HP StorageWorks XPath OS 7.4.X Administrator Guide (AA-RVHDD-TE, February 2006)

XPath OS 7.4.x administrator guide 11
1 Introducing XPath OS features
XPath OS is the operating system for the HP StorageWorks MP Router. The MP Router is an open, intelligent
switching platform for hosting multi-protocol routing services and other applications within a SAN fabric.
In addition to the full set of standard Fibre Channel switch features, XPath OS supports optional HP
multi-protocol routing services and interoperates with the HP Fabric OS. The MP Router can be used to
connect HP fabrics to McDATA fabrics.
This chapter contains the following sections:
• MP Routing Services, next
• Fibre Channel features, page 13
• HP Fabric OS support, page 14
• Daemon overseer service, page 15
• High availability, page 17
MP Routing Services
HP multi-protocol routing services provide options for extending SAN benefits over multiple networks to
larger SAN sizes, and across longer distances. Using these services, you can interconnect devices between
SAN fabrics without merging those fabrics, thereby providing a more secure and flexible storage
networking foundation.
These services include:
• HP FC-FC Routing Service for SAN connectivity
• HP Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) Tunneling Service for SAN extension over distance
• HP iSCSI Gateway Service for sharing Fibre Channel resources with Internet Small Computer Systems
Interface (iSCSI) devices
The services are summarized in the following sections.
FC-FC routing service
The FC-FC Routing Service enables devices located in separate SAN fabrics to establish communication
without requiring the fabrics to merge into a single large SAN. By using this service, you can interconnect
devices without having to redesign or reconfigure the entire environment. You can connect physically
separate SANs into logical SANs (LSANs) in a seamless manner. LSANs are ideal for:
• Simplifying SAN design, implementation, and management
• Providing a seamless way to share resources across multiple SANs without the complexity of physically
merging those SANs
• Creating a more unified SAN environment with easier interconnection and support for SANs and SAN
resources deployed for different purposes
• Allowing routing between HP and McDATA fabrics
For details on the capabilities, terminology, and use of FC-FC routing, see Chapter 4, “Using the FC-FC
Routing Service.”