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Fibre Channel Cards – The Difference?
What is the difference between the Dual Channel and Quad Channel 4Gb Fibre Channel Cards. What does the difference mean to data transfer and connection to a SAN?
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4 Replies
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jon,
It’s as simple as you think. Each channel is more through put. Hence, a dual channel card carries twice the data as a single.
The higher the resolution, the more you need this. Example: Even though our G-5’s have “dual Channel” cards, we only have a single fiber cable connecting to the X-SAN. However, we primarily work at off-line resolution, so our bandwidth requirements are low. In contrast, our on-line rooms use BOTH sides of the dual channel card for increased bandwidth.
Mark
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With the quad channel card, you could connect two Xserve RAIDs to one MacPro using only one card slot.
-Russ
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So if you used both sides of the Dual Channel card to connect to your SAN, how quick a Data transfer rate would that give you from machine to storage?
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Your data transfer rate is dependent upon the speed of your drives, the nature of your “Raid” scheme, and the number of spindles (drives) within the raid.
The raid controller can also add some “overhead” to the load, thereby reducing the transfer rate. Apple has these facts and info on their website. Keep in mind these figures are like gasoline miles per gallon ratings… your mileage may vary.
Mark
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