Datasheet

Brocade Enterprise 20-port, 20-port, and 10-port 8Gb SAN Switch Modules 3
Switch comparison
Brocade 8Gb SAN Switch Modules for IBM BladeCenter support entry-level to enterprise SAN I/O
requirements for next-generation data centers. Table 2 provides a feature comparison by model.
Table 2. Feature comparison by model
Feature Enterprise
20-port switch
20-port switch 10-port switch
Number of active ports 20 20 10
10-POD license Not needed Not needed Optional
Access Gateway Included Included Included
Enhanced Group Management Included Included Included
ISL Trunking Included Optional Optional
Adaptive Networking Included Optional Optional
Advanced Performance Monitoring Included Optional Optional
Fabric Watch Included Optional Optional
Extended Fabrics Included Optional Optional
Server Application Optimization Included Not available Not available
Features
Brocade and IBM are delivering innovative and powerful IT infrastructure for virtual data centers based on
best-in-class, industry-standard computing and networking technology. Brocade 8Gb SAN Switch
Modules for IBM BladeCenter support entry-level to enterprise SAN I/O requirements for next-generation
data centers.
The Brocade switch modules include the following hardware features:
Six external auto-sensing Fibre Channel ports (2 Gbps, 4 Gbps, or 8 Gbps for 8Gb SFP+

transceivers) that operate at a maximum speed of 8 Gbps
14 internal Fibre Channel ports that operate as F
_
ports (fabric ports) at 2 Gbps, 4 Gbps, or 8 Gbps,

depending on FC expansion cards installed into blades
10-port model includes 10 Dynamic Ports-On-Demand (DPODs) that can be activated in any

combination of internal and external ports
High availability features including hot pluggable design, non-disruptive software upgrades, automatic

path failover, and power-on self-test diagnostics and status reporting
Aggregate Fibre Channel I/O bandwidth: 48 Gbps (6 external ports at 8 Gbps line rate)

External ports that can operate as F
_
ports (fabric ports), FL
_
ports (fabric loop ports), or E
_
ports

(expansion ports) when in full FC switch mode. When in Brocade Access Gateway mode the external
ports operate as NPIV-enabled N
_
Ports.
Fabric latency of 0.74 μsec ensures the fastest response and access time to data for critical

applications and servers
Supports full 8 Gbps operations at distances up to 129 km and up to 1036 km at 1 Gbps
