This list describes requirements and other considerations for connecting
host attachments in your network.
You must use worldwide port names to uniquely identify fibre-channel adapter
cards that are installed in your host system.
For open-system hosts with fibre-channel adapters, keep
in mind that fibre channel architecture provides a variety of communication
protocols. Each interconnected storage unit within the architecture is referred
to as a node, and each host is also a node. Each node corresponds
to one or more ports. (In the case of fibre-channel I/O adapters, these ports
are fibre-channel ports.) Each port attaches to a serial-transmission medium
that provides duplex communication with the node at the other end of the medium.
You can configure your network structure based on one of three basic interconnection
topologies (network structures):
Point-to-point
Switched fabric
Arbitrated loop
The maximum distance between a host fibre-channel port and the
following network components is 300 meters (984 ft) with
a shortwave adapter and 10 km (6.2 miles) with a longwave adapter.
Fabric switches
Fabric hubs
Link extenders
Storage unit fibre-channel port
The maximum distance might be greater than
10 km (6.2 miles) when a link extender provides target initiator functions
or controller emulation functions.
Note: Do not use link extenders with emulation
functions on links over which Remote Mirror and Copy operations are performed.
This is because of the additional path delay that is introduced by these units.
Because the fibre channel architecture allows any fibre-channel
initiator to access any fibre-channel device, without access restrictions,
this can represent a security exposure. You must set the fibre-channel access
modes to the proper setting.