Brocade SAN Glossary for Fabric OS v6.0.0

Brocade SAN Glossary 1/29/2008 Page 20 of 29
Out-of-band Transmission of management protocol outside the Fibre Channel network,
usually over Ethernet.
Over-subscription When more nodes could potentially contend for a resource than the resource
could simultaneously support (typically an ISL). Over-subscription could be a
desirable attribute in fabric topology, as long as it does not produce
unacceptable levels of congestion.
OX_ID Originator Exchange Identifier. A 2-byte field in the frame header used by the
originator of an exchange to identify frames as being part of an exchange.
P
Parallel The simultaneous transmission of data bits over multiple lines.
Participating mode The normal operating mode for an L_Port that has acquired an AL_PA on a
loop.
Passive copper A low-cost copper Fibre Channel connection allowing distances up to 13 m
between devices.
PBC Port Bypass Circuit. A circuit in hubs or a disk enclosure to open or close a
loop to add or remove nodes.
PCBA Printed Circuit Board Assembly.
Performance Monitoring
A Brocade switch feature that monitors port traffic and includes frame
counters, SCSI read monitors, SCSI write monitors, and others.
Phantom address A PID value assigned to a device that is not physically in a loop.
Phantom device A device that is not physically in an Arbitrated Loop, but is logically included
via the use of a phantom address.
Phantom domain ID The domain ID used for importing devices into edge or backbone fabrics.
Physical fabric In AD-aware fabrics, an unfiltered view of the actual fabric.
PID Port identifier.
PKI Public Key Infrastructure. An infrastructure based on public key cryptography
and CA (certificate authority) that uses digital certificates.
PKI certification utility Public Key Infrastructure certification utility; enables the collection of
certificate requests from switches and the loading of certificates to switches.
PLDA Private Loop Direct Attached. A technical report specifying a logical loop.
PLOGI A port-to-port login process by which initiators establish sessions with
targets.
Point-to-Point A dedicated Fibre Channel connection between two devices.
Port A Fibre Channel entity that connects a node to the network.
Port address In Fibre Channel technology, defined in hexadecimal; in Brocade Fabric OS,
can be defined by a domain and port number combination or by area
number.