D A T A S H E E T
SANbox® 5800V/5802V
Fibre Channel Stackable Switch
50902-00 E
2
Next-Generation Stacking: A Good Idea Gets Better!
SANbox 5800V lets you connect 8Gb, 4Gb or 2Gb devices to a SAN
for about the same cost as competing 4Gb-only solutions – but the
investment protection advantages go much deeper! Unlike other
solutions, the 5800V offers the ability to
phase bandwidth provisioning
incrementally within your ISL fabric, the most performance-critical
area of the SAN.
1. Start with “Always On” 10Gb ISLs
Each SANbox 5800V ships with all four 10Gb stacking ports active
by default. Basic inter-switch connectivity is now included with
the product! Customers no longer need to take ISL port costs into
account when planning their SANs – every port they purchase may
now be connected directly to a server or storage device!
(See sidebar
for more on stacking.)
At their default 10Gb setting, the four stacking ports provide over
50Gb additional bandwidth per switch – the equivalent of six extra
8Gb ports!
10Gb ISL speed provides more than enough bandwidth for customers
in the early stages of their 8Gb migration, when many switch ports
will still be attached to 4Gb storage and other legacy devices.
2. 20Gb Bandwidth On-Demand
When a majority of SANbox device ports are eventually connected
to actual 8Gb devices, additional inter-switch bandwidth may be
desired. At that point, customers may non-disruptively upgrade
the ISL ports on one or more switches to 20Gb – the
World’s
Fastest Fibre Channel. 20Gb, the only ISL technology that perfectly
complements 8Gb device speeds, extends the stability, cost-savings,
and performance benefits of a true backbone architecture to next-
generation SANs.
IT managers now have all the network headroom they need to deploy
new applications and technologies with confidence. Best of all, since
20Gb uses the same cables/connectors as 10Gb, customers can
upgrade their entire SAN at the click of a mouse –
without touching
a cable or purchasing any new hardware. Only QLogic offers such a
cost-deferred “pay-as-you-grow” plan for the 8Gb transition.
Easy to Install and Manage
Installation and configuration wizards
•
– From basic switch
setup to advanced zoning and extended distance configuration,
the SANbox 5800V has automated routines to make deployment
a snap. Installation is a 3-step point-and-click process. Self-
configuring switch ports automatically adjust to 8Gb, 4Gb, or 2Gb
device speeds.
What Is Stacking?
Stackable switches, long familiar to Ethernet users, were
introduced for Fibre Channel by QLogic in 2003. Stacking
cuts
complexity and costs by providing a stable, highly-expandable
transport for aggregate ISL traffic – eliminating the disruption,
port waste and management hassles associated with using device
ports as ISLs.
True Backbone Value
In a stackable architecture, each switch features dedicated ports
for inter-switch links (ISLs) – that is, for connecting to other
switches. These ports run at a much higher bandwidth than the
regular data/device ports, and therefore require far fewer
connections to achieve specific bandwidth goals.
Need more server or storage ports? Simply add another switch to the
stack – no need to move existing cables or disrupt devices.
Affordable Now – Big Savings Later
Low initial cost
•
– Out of the box, dual-speed SANbox 5000
products provide superior performance at a price-per-port
competitive with single-speed, non-stacking edge switches.
Reduced expansion costs
•
– Multi-switch SANbox networks
require
up to 50% fewer switches to achieve the same device
port counts. And since each stacking port matches the
throughput of three device ports, SANbox ISL connections are
far less expensive per unit of bandwidth. For instance, a single
20Gb connection (25.5 Gbps actual line rate, 51 Gbps full-
duplex) saves
six 8Gb device ports for devices – and eliminates
the need for
six expensive 8Gb SFPs. Stacking has never made
more sense from a budget versus performance perspective!
Longer product and topology lifespan
•
– Other vendors force
customers to take a non-linear “rip and replace” approach to
SAN growth, offering a limited solution at the low end, followed
by a radically different architecture as the installation matures.
QLogic’s modular ISL backbone helps customers pace
investments and deployment activities
predictably over time,
with fewer wrong turns and reversals – even when corporate
strategies and directions change.
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