Table 2. The main features and benefits of the IBM Storage Networking SAN192C-6 (part 2 of 4) Feature Benefit Software features Advanced traffic  management The following advanced traffic management capabilities in IBM Storage Networking  SAN192C-6 simplify deployment and optimization of large-scale fabrics: Virtual output queue (VOQ): Helps ensure line-rate performance on each port   (independent of traffic pattern) by eliminating head-of-line blocking. Up to 4095 buffer-to-buffer credits: The use of extended credits allows up to 4095   buffer credits from a pool of more than 6000 buffer credits for a module to be  allocated to ports as needed to greatly extend the distance for Fibre Channel  SANs. Alternatively, 4095 buffer credits can be assigned to an individual port for  optimal bandwidth utilization across distance. PortChannels: Allow users to aggregate up to 16 physical ISLs into a single logical   bundle, which optimizes bandwidth utilization across all links. The bundle can  consist of any speed-matched ports from any module in the chassis, which helps  ensure that the bundle can remain active even if a module fails. The IBM Storage  Networking c-type family switch architecture helps ensure that frames can never  be reordered within a switch. Fabric Shortest Path First (FSPF)-based multipathing: Provides the intelligence to   load balance across up to 16 Fibre Channel equal-cost paths and dynamically  reroutes traffic if there is a switch failure. QoS: Can prioritize critical traffic to manage bandwidth and control latency.  Intelligent network  services VSAN technology, ACLs for hardware-based intelligent frame processing, and  fabric-wide QoS enable migration from SAN islands to enterprise-wide storage  networks and includes the following features: Integrated hardware-based VSANs and Inter-VSAN Routing (IVR): Integrating   VSANs into port-level hardware allows any port in a system or fabric to be  partitioned to any VSAN. Integrated hardware-based IVR provides line-rate routing  between any ports in a system or fabric without the need for external routing  appliances. Intelligent storage services: IBM Storage Networking SAN192C-6 interoperates   with intelligent service capabilities on other IBM Storage Networking c-type family  platforms and the intelligent services switch. You can accelerate storage  applications for data replication, backup, and data migration to hosts and targets  that are attached to the IBM Storage Networking SAN192C-6. Smart zoning: By using this feature, IBM Storage Networking c-type family director   fabrics can provision hardware access control entries that are specified by the  zone set more efficiently and avoid superfluous entries that allow servers  (initiators) to talk to other servers or storage devices (targets) to talk to other  storage devices. Large zones with multiple initiators and multiple targets are now  possible without consuming excessive hardware resources. Smart zones can  correspond to applications, application clusters, hypervisor clusters, or other data  center entities. Zoning tasks are automated and the time previously spent creating  many small zones is avoided. Virtual machine  transparency The IBM Storage Networking c-type family provides deterministic hardware  performance and a comprehensive feature set that allows virtual machines to have the  same SAN attributes as a physical server. On a per-virtual machine basis, NX-OS  Software offers VSANs, QoS policies, access control, performance monitoring, and  data protection to promote virtual machine scalability and mobility. DCNM provides  end-to-end visibility from the virtual machine to storage, with resource allocation,  performance measurements, and predictions available on a per-virtual machine basis. 13 IBM Storage Networking SAN192C-6 Product Guide