International Business Machines Corporation

Barry Stanley Barnett

Casimer M DeCusatis

Daniel Gene Eisenhauer

Douglas Craig Bossen

Matthew Eugene Landt

Mark Gregory Alana

Binh Thanh Chu

A computer-implemented method, apparatus, and computer program product are disclosed for securing node port access in a switched-fabric storage area network. Permitted combinations of fabric port identifiers and node port identifiers are specified. A node port receives a request to access the node port. A node port identifier, which identifies the device that is attempting to access the node port, is determined from the request. A fabric port identifier is determined that identifies a fabric port through which the device transmitted the request. Access to the node port is granted if the fabric port identifier and node port identifier form a permitted combination.

Computer-implemented method, apparatus, and computer program product for securing node port access in a switched-fabric storage area network

A method is disclosed for providing highly available, redundant optical modules using a single network connection in a data processing system. An embedded network interface or network adapter card that occupies one network slot is included and includes a plurality of optical modules. The embedded network interface or network adapter card is used to communicate with a network utilizing one of the optical modules. One of the optical modules is currently designated as an active module. A redundancy controller is included on the network adapter card. The redundancy controller detects a failure of the optical module that is currently designated as the active module and changes the active module designation from the failed optical module to a remaining one of the optical modules such that the remaining one of the optical modules becomes designated as the active module. The embedded network interface or network adapter card then begins utilizing the newly designated optical module to communicate with the network.

Highly available redundant optical modules using single network connection

A method and system for authenticating access to a storage area network (SAN) is disclosed in which a password is retrieved from a first copy of a password table in response to an access (login) request, the first copy of the password table residing on a switch and corresponding to a switch port. The password is used to retrieve a response from the first copy of the password table. The response is encrypted according to a first copy of an encryption key stored on the switch. The encrypted password is then sent to the node requesting access to the SAN, where it is decrypted according to a second copy of the encryption key residing on the node. The decrypted password is used to retrieve a response from a second copy of the password table residing on the node. The response is encrypted according to the second copy of the encryption key and sent back to the switch port. The response received from the node is then compared with the response determined from the first copy of the password table. Access to the SAN is permitted if the two responses match and denied otherwise. The method further includes a mechanism for generating codes based on hardware serial ID numbers (or other unique values) and comparing the serial ID numbers against previously stored codes to determine if the hardware serial numbers have changed and allowing or denying access to the SAN based upon that determination.

Authenticated access to storage area network

A method and system for problem determination and fault isolation in a storage area network (SAN) is provided. A complex configuration of multi-vendor host systems, FC switches, and storage peripherals are connected in a SAN via a communications architecture (CA). A communications architecture element (CAE) is a network-connected device that has successfully registered with a communications architecture manager (CAM) on a host computer via a network service protocol, and the CAM contains problem determination (PD) functionality for the SAN and maintains a SAN PD information table (SPDIT). The CA comprises all network-connected elements capable of communicating information stored in the SPDIT. The CAM uses a SAN topology map and the SPDIT are used to create a SAN diagnostic table (SDT). A failing component in a particular device may generate errors that cause devices along the same network connection path to generate errors. As the CAM receives error packets or error messages, the errors are stored in the SDT, and each error is analyzed by temporally and spatially comparing the error with other errors in the SDT. If a CAE is determined to be a candidate for generating the error, then the CAE is reported for replacement if possible.

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Barry Stanley Barnett