HP Surestore 6.140 Tape Library - Manual (Page 191)

Appendix C C-7
Introduction to Fibre Channel
Fibre Channel Technology
Fi
bre
Ch
a
nne
l
Connection Topologies
Fibre Channel uses three connection topologies, which are described in
the table below.
Table C-1 Fibre Channel Topologies
Topology Description Advantages/
Disadvantages
Point to point Two devices connected
directly together. • Low cost, high
performance.
• Limited topology
(only allows two
devices).
Fibre Channel
Arbitrated
Loop (FC-AL) Connects up to 127
devices through one or
more Fibre Channel
hubs. Loops can be
private or public. Private
loops are not connected
to a fabric. Public loops
are connected to a fabric. • Supports more
devices.
• Increases the
number of devices.
• Limits the combined
data transfer rate to
100 MBps.
Fabric Supports up to 16
million devices
connected through a
series of fabric switches,
similar to an Ethernet
network. • Supports multiple
devices without
limiting
performance.
• High cost per port.