The part numbers for the Emulex 16 Gb Gen 6 FC HBAs include the following items:

• An FC HBA adapter with one or two 16 Gb (16/8/4 Gbps speeds) FC SW SFP+ installed
• 3U (standard) and 2U (low-profile) adapter brackets
• Publications package

Key features

The Emulex 16 Gb Gen 6 FC HBAs have the following features:

• Maximum performance with up to 1.6 million input/output operations per second (IOPS) to support larger server virtualization deployments and scalable cloud initiatives, and performance to match new multicore processors, SSDs/flash storage, and faster server host bus architectures.
• Supports Brocade Clearlink diagnostics, which helps ensure optical and signal integrity for Fibre Channel cables and optics by validating the health, reliability and performance of the network prior to, and after, deployment. Allows the IT administrator to detect faulty cables and optics in minutes versus hours. Brocade ClearLink is also seamlessly integrated into Emulex OneCommand.
• Offer end-to-end Quality of Service (QoS) application prioritization with ExpressLane technology, which allows customers to prioritize faster storage traffic (such as SSDs) ahead of slower traffic (such as spinning hard drives), alleviating potential bottlenecks from slow storage.
• Frame-level multiplexing and out-of-order frame reassembly increases link efficiency and maximizes HBA performance.
• vScale performance and scalability: Multicore ASIC engine with eight cores supports 255 VFs, 1024 MSI-X, and 16127 logins/open exchanges for maximum VM density.
• The Emulex OneCommand Manager enterprise class management application features a multiprotocol and cross-platform architecture that provides centralized management of all Emulex HBAs. VMware vCenter plug-in provides OneCommand support within a VMware environment.
• GreenState power efficiency reduces data center power consumption and associated operational expenses by delivering exceptional power to port ratios.
• End-to-end data protection with hardware parity, CRC, ECC, and other advanced error checking and correcting algorithms, which ensures that data is safe from corruption.
• Support forward error correction (FEC), a new Gen 6 standard feature that provides enhanced data reliability and performance by automatically detecting and recovering from bit errors.
• T10-PI data integrity with high performance offload provides end-to-end data corruption protection.
• Rock-solid reliability and thermal characteristics, which are essential for mission-critical, cloud, and virtualized applications.
• Emulex HBAs are renowned for reliability, ensuring maximum SAN uptime. Their "it just works” reputation is based on 17 million installed ports with proven industry-leading reliability of 10 million hours field Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF).
• Support for Message Signaled Interrupts eXtended (MSI-X) improves host utilization and enhances application performance.
• Support for 16 Gb, 8 Gb, and 4 Gb FC devices.
• Comprehensive virtualization capabilities with support for N_Port ID Virtualization (NPIV).
• A common driver model allows a single driver to support all Emulex HBAs on a given OS.
• Reduces the number of cards, cables, and PCIe slots required.
• Exceptional performance per watt and price/performance ratios.
• Integrates seamlessly into existing SANs.
• Allows application of SAN best practices, tools, and processes with virtual server deployments.
• Ensures data availability and data integrity.
• Universal boot capability allows the appropriate boot environment to be automatically selected for any given hardware.
• Boot from SAN capability reduces the system management costs and increases uptime.
• Detailed and real-time event logging and tracing enables quick diagnosis of SAN problems.
• The beaconing feature flashes the HBA LEDs, simplifying their identification within server racks.
• The environmental monitoring feature helps optimize SAN availability.

Technical specifications

The Emulex 16 Gb Gen 6 FC HBAs have the following specifications:

• I/O controller: Emulex Engine 501 (XE501) I/O Controller (IOC)
• Host interface: PCIe 3.0 x8
• Ports: Single-port and dual-port SFP+ based adapters
• Link speed: Support for 16 Gb, 8 Gb and 4 Gb FC link speeds, which are automatically negotiated
• Data rate: 14.025 Gbps (1600 MBps), 8.5 Gbps (800 MBps), and 4.25 Gbps (400 MBps) autosensing (per port), with full duplex
• Performance: Up to 1,600,000 IOPS
• Industry standards:
  • Current ANSI/IETF standards: FC-PI-4, FC-PI-5, FC-PI-6 , FC-FS-3, FC-LS-2, FC-GS-6, FC-DA, FC-DA2, FCP-4, SPC-4, SBC-3, and SSC-4
  • Legacy ANSI/IETF standards: FC-PH, FC-PH-2, FC-PH-3, FC-PI, FC-PI-2, FC-PI-3, FC-FS, FC-GS-2/3/4/5, FCP-2/3, FC-HBA, FC-TAPE, FC-MI, SPC-3, SBC-2, SSC-2, and SSC-3
• Topology: Point-to-point and switched fabric
• Supported media: Hot-pluggable 16 Gbps Fibre Channel SFP+ short wave optical transceivers (850 nm) with LC connectors (included with the adapters)
• Distance support:
  • Operating at 16 Gbps:
    • Up to 15 m on 62.5/125 µm OM1 Multi-Mode Fiber (MMF)
    • Up to 35 m on 50/125 µm OM2 MMF
    • Up to 100 m on 50/125 µm OM3 MMF
    • Up to 125 m on 50/125 µm OM4 MMF
  • Operating at 8 Gbps:
    • Up to 21 m on 62.5/125 µm OM1 MMF
    • Up to 50 m on 50/125 µm OM2 MMF
    • Up to 150 m on 50/125 µm OM3 MMF
  • Operating at 4 Gbps:
    • Up to 70 m on 62.5/125 µm OM1 MMF
    • Up to 150 m on 50/125 µm OM2 MMF
• Management software:
  • Emulex AutoPilot Installer automates the HBA installation process and reduces time to deployment and administrative costs. Automated installation and configuration of driver and management tools simplifies deployment of multiple adapters within Windows environments. A single installation of driver and management application eliminates multiple reboots and ensures that each component is installed correctly and the HBA is ready to use.
  • The Emulex OneCommand Manager application enables centralized discovery, monitoring, reporting, and administration of Emulex HBAs and CNAs on local and remote hosts. Powerful automation capabilities facilitate remote driver parameter, firmware, and boot code upgrades. In addition to the GUI interface, management functions can also be performed through a scriptable command-line interface (CLI) and a web browser.
  • Emulex management instrumentation complies with Open Management Standards, such as SMI-S and common HBA API support, which enables seamless upward integration into enterprise storage and server management solutions.

Servers

The Emulex 16 Gb Gen 6 FC HBAs are supported on the following Lenovo servers:

• System x3500 M5 Type 5464
• System x3550 M5 Type 5463
• System x3550 M5 Type 8869
• System x3650 M5 Type 5462
• System x3650 M5 Type 8871
• System x3750 M4 Type 8753
• System x3850 X6 Type 6241 (E7 v2, E7 v3, and E7 v4)
• System x3950 X6 Type 6241 (E7 v2, E7 v3, and E7 v4)
• NeXtScale nx360 M5 Type 5465 (E5-2600 v3 and E5-2600 v4)

For Emulex 16 Gb Gen 6 FC HBAs support details for a particular server, refer to a Lenovo Press product guide for the server, found at: http://lenovopress.com

Operating systems

The Emulex 16 Gb Gen 6 FC HBAs support the following operating systems:

• Microsoft:
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Microsoft Windows Server 2012
• Red Hat:
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Update 2
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Update 1
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 Update 7 Server x64 Edition
• SUSE:
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP1
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP4 for AMD64/EM64T
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3 for AMD64/EM64T
• VMware:
  • VMware vSphere 6.0 Update 2
  • VMware vSphere 6.0 Update 1
  • VMware vSphere 5.5 Update 3
  • VMware vSphere 5.5 Update 2

SAN switches