958-000284-007, March 2005)

Supported configurations

Operation of multiple switches in a fabric topology is subject to the following topology

limits. Consider the impact of these limits when planning the fabric.

NOTE:

For more information about planning the fabric, refer to

HP StorageWorks SAN High

Availability Pl

anning Guide

• Fabric Elements—Each fabric element is defined by a unique domain ID that

ranges betwee

n 1 and 31; therefore, the theoretical limit of interconnected

directors in a

single fabric is 31. The supported limit of interconnected switches

in a single fa

bric is 24. Because this number is subject to change, contact your

HP authoriz

edservicerepresentativeforthecurrentnumberofinterconnected

switches supported in a single fabric.

• Inhomogeneous fabric—To determine if interoperability is supported for a

product, or if restrictions apply, refer to the product publications, or contact your

HP authorized service representative.

• Num ber of Interswitch Link s (I SLs)—The maximum supported number of

ISLs for e

dge switches is all available switch ports. For redundancy, at least two

ISLs sho

uld connect any two switch-class fabric elements. Because this number

is subject to change, contact your HP authorized service representative for the

current number of ISLs supported per switch.

• Hop Count—The Fibre Channel theoretical limit of ISL connections traversed

(hop count) in a sin gle path through a fabric is seven. The maximum s upported

hop count in a single path through a fabric is three. Because this number is

subject to change, contact your HP authorized service representative for the

current hop count supported by a single fabric path.

The h

op count is equal to the number of ISL connections traversed in a single

pat

h, not the total number of ISL connections between devices.

HP StorageWorks Edge Switch release notes