Fibre Channel Primer

21 Chapter 3: Fibre Channel Overview
Fibre Channel is attractive because it offers a standards-based
solution. With the emphasis on open systems, end users are shying
away from proprietary solutions and vertically integrated, single-
provider solutions. Today, these users are integrating the best the
industry has to offer into seamless systems.
These new systems are being driven by the technology and
marketing forces associated with client/server implementations. Fibre
Channel is the only technology available with the reliability,
responsiveness, scalability, high throughput, and low latency needed
to meet the broad range of market and technology requirements.
Users enjoy these advantages:
l Scalable systems
l More cost-effective systems
l Straightforward migration to Fibre Channel
l Continued support of legacy systems
l Graceful upward migration
Fibre Channel’s scalability provides a continued return on
investment long into the future.
TECHNOLOGY COMPARISON
Fibre Channel is a product of the computer industry. Fibre Channel
was specifically designed to remove the barriers of performance
existing in legacy LANs and channels. In addition to providing
scalable gigabit technology, the architects provided flow control, self-
management, and superior reliability.
Gigabit Ethernet is attractive because of its extension of LAN
capabilities. It is designed to enable a common frame from the desktop
to the backbone. However, Fibre Channel is designed to be a transport
service independent of protocol. Fibre Channel’s ability to use a single
technology for storage, networks, audio/video, or to move raw data
is superior to the common frame feature.
ATM was designed as a wide area network with the ability to
provide Quality of Service for fractional bandwidth service. The
feature of fractional bandwidth with assured Quality of Service is
attractive for some applications.