To ensure optimum operation, the fiber optic cable components require protection from
contamination and mechanical hazards. Failure to provide this protection can cause degraded
operation. Observe the following precautions when using fiber optic cables.
• To avoid breaking the fiber within the cable:
Do not kink the cable◦
◦ Do not use a cable bend-radius of less than 30 mm (1.18 in)
• To avoid deforming, or possibly breaking the fiber within the cable, do not place heavy objects
on the cable.
• To avoid contaminating the optical connectors:
Do not touch the connectors◦
◦ Never leave the connectors exposed to the air
◦ Install a dust cover on each transceiver and fiber cable connector when they are
disconnected
If an open connector is exposed to dust, or if there is any doubt about the cleanliness of the
connector, clean the connector as described in “Handling fiber optic cables” (page 76).
Figure 9 Fiber Optic Fibre Channel cable
Copper Fibre Channel cables
The Enterprise Virtual Array uses copper Fibre Channel cables to connect the drive enclosures to
each other, or to the loop switches and to the HSV controllers. The cables are available in 0.6-meter
and 2.0-meter lengths. Copper cables provide performance comparable to fiber optic cables.
Copper cable connectors differ from fiber optic small form-factor connectors (see Figure 10 (page
29)).
Figure 10 Copper Fibre Channel cable
Fibre Channel disk drives
The Fibre Channel disk drives are hot-pluggable and include the following features:
• Dual-ported 2-Gbps Fibre Channel drive enclosure interface that allows up to 120 disk drives
to be supported per Fibre Channel drive enclosure pair
• Compact, direct-connect design for maximum storage density and increased reliability and
signal integrity
• Both online high-performance disk drives and FATA disk drives in a variety of capacities and
spindle speeds
• Better vibration damping for improved performance
Up to 14 disk drives can be installed in a drive enclosure.
Fibre Channel drive enclosures 29
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