Brocade 300 Switch - Andovercg

DATA SHEETBrocade 300 SwitchSmall SAN Affordability with Growth CapabilitiesHIGHLIGHTS Provides an affordable, flexiblefoundation for entry-level SANs, andan edge switch for core-to-edge SANenvironments Delivers up to 24 ports of 8 Gbpsperformance in an energy-efficient,optimized 1U form factor to supportthe most demanding server and virtualserver deployments Simplifies configuration andmanagement with easy-to-use toolssuch as the Brocade EZSwitchSetupwizard, and is Microsoft Simple SANcompatible Enables “pay-as-you-grow” expansionwith Ports On Demand (PoD)scalability from 8 to 16 or 24 portsin 8-port increments Offers dual functionality as eithera full-fabric SAN switch or as anNPIV-enabled Brocade AccessGateway that simplifies serverconnectivity in heterogeneousenterprise fabrics Protects existing device investmentswith auto-sensing 1, 2, 4, and8 Gbps capabilities and nativeoperation with Brocade and BrocadeM-Series fabrics Future-proofs investments byenabling organizations to use 4 GbpsSFPs today and upgrade to 8 GbpsSFP when requiredAs the value and volume of business data continue to rise, organizationsneed technology solutions that are easy to implement and manage,and that can grow and change with minimal disruption. The Brocade 300 Switch provides small to medium-sized enterprises with StorageArea Network (SAN) connectivity that simplifies their IT managementinfrastructures, improves system performance, maximizes the value ofvirtual server deployments, and reduces overall storage costs.The 8 Gbps Fibre Channel Brocade 300provides a simple, affordable, singleswitch solution for both new and existingSANs. To simplify deployment, theBrocade 300 features the EZSwitchSetupwizard and other usability and configurationenhancements, as well as the optionalBrocade Access Gateway mode ofoperation. Moreover, it provides stateof-the-art performance and Ports onDemand (PoD) scalability to supportSAN expansion and enable long-terminvestment protection.Increased Efficiency toManage Business GrowthThe Brocade 300 significantly increasesperformance and functionality for SANsat an entry-level price. Based on sixthgeneration Brocade technology, theBrocade 300 combines auto-sensing 1,2, 4, and 8 Gbps throughput with featuresthat greatly enhance fabric operation.The evolutionary design provides thesecapabilities while consuming less than2.5 watts of power per port for exceptionalpower and cooling efficiency.As a result, organizations can enjoythe advantages of low-cost deviceconnectivity and powerful capabilities thatmake SAN technology highly accessibleand affordable. In addition, hot code loadand activation help maximize applicationuptime with faster system softwareupgrades and maintenance to reduce thedependency on scheduled outages.Pay-As-You-Grow ScalabilityThe Brocade 300 integrates innovativehardware and software features that makeit easy to deploy, manage, and integrateinto a wide range of IT environments.With powerful yet flexible capabilities—such as PoD scalability from 8 to 16 or24 ports in 8-port increments—theBrocade 300 enables organizationsto start small and grow their storagenetworks in a non-disruptive manner. In

addition, organizations can initially deploy4 Gbps Small Form-Factor Pluggables(SFPs) and upgrade to 8 Gbps SFP when necessary.BROCADE ACCESS GATEWAY MODEThe Brocade 300 can be deployedas a full-fabric switch or as a BrocadeAccess Gateway, which simplifies serverconnectivity into heterogeneous SANs (thedefault mode setting is a switch). BrocadeAccess Gateway mode utilizes N Port IDVirtualization (NPIV) switch standards topresent physical and virtual servers directlyto the core of SAN fabrics. This makesit transparent to the SAN fabric, greatlyreducing management of the networkedge. The Brocade 300 in Brocade AccessGateway mode can connect serversto NPIV-enabled Brocade B-Series,M-Series, or other SAN fabrics.Organizations can easily enable BrocadeAccess Gateway mode via BrocadeNetwork Advisor, Brocade Web Tools,or a Command Line Interface (CLI).Key benefits of Brocade Access Gatewaymode include: Improved scalability for large orrapidly growing server and virtual serverenvironments Reduced management of the networkedge since Brocade Access Gatewaydoes not have a domain identity andappears transparent to the core fabric Support for heterogeneous SANconfigurations without reducedfunctionality for server connectivityNote: Brocade Access Gateway mode forthe Brocade 300 is supported only in24-port configurations.12Backward and ForwardCompatibilitySuperior NetworkPerformanceThe Brocade 300 operates seamlesslywith existing Brocade switches throughnative E Port connectivity into BrocadeFabric OS (FOS) or M-Enterprise OS(M-EOS)1 environments. In addition,the Brocade 300 can enable futureexpansion to larger core-to-edge networkarchitectures as business needs dictate.The Brocade 300 provides highperformance with all ports capable ofoperating at 1, 2, 4, and 8 Gbps toenable up to 192 Gbps of uncongestedthroughput. Auto-sensing and speedmatching of data traffic providesinteroperability with previous 1, 2, and4 Gbps devices. To provide more targetedperformance, enhanced Brocade InterSwitch Link (ISL) Trunking combines up toeight ISLs between a pair of switches into asingle, logical high-speed trunk capable ofup to 64 Gbps of throughput.To facilitate deployment, the Brocade 300integrates easily into heterogeneous serverenvironments such as Windows, UNIX,Linux, Solaris, and AIX, as well as virtualserver environments. As a result, thesecapabilities make it ideal for SAN solutionssuch as virtual server deployment, LANfree backup, and server and storageconsolidation.A Better Way to ImproveBusiness OperationsOne of the primary benefits of a SANenvironment is the consolidation ofhardware resources. This centralizedapproach helps increase operationalefficiency and staff productivity, two criticalrequirements for small and mediumsized organizations. With fewer physicalresources to manage, staff memberscan handle additional business growth orfocus on other strategic initiatives.High-performance 8 Gbps Fibre Channelcapabilities speed data transfer to helpkeep data flowing and applicationsrunning. As a result, organizations cansignificantly improve storage utilizationin distributed e-mail environments, forexample. In addition, a SAN-basedarchitecture enables LAN-free backupand more efficient data center resourcemanagement—increasing overall systemperformance and productivity (seeFigure 1).Simplified ManagementBrocade 300 setup and configurationis simplified with the BrocadeEZSwitchSetup wizard, which makesswitch configuration, deployment, andmanagement an easy three-step pointand-click process. For multi-switchenvironments, Brocade Network Advisorprovides comprehensive management ofdata center fabrics, including configuration,monitoring, and management of Brocadebackbones, switches, and adapters. TheBrocade 300, which is Microsoft SimpleSAN-compatible, also has a USB port thatincreases serviceability and error loggingby facilitating firmware upgrades anddownloads of system log files.Traffic Measurement andAdaptive NetworkingThe Brocade 300 offers BottleneckDetection, Top Talkers (part of BrocadeAdvanced Performance Monitoring),and Adaptive Networking, a suite of toolsincluding Ingress Rate Limiting, TrafficIsolation, and Quality of Service (QoS).These advanced capabilities help optimizefabric behavior and ensure ample bandwidthfor mission-critical applications.Brocade M-EOS fabrics are McDATA switches and directors running McDATA Enterprise OS in McDATA Fabric mode or McDATA Open Fabric mode.

BEORE SANAFTER dowsLinuxTapeBrocadeSAN FabricDisk 40%utilizationTapeDisk 15%utilizationTapeDisk 30%utilizationDisk 80%utilizationHigh-PerformanceShared AccessTapeFigure 1: A Brocade SAN-based consolidation solution can significantly improve data availability and resource utilization.Bottleneck Detection identifies and alertsadministrators to “slow drain” storagedevices causing latency and I/O timeouts,particularly in highly virtualized serverenvironments. Top Talkers measuresthe top bandwidth-consuming traffic(including by individual virtual machine)in real time over a physical deviceconnection or throughout a network switch.Ingress Rate Limiting restricts data flow fromless-critical hosts at preset bandwidths.Traffic Isolation dedicates paths in thefabric to high-bandwidth data flows. AndQoS expedites critical traffic in the event ofcongestion while keeping all traffic flowing.Brocade Global ServicesMaximizing InvestmentsBrocade Global Services has theexpertise to help organizations buildscalable, efficient cloud infrastructures.Leveraging 15 years of expertise instorage, networking, and virtualization,Brocade Global Services delivers worldclass professional services, technicalsupport, network monitoring services,and education, enabling organizationsto maximize their Brocade investments,accelerate new technology deployments,and optimize the performance ofnetworking infrastructures.To help optimize technology investments,Brocade and its partners offer completesolutions that include professionalservices, technical support, and education.For more information, contact a Brocadesales partner or visit www.brocade.com.For information about supported SANstandards, visitwww.brocade.com/sanstandards.For information about switch and deviceinteroperability, visitwww.brocade.com/interoperability.For information about hardware regulatorycompliance, visitwww.brocade.com/regulatorycompliance.3