Loop With A Switch And A Hub; Direct Fabric Attachment - Sun Microsystems storagetek sl500 Reference Manual

Topologies

Loop with a Switch and a Hub

A public arbitrated loop can include a hub that is attached to a fabric element, in
this case a switch (see
FIGURE 4-3 A Loop with a Hub Attached to a Switch
HBA
F_PORT
N_PORT
HBA
F_PORT
N_PORT

Direct Fabric Attachment

The advantage of attaching a library to a fabric is that the fabric can aid the
library's communication with a variety of devices. A fabric element might:
Attach N*_Ports with different media types, media rates, or classes of service
■
Attach arbitrated loops
■
Serve as a root element for distributed fabric elements
■
A fabric element might support different:
Port types
■
Classes of service
■
Media types
■
Media rates
■
Address assignment methods
■
Frame routing techniques
■
After a frame leaves the source N*_Port and enters the fabric, each fabric element
selects the next link toward the destination N*_Port. Usually the path includes two
links between the source N*_Port and the destination N*_Port.
38 SL500: Interface Reference Manual • July 2008
FIGURE 4-3).
SWITCH
FL_PORT
FL_PORT
F_PORT
HUB
LIBRARY
LIBRARY
NL_PORT
TAPE
N_PORT
Revision: F • 96122
TAPE
NL_PORT
NL_PORT
L204_161