Table Of Contents
Cisco MDS 9000 Family Port
Analyzer AdapterCisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter
Fibre Channel Traffic and Protocol Analysis
Industry EMC, Safety, and Environmental Standards
Data Sheet
Cisco MDS 9000 Family Port
Analyzer Adapter
Highlights
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Encapsulation of Fibre Channel frames into Ethernet frames—Enables transparent, low-cost analysis of Fibre Channel traffic while leveraging existing Ethernet infrastructure
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Figure 1
Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter
Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter
The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter enables effective, low-cost analysis of Fibre Channel traffic anywhere in the network at any time. The device is a standalone Fibre Channel-to-Ethernet adapter that allows for simple, transparent analysis of Fibre Channel traffic in a switched fabric. Specifically, Fibre Channel layers FC-2, FC-3, and FC-4 may be examined without any network disruption. The FC-2 layer specifies the structure, format, and usage of Fibre Channel frames and defines flow control and classes of service. The FC-3 layer defines common service features like multicast. The FC-4 layer specifies the mapping rules for upper-layer protocols. The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter supports all Fibre Channel frame sizes. Additionally, EISL headers can be encapsulated to be included for analysis.
The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter is a "plug-and-play" accessory for the Cisco MDS 9000 Family of Directors and Fabric Switches that enables the use of the Switched Port Analyzer (SPAN) feature. SPAN allows storage network administrators to view non-disruptively the traffic between two Fibre Channel ports on a Cisco MDS 9000 Director or Fabric Switch by replicating traffic to a SPAN Destination Port (SD-Port). The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter encapsulates the Fibre Channel frames from the SD-Port into Ethernet frames that may be analyzed using a locally attached PC.
The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter is a self-contained hardware device that does not require external software to operate and cannot be field upgraded with software.There are two versions of the Port Analyzer Adapter, the base version (Part number DS-PAA) and an enhanced version (Part number DS-PAA-2). The two versions are identical in hardware, but the enhanced version becomes a powerful tool to aid in accurate performance monitoring of the network when used in conjunction with the Cisco Fabric Manager. The enhanced Port Analyzer Adapter can record the original size of truncated Fibre Channel frames as they become encapsulated in Ethernet. This allows the Cisco Fabric Manager to calculate performance data without requiring forwarding of full frames.
Both versions of the Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter ship with one multimode Fibre Channel Small Form-factor Pluggable (SFP) for short wave connectivity. Single mode Fibre Channel SFPs may be used, as well, and are available from Cisco. The adapter also ships with one AC to DC converter power supply.
Figure 2 illustrates a common network topology using the Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter.
Figure 2
Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter Implementation
Fibre Channel Traffic and Protocol Analysis
The following Cisco MDS 9000 Family Fibre Channel analysis solutions utilize the Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter:
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The Cisco Traffic Analyzer provides real-time analysis of SPAN traffic or analysis of captured traffic through a Web browser user interface. Traffic encapsulated by one or more Port Analyzer Adapters can be analyzed concurrently with a single PC and ntop, which is public domain software enhanced by Cisco for Fibre Channel traffic analysis. This Cisco Traffic Analyzer solution enables you to quickly determine the throughput for traffic between specific Fibre Channel sources and destinations, all traffic in a particular Virtual SAN (VSAN), or all network traffic. Round trip response times, SCSI I/Os per second, SCSI read vs. write traffic throughput and frame counts, SCSI session status and management task information are provided. Additional statistics are also available on Fibre Channel frame sizes and network management protocols.
The Cisco Traffic Analyzer throughput values are only accurate when used with the enhanced version of the Port Analyzer Adapter if data truncation is enabled.
The Cisco Protocol Analyzer enables Fibre Channel traffic to be analyzed at the frame level in real-time or from captured SPAN traffic through a Java graphical user interface. Traffic encapsulated by a PAA can be analyzed by Ethereal, which is public domain software enhanced by Cisco for Fibre Channel and SCSI protocol decoding. Ethereal filters captured data to reduce file size and to enable easier location of frames of interest.
The key advantage of the Cisco solution is its simplicity. The portable, lightweight adapter can be connected to any port on any Director or Fabric Switch in the MDS 9000 Family. Storage administrators can troubleshoot anywhere in the network quickly and cost-effectively, with no network disruption.
The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter allows analysis of Fibre Channel frames in the following modes:
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These modes may be configured via a four-position DIP switch located at the rear of the adapter.
Specifications
Interfaces
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Performance
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Table 1 gives supported Fibre Channel optics, media, and transmission distances.
Indicators
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Environmental
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Physical Characteristics
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Power
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50-60Hz nominal (±3 Hz for full range)
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Safety Compliance
The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter meets the following compliance and safety standards:
Safety Compliance
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EMC Compliance
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Industry EMC, Safety, and Environmental Standards
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Ordering Information
Table 2 gives ordering information for the Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter.
1The Cisco MDS 9000 Port Analyzer Adapter automatically ships with one DS-SFP-FC-2G-SW
