Routing Types; Fibre Channel Nat And Phantom Domains; Metasan With Imported Devices - HP A7533A - Brocade 4Gb SAN Switch Base Administrator's Manual

Host
Fabric 1
EX_Port
Figure 34

MetaSAN with imported devices

Routing types

• Edge-to-Edge
Occurs when devices in one edge fabric communicate with devices in another edge fabric through one
or more Fibre Channel routers.
• Backbone-to-Edge
Occurs when Fibre Channel routers connect to a common fabric—known as a backbone
fabric—through E_Ports. A backbone fabric can be used as a transport fabric that interconnects edge
fabrics. Fibre Channel routers also enable hosts and targets in edge fabrics to communicate with
devices in the backbone fabric, known as backbone-to-edge routing. From the edge fabric's
perspective, the backbone fabric is just like any other edge fabric. For the edge fabric and backbone
fabric devices to communicate, the shared devices need to be presented to each other's native fabric.
To do so, at least one translate phantom domain is created in the backbone fabric. This translate
phantom domain represents the entire edge fabric. The shared physical devices in the edge have
corresponding proxy devices on the translate phantom domain.
Each edge fabric has one and only one xlate domain to the backbone fabric. The backbone fabric
device communicates with the proxy devices whenever it needs to contact the shared physical devices
in the edge. The FC-FC Routing Service receives the frames from the backbone switches destined to the
proxy devices, and redirects the frames to the actual physical devices. As with an edge fabric, the
translate phantom domain can never be the principal switch of the backbone fabric. Front domains are
not created; rather, only translate phantom domains are created in the backbone fabric.
Devices are exported from the backbone fabric to one or more edge fabrics using LSANs. See
"Configuring LSANs and
NOTE: Secure Fabric OS, Management Server Platform services, and interopmode are not supported in
the backbone fabric.

Fibre Channel NAT and phantom domains

Within an edge fabric or across a backbone fabric, the standard Fibre Channel fabric shortest path first
(FSPF) protocol determines how frames are routed from the source Fibre Channel device to the destination
FC device. The source or destination device can be a proxy device. When frames traverse the fabric
through a 400 MP Router, 4/256 SAN Director or DC Director with an FR4- 1 8i in the backbone (BB), the
frames are routed to another EX_Port or VEX_Port.
Proxy host
(imported device)
Proxy target
(imported device)
Target
E_Port
IFL
IFL
400 MP Router
zoning" on page 315 for more information.
Fabric 2
E_Port
Fabric OS 6.1.x administrator guide 299