Logically, the Fibre Channel is a bidirectional, full-duplex, point-to-point, serial data channel structured for high performance data communication. Physically, the Fibre Channel is an interconnection of multiple communication ports, called N_Ports, interconnected by a switching network, called a fabric, a point-to-point link, or an arbitrated loop. Fibre Channel is a generalized transport mechanism that has no protocol of its own or native input/output command set, but can transport any existing Upper Level Protocols (ULPs) such as SCSI and IP.

A high-speed serial communication technology developed by IBM and other vendors, and now being standardized by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) within ANSI Technical Committee X3T11. It is usually used for storage network data transmission over fiber-optic or copper cabling. Fibre Channel is a higher-speed alternative to Small Computer System Interface (see SCSI), a technology with which it is compatible.

Networking technology targeted primarily at SAN networks. Similar to Ethernet.

( also Fiber Channel): A high speed data link planned to run up to 2 Gbps on a fiber optic cable. A number of manufacturers are developing products to utilize the Fiber Channel--Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL) serial storage interface at 1 Gbps so that storage devices such as hard disks can be connected. Supports signaling rates from 132.8 Mbps to 1,062.5 Mbps, over a mixture of physical media including optical fiber, video coax, miniature coax, and shielded twisted pair wiring. The standard supports data transmission and framing protocols for the most popular channel and network standards including SCSI, HIPPI, Ethernet, Internet Protocol, and ATM. Field: In an interlaced-scanning format, a frame consists of a field of even scan lines or a field of odd scan lines captured or displayed at different times. In a progressive-scanning format, a field is the same as a frame. See also: Frame

up to 2 Gigabit per second data transfer interface technology that maps several common transport protocols including IP and SCSI, allowing it to merge high-speed I/O and network functionality in a single connectivity technology

An ANSI standard which defines a high-bandwidth connection for networks and mass storage communication. The physical connection is intended to be over fibre optics, but coax and twist-pair are options for short-distance connections.

Fibre Channel (FC) is a technology for networking computer devices. Fibre Channel is primarily used for attaching computer servers to shared storage devices and for interconnecting storage controllers and drives. See also storage area network (SAN).

An ANSI standard that specifies high-speed serial communication between devices. Fibre channel supports serial communications across both copper and optical connections. Fibre Channel is used as one of the serial bus architectures supported by SCSI-3.

A network technology that sets up block-oriented streams of data over fiber at rates to 1 Gbit/s and distances up to 500 meters over multimode fiber and 1 km over singlemode fiber. Fiber Channel networks can be configured in switched or redundant loop topologies. Standards are governed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and groups that support it, including the InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards (INCITS, formerly the National Committee for Information Technology Standards).

For Fibre Channel terms, see Fibre Channel Concepts in the Storage Management Concepts chapter.

A set of standards for a serial I/O bus capable of transferring data between two ports at up to 100 MBytes/second, with standards proposals to go to higher speeds. Fibre Channel supports point to point, arbitrated loop, and switched topologies. Fibre Channel was completely developed through industry cooperation, unlike SCSI, which was developed by a vendor and submitted for standardization after the fact.

A collective name for the fiber optic technology that is commonly used to set up a Storage Area Network (SAN).

The general name given to an integrated set of standards being developed by an ANSI-approved X3 group. This set of standards defines new protocols for flexible information transfer. Fibre channel supports three topologies: point-to-point, arbitrated loop, and fabric.

A serial data transfer architecture developed by a consortium of computer and mass storage device manufacturers and now being standardized by ANSI. The most prominent Fibre Channel standard is Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL). FC-AL was designed for new mass storage devices and other peripheral devices that require very high bandwidth. Using optical fiber to connect devices, FC-AL supports full-duplex data transfer rates of 100MBps. FC-AL is compatible with, and is expected to eventually replace, SCSI for high-performance storage systems.

A topology and transport protocol used to send block-level data information between server and storage devices.

The generic term for a high speed serial data transfer architecture recently standardized by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The Fibre Channel architecture was developed by the Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA), a consortium of computer and mass storage manufacturers. The best-known Fibre Channel standard is the Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL). (See also: Storage Area Network (SAN).

A channel/network standard that provides connectivity, distance, and protocol multiplexing.

A high-speed transport technology used to build storage area networks (SANs).

Fibre channel is nominally a one-gigabit-per-second data transfer interface technology, although the specification allows data transfer rates from 133 megabits per second up to 4.25 gigabits per second. Data can be transmitted and received at one-gigabit-per-second simultaneously. Common transport protocols, such as Internet Protocol (IP) and Small Computer System Interface (SCSI), run over Fibre Channel. Consequently, high-speed I/O and networking can stem from a single connectivity technology.

An interface similiar to SCSI that allows for the connection of up to 127 devices and a maximum transfer speed of 1600Mbps.

The Fibre Channel Standard defines a high-speed data transfer interface that can be used to connect workstations, mainframes, supercomputers, storage devices and displays. The standard addresses the need for very fast transfers of large volumes of information. Typical high-end Fibre Channel devices carry up to 1 Gb/s data rates.

A scalable, high speed, serial data transfer interface standard (ANSI X3T11)

a serial data transfer architecture that uses optical fibre to connect devices. It is designed for mass storage devices that need high bandwidth.

A high speed networking protocol primarily used in Storage Area Networks. Unlike it's name suggests, fibre channel can be ran over fiber optic, or copper cables.

A serial communication protocol that provides high-speed, low-latency data transmission between computer servers and storage servers and between storage controllers and drives.

A high-speed, serial, bi-directional, topology independent, multi-protocol, highly scalable interconnection between computers, peripherals, and networks.

The British spelling of "fiber", i.e., "fibre" is used to describe this standard. Fibre Channel uses fiber-optic cable to connect computers or peripherals....

Fibre Channel is a gigabit-speed network technology primarily used for storage networking. Learn more about Fibre Channel...

A high speed storage/networking interface that offers a higher performance, greater capacity and cabling distance, increased system configuration flexibility and scalability, and simplified cabling.

A high bandwidth data transfer protocol that takes advantage of high–speed optical fiber cables. Usually found only in very high–end servers.

Fibre Channel is a high performance interface designed to bring speed and flexibility to multiple disc drive storage systems.

A high-speed data transfer interface that can be used to connect together workstations, mainframes, supercomputers, storage devices and displays. The communications standard operates between 133 Megabits/sec to 1062 Megabits/sec. Transfer distances up to 10 km are possible.

An industry standard which details computer channel communications over fiber optics at transmission speeds from 132 Mb/s to 1062.5 Mb/s at distances of up to 10 kilometers. Fibre Channel transceivers can either be driven with fiber optic signaling or true differential pair twinaxial signaling with 150 ohm impedance between conductors.

A high speed, bi-directional, multi-protocol, scalable interconnection between computers, peripherals, and networks. It is the typical connection from a server to its external storage.

A technology for transmitting data between computer devices at data rates from 100 to 400 MBps over optical fiber or copper. Fibre Channel is optimized for connecting servers to shared storage devices and for interconnecting storage controllers and drives.

an encapsulation protocol used primarily for SCSI on HP-UX.

A high-bandwidth serial standard offering 1.06 Gbit/second transfer rates scalable to 2.12 or 4.24 Gbit/second. Capable of carrying multiple existing interface command sets, including Internet Protocol (IP), SCSI, IPI, HIPPI-FP, and audio/video.

High speed fibre-optic network system intended to support transmission speeds of up to 10Gbits/s plus.

A high–speed interconnect used in storage area networks (SANs) to connect servers to shared storage. Fibre Channel components include HBAs, hubs, switches, and cabling. The term Fibre Channel also refers to the storage protocol.

A transmission scheme that specifies signaling and data handling techniques for a variety of connection media, including coaxial cable and fiber-optic cable at speeds up to 1Gbps. The standard provid ... more

A high-speed interface, standardized by ANSI, that supports up to 800Mbps over 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) of fiber.

A technology for transmitting data between computer devices at a data rate of up to 1 Gbps, especially suited for connecting computer servers to shared storage devices and for interconnecting storage controllers and drives. Devices can be as far as ten kilometers apart. The longer distance requires optical fiber as the physical medium. Fibre Channel also works using coaxial cable and ordinary telephone twisted pair.

An industry-standard specification that originated in Great Britain which details computer channel communications over fiber optics at transmission speeds from 132 Mb/s to 1062.5 Mb/s at distances of up to 10 kilometers.

as applied to data storage and network topology - link to FC Glossary.

Fibre Channel is a gigabit-speed network technology primarily used for storage networking. Fibre Channel is standardized in the T11 Technical Committee of the InterNational Committee for Information Technology Standards (INCITS), an American National Standards Institute–accredited standards committee. It started for use primarily in the supercomputer field, but has become the standard connection type for storage area networks in enterprise storage.