Specifications

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McDATA Products in a SAN Environment - Planning Manual
Implementing SAN Internetworking Solutions
Another persistent problem associated with large Fibre Channel
fabrics is multi-vendor incompatibility. Due to lack of common
communications standards and fabric shortest path first (FSPF)
protocol, switch vendors may have to support multiple (standards-
compliant and proprietary) interoperability modes. In addition,
protocol enhancements may force vendors to support multiple
firmware versions for the same product. These issues make it difficult
to connect directors or fabric switches from different original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to build a large SAN.
Consolidation
Solutions
McDATA offers the following solutions for SAN island consolidation:
• FlexPar technology - By enabling flexible partitioning (FlexPar)
technology, assets can be physically consolidated while
maintaining the benefits of application-based or role-based SAN
islands. Refer to Flexible Partitioning Technology for additional
information.
• SAN routing - By installing an Eclipse 2640 SAN Router, a
collection of individual Fibre Channel fabrics is connected and
then functions as a single large network (routed SAN) providing
any-to-any connectivity, while maintaining the autonomous
nature of individual Fibre Channel fabrics. Refer to SAN Routing
for additional information.
Flexible Partitioning
Technology
FlexPar technology enables the partitioning of fabric-attached devices
to enable SAN island consolidation, decrease fabric congestion, or
decrease the possibility of downtime. The technology enables
partitioning through:
• Director FlexPars - available only for the Intrepid 10000 Director.
• Zone FlexPars - available for Intrepid-series directors and
Sphereon-series fabric switches.
• Role-based FlexPars - available for Intrepid-series directors and
Sphereon-series fabric switches by mid-2005.
Director FlexPars By installing an Intrepid 10000 Director with the director FlexPar
product feature enablement (PFE) key, assets can be physically
consolidated while maintaining the benefits of application-based
SAN islands. The feature divides the director into multiple (up to
four) sub-directors, each operating with independent management
and services.