre Channel HBA Network Adapter PCI-X 13N1873

IBM 4Gbps Single-Port HBA Network Adapter PCI-X 4GB Fibre Channel 39M5894B1 $198.38 IBM 4Gbps Single-Port HBA Network Adapter PCI-X 4GB Fibre Channel 39M5894B1

IBM QLogic 8GB 1-Port Fibre Channel HBA PCI-E Adapter Card 42D0501 $531.33 IBM QLogic 8GB 1-Port Fibre Channel HBA PCI-E Adapter Card 42D0501

QLogic SANblade QLA2460 Single Port Fibre Channel Host BUS Adapter (HBA) QLA2460-CK $350 QLogic SANblade QLA2460 Single Port Fibre Channel Host BUS Adapter (HBA) QLA2460-CK

HP StorageWorks 81E 8GB Single Port PCI-e Fibre Channel HBA AJ762A $519.36 HP StorageWorks 81E 8GB Single Port PCI-e Fibre Channel HBA AJ762A

QLogic 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA Host BUS Adapter QLE220ESP $152.25 QLogic 4GB Fibre Channel To PCI Express HBA Host BUS Adapter QLE220ESP

QLogic Fibre Channel HBA PCI-X 2Gbps LC MultiMode 1-Port QLA200ESP QLA200-E-SP $148.5 QLogic Fibre Channel HBA PCI-X 2Gbps LC MultiMode 1-Port QLA200ESP QLA200-E-SP

HP Emulex-based Fibre Channel Mezzanine Host BUS Adapter HBA 397811001 $51.96 HP Emulex-based Fibre Channel Mezzanine Host BUS Adapter HBA 397811001

Emulex Fibre Channel Adapter 64bit PCI-X 2Gbps FC HBA LP1050F2 LP1050-F2 $125 Emulex Fibre Channel Adapter 64bit PCI-X 2Gbps FC HBA LP1050F2 LP1050-F2

JNI FibreStar 2GB Fibre Channel HBA Dual-Port 32/64bit PCI-X FCX2-6562-E $121.83 JNI FibreStar 2GB Fibre Channel HBA Dual-Port 32/64bit PCI-X FCX2-6562-E

QLogic SANblade 8GB Single Port Fibre Channel PCI-E HBA QLE2560DEL $648.33 QLogic SANblade 8GB Single Port Fibre Channel PCI-E HBA QLE2560DEL

IBM QLogic 4GB FC Single-Port PCI-E HBA Network Adapter PCI Express 4GB Fibre Channel 39R6526B1 $200.66 IBM QLogic 4GB FC Single-Port PCI-E HBA Network Adapter PCI Express 4GB Fibre Channel 39R6526B1

IBM QLogic 4GB FC Single-Port PCI-E HBA Network Adapter PCI Express 4GB Fibre Channel 39R6525 $288.8 IBM QLogic 4GB FC Single-Port PCI-E HBA Network Adapter PCI Express 4GB Fibre Channel 39R6525

IBM QLogic 4GB FC Single-Port PCI-E HBA Network Adapter PCI Express 4GB Fibre Channel 39R6526 39R6525 $203.73 IBM QLogic 4GB FC Single-Port PCI-E HBA Network Adapter PCI Express 4GB Fibre Channel 39R6526 39R6525

Emulex 2GBS Fibre HBA MW/BULK $226.25 Emulex 2GBS Fibre HBA MW/BULK

QLogic SANblade QLA2460 Single Port Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter (HBA) $854.99 1 1 MB Flash 1 MB SRAM 1 x LC Fibre Channel 1.06 Gbps 1640 ft 50/125 µm Fiber @ 1 Gbps 2 KB NVRAM 2.12 Gbps 230 ft 62.5/125 µm @ 4 Gbps 4.25 Gbps 492 ft 50/125 µm @ 4 Gbps 492 ft 62.5/125 µm @ 2 Gbps 6.67" Height x 2.03" Width 800 Mbps 984 ft 50/125 µm @ 2 Gbps 984 ft 62.5/125 µm @ 1 Gbps 2.048 concurrent logins 2.048 active exchanges LUN masking RoHS compliant HBA and target level failover SANblade QLA2460 Single Port Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter (HBA) Standard size bracket and a spare low-profile bracket FC HBA Manager CD Quick Start Guide The QLA2460 is the industry's first, true enterprise class, 4-Gbps to PCI-X 2.0 HBA. The QLA2460 not only delivers unprecedented levels of performance and availability, but also intelligent networking features specific to enterprise class data centers. The QLA2460 HBA is the highest performing and most reliable HBA in the industry. It delivers unmatched performance by leveraging a single ASIC design, combining a unique hardware architecture to deliver over 150,000 IOPS, nearly 800 MBps throughput, and support for the PCI-X 2.0 266-MHz DDR bus speed. Arbitrated Loop Class 2 Class 3 FC-IP FC-Tape FCP FCP-2 FL_Port F_Port Fiber Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter Low-profile MD2 NL_Port N_Port PCI 33 MHz PCI 66 MHz PCI-X PCI-X 100 MHz PCI-X 133 MHz PCI-X 266 MHz 64-bit PCI-X 66 MHz Point-to-Point QLA2460-CK QLogic QLogic Corp SANblade SANblade QLA2460 Single Port Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter (HBA) SCSI-FCP Switched Fabric www.qlogic.com

IBM Emulex 8GB FC Dual-Port HBA For IBM System X Host BUS Adapter PCI Express x4 8GB Fibre Channel 2-Ports 42D0494 $1066.85 IBM Emulex 8GB FC Dual-Port HBA For IBM System X Host BUS Adapter PCI Express x4 8GB Fibre Channel 2-Ports 42D0494

HP StorageWorks FC2242SR Dual Channel Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter 2 x LC PCI Express 4Gbps Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter $2771.76 The 4 Gb Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter is a dual channel (HBA) with and optical LC type connector. Operating system support for this HBA is Windows 2000 Windows Server 2003 and Linux. This HBA is qualified for ProLiant platforms configured with the Enterprise Virtual Array 3000 4000 5000 6000 and 8000.

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