Fibre Channel is a computer communications protocol designed to meet the many requirements related to the ever increasing demand for high performance information transfer. The goals of Fibre Channel include:
Allowing many well-known existing channel and networking protocols to run over the same physical interface and media
High bandwidth (100MB/s and beyond)
Flexible topologies
Connectivity over several kilometers
Support for multiple data rates, media types, and connectors
In general, Fibre Channel attempts to combine the benefits of both channel and network technologies.
A channel is a closed, direct, structured, and predictable mechanism for transmitting data between relatively few entities. Typically, once a channel is set up, there is very little decision making needed, thus allowing for a high speed, hardware intensive environment. Channels are commonly used to connect peripheral devices such as a disk drive, printer, tape drive, etc. to a workstation. Common channel protocols are Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) and High Performance Parallel Interface (HIPPI).
Networks, however, are unstructured and unpredictable. Networks are able to automatically adjust to changing environments and can support a larger number of connected nodes. These factors require that much more decision making take place in order to successfully route data from one point to another. Much of this decision making is done in software, making networks inherently slower than channels. Examples of common networks are Ethernet, Token Ring, and Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI).
In 1988, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Task Group X3T11 began work on the Fibre Channel standards. At this time, at least 20 separate documents, each defining an aspect of Fibre Channel, are either proposed or in draft form. Although several of the standards are in their early stages, Fibre Channel products are being shipped today. A list of companies involved in Fibre Channel can be found on the Fibre Channel Association web site.