Dynamic path: Communication path in which any node can communicate with any other node (assuming no third node is already communicating with the target). See Permanent path.
E-port: A connection that links multiple Fibre Channel fabrics.
F a b r i c : Fibre Channel communication network topology, typically with 16 nodes, each of which can be an FC-AL comprising 125 nodes. A Fibre Channel fabric usually employs a Fibre Channel switch or crossbar switch to provide direct connections between node pairs.
FC adapter: Fibre Channel adapter or host adapter. A Fibre Channel I/O bus adapter board that operates at 100MBps in half-duplex mode, 200MBps in full-duplex mode.
F C - A L : Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop. A ring-style network topology comprising 125 nodes, usually configured as a double loop to protect the system against device failure.
F C S I : Fibre Channel Systems Initiative formed by Hewlett-Packard, IBM, and Sun in 1993.
FC switch: Fibre Channel switch. Intelligently manages connections between ports, routing frames d y n a m i c a l l y. A nonblocking topology, it allows multiple exchanges of information to occur at the same time between ports. A switch offers better system throughput than a hub, but at greater expense. Some switches have a special FL-port to link arbitrated loops and other devices on the switch. By cascading multiple switches, more than 16 million devices can be connected together.
F r a m e : Data packet, a unit of data transmitted within a Fibre Channel system.
F - p o rt : Port that connects a node to a Fibre Channel fabric.
F L - p o rt : Port that connects an FC-AL to a fabric.
Hub: Cable concentrator for FC-AL networks. A hub is a static device that monitors each of its ports to determine whether devices are requesting to join the loop. It does not route frames dynamically.
J B O D : Just a bunch of drives. Any collection of disk drives not configured into a RAID.
L I P : Loop Initialization Protocol. Part of the FC-AL standard for reconfiguring the system when nodes are added or removed from the loop.
LRC: Loop Resiliency Circuit. Hub circuitry that allows devices to be inserted into or removed from an active FC-AL loop.
M I A : Media Interface Adapter. Converts electrical signals into optical signals and vice versa.
N o d e : Device connected to a Fibre Channel fabric, possibly a PC, disk drive, or RAID array, as well as an FC-AL.
N - p o rt : Port that connects a node to Fibre Channel system. In a PC, the N-Port would be on an I/O bus adapter board.
N L - p o rt : Port that connects a node to an FC-AL.
Permanent path: Fixed communication path be-tween nodes that provides guaranteed bandwidth. See Dynamic path.
Port: Locus of connection between a node and a Fibre Channel system.
S A N : Storage Area Network. A centralized stor-age repository that provides physical security in an environmentally regulated location. The data in a SAN can be easily managed (i.e., backed up regularly, etc.) and is protected from equipment, software, and procedural failures.
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