User's Manual

2 – General Description
Fibre Channel Ports
2-6 59042-06 A
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2.2.2
Small Form-Factor Pluggable (SFP) Transceivers
An SFP transceiver, like the one shown in Figure 2-6, converts electrical signals to
and from optical laser signals to transmit and receive. SFP transceivers plug into
the ports; duplex fiber optic cables plug into the transceivers which then connect
to the devices. A port is capable of transmitting at 1-Gbps or 2-Gbps; however, the
transceiver must be capable of 2-Gbps for the port to deliver at that rate.
The SFP transceivers are hot pluggable. This means that you can remove or
install an SFP transceiver while the switch is operating without harming the switch
or the transceiver. However, communication with the connected device will be
interrupted. Refer to ”Install SFP Transceivers” on page 4-4 for information about
installing and removing SFP optical transceivers.
Figure 2-6. SFP Transceiver
2.2.3
Port Types
SANbox2-8c switches support generic ports (G_Port, GL_Port), fabric ports
(F_Port, FL_Port), and expansion ports (E_Port). Switches come from the factory
with all ports configured as GL_Ports. Generic, fabric, and expansion ports
function as follows:
 A GL_Port self-configures as an FL_Port when connected to a public loop
device, as an F_Port when connected to a single public device, or as an
E_Port when connected to another FC-SW-2 compliant switch.
 A G_Port self-configures as an F_Port when connected to a single public
device, or as an E_Port when connected to another FC-SW-2 compliant
switch.
 An FL_Port supports a loop of up to 126 public devices. An FL_Port can also
configure itself during the fabric login process as an F_Port when connected
to a single public device (N_Port).
 An F_Port supports a single public device. If the device is a single device on
a loop, the GL_Port will attempt to configure first as an F_Port, then if that
fails, as an FL_Port.