Title :
Designing fibre channel fabrics
Author :
Cherkasova, Ludmila ; Kotov, Vadim ; Rokicki, Tomas
Author_Institution :
Hewlett-Packard Co., Palo Alto, CA, USA
Abstract :
The fibre channel standard, developed by the ANSI X3T9.3 task group, defines a serial I/O channel for interconnecting a number of peripheral devices and computer systems. In this paper we consider how fibre channel switches can be cascaded to form a fibre channel fabric. We begin with an analytical model of topology performance that provides a theoretical upper bound on fabric performance and a method for the practical evaluation of fabric topologies. Next, we present simulation results for a single fibre channel switch having 16 ports and a specific high-level architecture. Finally, we consider cascades of this switch, and discuss some subtleties, such as different routing strategies, deadlocks and unfairness
Keywords :
ANSI standards; optical fibre couplers; optical interconnections; peripheral interfaces; ANSI X3T9.3 task group; deadlocks; fibre channel fabrics; fibre channel standard; fibre channel switches; high-level architecture; peripheral devices; routing strategies; serial I/O channel; simulation results; unfairness; upper bound; ANSI standards; Analytical models; Computer peripherals; Fabrics; Optical fiber devices; Routing; Standards development; Switches; Topology; Upper bound;
Conference_Titel :
Computer Design: VLSI in Computers and Processors, 1995. ICCD '95. Proceedings., 1995 IEEE International Conference on
Conference_Location :
Austin, TX
Print_ISBN :
0-8186-7165-3
DOI :
10.1109/ICCD.1995.528832
