Fiber Channel Over Ethernet: A Pragmatic Approach to Data Center Network Convergence

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By HP/3Com/H3C

The convergence of storage and Ethernet onto a common end-to-end network infrastructure is still early in the evaluation stage as the (DCB) standards for Fiber Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) are not completely finished. Instead of collapsing both storage and data onto a common backbone, many IT leaders plan to keep the two technologies on dedicated networks for years to come, converging networks where and only when it makes sense for their business.

One area that seems ripe for this type of targeted FCoE deployment is at the server to network edge. This type of (in-the-rack) solution decouples access layer server and storage I/O consolation from end-end full fabric convergence – allowing customers to gain many near term practical benefits of 10GE I/O consolidation, including; dramatically reduced cost and complexity, simplified cabling, reduced power consumption and a 10X boost in network performance. This solution allows customers to extend rather than replace Fibre Channel, preserving the investments that organizations have made in their storage infrastructure while laying the foundation for broader network convergence in the future.

To learn more, download this paper from HP/3Com.