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manual abstract
The Emulex OneConnect Universal Converged Network Adapter (UCNA) is the first adapter to provide protocol offloads for TCP/IP, FCoE and iSCSI with a single product platform. It allows companies to wire once, creating a seamless upgrade path to solidify the benefits of network convergence. Emulex has a long and successful history of working closely with Microsoft and other partners to leverage new technologies that evolve in converged network environments. This deployment guide presents information about network convergence and also provides an overview of how to realize the maximum benefits when deploying OneConnect FCoE technology with Windows Server 2003, 2008 and 2008 R2. Network Convergence The combination of high bandwidth demand, increasing network sprawl and the growing need for more adaptive networking infrastructure poses a major challenge for data center managers. Pain points in today’s data center networks include: nMultiple network fabrics, each dedicated to a specific type of traffic nHigh numbers of adapters and switch ports nComplicated cabling infrastructure n Complex management of switch and adapter firmware and associated service contracts n How to maximize server virtualization return on investment (ROI) Data Center Bridging and FCoE The IEEE Data Center Bridging (DCB) standard enables multiple traffic types over a single link, or network convergence, with FCoE and Ethernet using the same cable. With DCB, data centers can achieve the following: n Consolidate—Replace multiple 1GbE links with a high-bandwidth 10GbE infrastructure, significantly reducing the number of switch ports, adapter ports and cables. n Converge—Unify networking and storage traffic to a single network, eliminating the need for dedicated networks for each traffic type. n Virtualize—Virtualize the underlying physical network infrastructure and provide service level guarantees for each type of traffic. In addition, the solution must be capable of responding to dynamic changes in network services based on the business demands of data center applications. At a Glance Windows users look to Emulex for high performance, scalable, reliable connectivity solutions. With converged networking, Windows users now have greater choices when deploying a storage area network (SAN) with iSCSI and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) protocols. Emulex OneConnect Universal Converged Network Adapters (UCNAs) leverage ten generations of advanced, field-proven LightPulse™ Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapter (HBA) technology, making them ideal for server I/O consolidation. This deployment guide reviews Data Center Bridging (DCB) as the foundation of network convergence; includes a technology overview of FCoE; and provides a detailed description of how to configure an Emulex OneConnect FCoE CNA and deploy converged networking with FCoE in a Windows Server environment. Products n Emulex OneConnect OCe11102-F and OCe10102-F FCoE CNAs n Emulex OneCommand™ Manager application n Emulex AutoPilot Installer® n Windows Server 2003, 2008 and 2008 R2 2 Emulex Whitepaper Network Convergence with Emulex and Windows Advanced Management Solutions FCoE Technology Overview The FCoE protocol specification provides for direct encapsulation of a complete Fibre Channel frame (including checksum and framing bits) within an Ethernet frame and avoids the overhead of any intermediate protocols (see Figure 1). Figure 1 FCoE encapsulation in Ethernet This lightweight encapsulation ensures that FCoE-capable Ethernet switches are less compute-intensive, providing high performance that is typical of a Fibre Channel network. By retaining Fibre Channel as the upper layer protocol, FCoE fully supports critical Fibre Channel capabilities, including fabric login, zoning and Logical Unit Number (LUN) masking. Benefits of Network Convergence and FCoE The combination of network convergence and FCoE provide the following key benefits to IT organizations: nInfrastructure simplification—Network and storage I/O is converged over a single 10GbE infrastructure that supports SAN and local area network (LAN) connectivity with common adapters, switch ports and cables. nProtection for existing Fibre Channel investments—FCoE is designed to fully leverage existing Fibre Channel investments. Deployments begin at the edge of the data center and storage traffic is routed by a Fibre Channel forwarding switch into the existing Fibre Channel SAN. Full interoperability with installed Fibre Channel switches and arrays means Advanced Management Solutions FCoE Technology Overview The FCoE protocol specification provides for direct encapsulation of a complete Fibre Channel frame (including checksum and framing bits) within an Ethernet frame and avoids the overhead of any intermediate protocols (see Figure 1). Figure 1 FCoE encapsulation in Ethernet This lightweight encapsulation ensures that FCoE-capable Ethernet switches are less compute-intensive, providing high performance that is typical of a Fibre Channel ...