User`s manual

Preliminary
Mesh Topology
SANbox-16STD Fibre Channel Switch
5-8 Multi-Chassis Fabrics 59012-03 Rev. A Installer’s/User’s Manual
MKII Compatibility
SANbox fabrics do not support MKII chassis in cascade topologies.
Mesh Topology
The term “mesh” indicates that each chassis has at least one T_Port directly
connected to each other chassis.
In fabrics containing two or three chassis, Cascade-with-a-loop topology and Mesh
topology are exactly the same. Note in Figure 5-2 that you could take any three
chassis and their interconnections and draw them in a row with a loop back from
the last chassis to the first chassis (the same as Cascade-with-a-loop).
Figure 5-2 Mesh Example
Mesh Fabric Size
SANbox-16 chassis connected in Mesh topology expand from two chassis to a
maximum of nine chassis. With each chassis using eight T_Ports for chassis inter-
connection, then each chassis will have 8 user ports remaining. Figure 5-2 shows
an example of mesh interconnections.
Using four to eight chassis, Cascade-with-a-loop topology can result in more user
ports than Mesh topology.
Using six or more chassis, Multistage topology can result in more user ports than
Mesh topology. Multistage topology is described later in this manual.