Brocade FCIP

Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) is an Internet Protocol  used for sending Fibre Channel data over an IP network.  The Brocade 7500 and 7800 Extension switches are Fibre Channel (FC), and FCIP switching and routing solutions for remote storage and SAN connectivity. Silver Peak software is “Brocade Data Center Ready” and has been extensively tested for compatibility with Brocade-based Storage Area Networking (SAN) infrastructure switches. 

Replication between remote locations using the FCIP protocol can be severely limited by the same issues facing other IP based storage traffic: namely, limited throughput,  data transmission errors and drops, and high round trip time (RTT) latency times caused by distance, routing design, and peering policies of the intervening service provider networks.

Performance Testing Results

Testing with Brocade 7800 FCIP switches shows that Silver Peak can accelerate Brocade FCIP traffic, especially when packet loss and significant delay are present on the WAN link. SCSI write throughput across a 155 Mbps WAN with .1 percent packet loss increased by 37X with Silver Peak. Brocade FCIP gets the best performance boost when Silver Peak is set to “No dynamic windowing.”

How Silver Peak helps

Silver Peak Replication Acceleration software fixes the problems that exist on the WAN, enabling more data to be replicated, in less time, and over longer distances. Silver Peak software solves WAN problems by repairing dropped and out-of-order packets, overcoming the effects of latency, and providing real-time deduplication and compression of all data sent across the WAN. Silver Peak also provides an IPSec VPN that secures replication traffic without impacting performance. When Silver Peak the problems on the WAN have been repaired, it is easy to meet, maintain, and even reduce RPOs.

• Send more data across the WAN – Silver Peak performs advanced deduplication and compression for data sent over FCIP between Brocade switches. By reducing the data before it is sent across the WAN, more data can be sent without upgrading bandwidth.
• Enable SAN replication across cost-effective shared WAN infrastructures, such as MPLS and Internet VPNs.  Replication performance declines significantly in the presence of packet loss and latency. With Silver Peak replication acceleration software, all available bandwidth can be used for replication, making RPOs attainable over low cost, shared WANs. 
• Increase the geographic distance between disaster recovery facilities – Above 80 ms of latency (typical of replication across North America), the Brocade 7800 throughput starts to drop. Silver Peak offers significant advantage in these higher latency environments (up to 200 ms, for example).
• Simplify installation - Silver Peak products work with the Brocade 7500 and 7800 solutions “out of the box” – no special configuration or networking expertise is required.
• Secure data in transit with an IPsec AES-256 site to site VPN.

Once deployed, Silver Peak software enables any storage administrator to manage the Silver Peak implementation.  Reports are in storage-friendly terms showing the data sent across the WAN in bytes, and replication throughput. Storage traffic is segmented by application, such as replication and or backup. Reporting includes minute, hour, and daily intervals, and includes a 10 day chart to reflect performance data before and after any changes made during the weekend. With Brocade FCIP switches and Silver Peak Replication Acceleration software, you can protect all of your business-critical data and replicate consistently, regardless of network problems or distance.  

Brocade and Silver Peak

• Brocade-Silver Peak Technology Partnership
• Brocade 7800 information  (on brocade.com)