Scaling By Routing; Fibre Channel Routing Implementations; Fibre Channel Routing Techniques - HP StorageWorks 4000/6000/8000 - Enterprise Virtual Arrays Reference Manual

Time Server
Simple Name Service
Simple fabric services
SNS provides a mapping between device names and their addresses in a fabric. To ensure that the
mapping is up-to-date, every switch in the fabric implements SNS.
Coordinating fabric services
Each fabric maintains a unique set of fabric services. When two fabrics are connected, their two sets
of services merge to form a single set.
As fabrics grow, coordinating the fabric services across switches, hosts, and storage devices becomes
more challenging. It is difficult to match the fabric service requirements for very small, inexpensive
switches with those for large, high-end switches. Without routing, fabric scaling is limited by the ability
of the smallest fabric switch to participate in the distributed fabric services system.

Scaling by routing

Increasing fabric port count and switch count limits meets most customer scaling requirements. Demand
for higher port counts and connectivity between devices in different fabrics, Virtual Fabrics, or VSANs
requires Fibre Channel routing.
Routing improves scaling by connecting independent fabrics, Virtual Fabrics, or VSANs, each potentially
at its full capacity. Connectivity between fabrics, Virtual Fabrics, or VSANs allows sharing of resources,
reducing unnecessary redundancy in the routed network.
You can route between fabrics without affecting the total switch and port count limits. However, the
routed network is not the same as a single large fabric, Virtual Fabric, or VSAN. Only selected devices
in each fabric, specified by a routing table, can communicate with devices in other fabrics.
For example, using a router, you can connect three 1,200-port fabrics to construct a 3,600-port Meta
SAN. You determine which fabrics require connectivity, and then specify the devices allowed to
communicate across fabrics. The router does not provide 100% any-to-any connectivity between
fabrics, but it does meet most SAN requirements.

Fibre Channel routing implementations

With Fibre Channel routing, you can create a routed fabric by:
Connecting several fabrics using a router or a switch with router functionality
Partitioning a fabric into several Virtual Fabrics
Dividing a single fabric into several smaller Virtual Fabrics or VSANs

Fibre Channel routing techniques

This section describes the following Fibre Channel routing techniques:
B-series routing connects independent fabrics (SAN islands), as shown in
B-series router products include:
8 Gb/s switch models with license enabled integrated Fibre Channel routing
HP StorageWorks 1606 Extension SAN Switch (1606 Extension SAN Switch)
HP StorageWorks DC SAN Director Multi-protocol Extension Blade (DC Dir Switch MP Extension
Blade)
64 Fibre Channel routing
Figure 16. HP-supported