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Chapter 1. Introduction
This chapter introduces the features and components of the IBM System Storage
SAN384B fabric backbone. Throughout this document, the product is referred to as
the SAN384B, or more generically as system, device,orchassis, where appropriate.
This chapter contains the following information:
v “Overview of the SAN384B”
v “Hardware components” on page 2
v “High availability” on page 7
v “Reliability” on page 7
v “Serviceability” on page 7
v “Software features” on page 8
Overview of the SAN384B
The SAN384B is part of IBM's industry-leading backbone-class product line, a
highly robust class of network switching platform that combines breakthrough
performance, scalability, and energy efficiency with long-term investment.
Supporting open systems and System z
®
, SAN backbones are designed to address
the data growth and application demands of evolving enterprise data centers,
achieve server, SAN, and data center consolidation, and reduce infrastructure and
administrative costs.
Key features of the SAN384B include:
v A horizontal chassis with up to 256 ports through four port blades (in addition
to two core switching and two core processing blades).
v Support for all of the application, port blade, and control processor (CP) blades
supported in the SAN768B, providing flexible system configurations and fewer
types of new blades. (SAN768B CR8 core switch blades are not supported in the
SAN384B chassis.)
v Up to 768 ports can connect with the use of inter-chassis links (ICLs).
v Support for high-performance port blades running at 1-, 2-, 4-, 8-, or 10-Gbps,
enabling flexible system configuration.
v Supports 1-, 2-, 4-, and 8-Gbps auto-sensing Fibre Channel ports. Trunking
technology groups up to eight ports to create high performance 64-Gbps ISL
trunks between switches. (10 Gbps ports (FC10-6) are 10 Gbps only.)
v Dual-redundant control processor blades (CP8) and core switch blades (CR4S-8)
provide high availability and enable nondisruptive software upgrades.
v Redundant and hot-swappable CP8 and CR4S-8 blades, power supplies, blower
assemblies, and WWN cards enable a high availability platform for mission
critical SAN applications.
v Universal ports that self-configure as E_ports, F_ports, FL_ports, Ex_ports, and
M_ports (mirror ports). 10 Gbps ports (FC10-6) are E-Ports only.
v Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) functionality through the FX8-24 blade.
v Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) capability through the FCOE10-24 blade.
© Copyright IBM Corp. 2009, 2010 1
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