NPIV

About N Port Identifier Virtualization

N port identifier virtualization (NPIV) provides a means to assign multiple FC IDs to a single N port. This feature allows multiple applications on the N port to use different identifiers and allows access control, zoning, and port security to be implemented at the application level. The following figure shows an example application using NPIV.

Figure 1. NPIV Example

Enabling N Port Identifier Virtualization

To enable or disable NPIV on the switch, perform this task:

Before You Begin

You must globally enable NPIV for all VSANs on the switch to allow the NPIV-enabled applications to use multiple N port identifiers.


Note


All of the N port identifiers are allocated in the same VSAN.



SUMMARY STEPS

1.    switch# configuration terminal

2.    switch(config)# feature npiv

3.    switch(config)# no feature npiv


DETAILED STEPS
  Command or Action Purpose
Step 1 switch# configuration terminal
 

Enters configuration mode.

 
Step 2 switch(config)# feature npiv
 

Enables NPIV for all VSANs on the switch.

 
Step 3 switch(config)# no feature npiv
 

Disables (default) NPIV on the switch.