Setup and Install

Planning the Fabric

Preliminary Considerations

Chapter 2

Preliminary Considerations

Before beginning to physically assemble a fabric, follow the steps below to be sure all

appropriate issues have been considered:

Step 1. Read Chapter 1, “Overview,” on page 13 to get a basic understanding of HyperFabric and

its components.

Step 2. Read this chapter, Planning the Fabric, to gain an understanding of protocol specific

configuration guidelines for TCP/IP and HMP applications.

Step 3. Read “Configuration Overview” on page 85, “Information You Need” on page 86, and

“Configuration Information Example” on page 88, to gain an understanding of the

information that must be specified when the fabric is configured. Keep these

configuration requirements in mind while following the rest of the steps below to plan

and map the fabric. (See Figure 4-1 for an example of a graphical fabric map.)

Step 4. Decide the number of nodes that will be interconnected in the fabric.

Step 5. Decide the type of HP 9000 system that each node will be (see the HP HyperFabric

Release Note for a list of the supported HP 9000 systems).

Step 6. Determine the network bandwidth requirements for each node.

Step 7. Determine the number of adapters needed for each node.

Step 8. Determine if a High Availability (MC/ServiceGuard) configuration will be needed.

Remember, If MC/ServiceGuard is used there must be at least two adapters in each

node.

Step 9. Decide what the topology of the fabric will be.

Step 10. Determine how many switches will be used based on the number of nodes in the fabric.

Remember, the only configuration that can be supported without a switch is the

node-to-node configuration (HA or non-HA). HyperFabric supports meshed switches up

to a depth of four switches, starting with these versions of the HyperFabric software:

• For HF switches: software versions B.10.20.05, B.11.00.05, and B.11.11.00.

• For HF2 switches: software versions B.11.00.11 and B.11.11.01.

Step 11. Draw the cable connections from each node to the switches (if the fabric will contain

switches). If you will be using an HA configuration with switches, note that for full

redundancy and to avoid a single point of failure, your configuration will require more

than one switch. For example, each adapter can be connected to its own switch, or two

switches can be connected to four adapters.