A different FCIA piece...
Press Release
Fibre Channel Industry Association Launches SANmark Test Period for Open Standards
FCIA SANmark Program Showcased at NAB
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 23, 2001--The Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA) today announced, at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention, that the SANmark(TM) Qualification Program will conduct three Small Group Test Periods (SGTP) to develop rigorous conformance test procedures for Fibre Channel device interoperability.
Continuing their commitment to promote heterogeneous Storage Area Networks (SANs), the SANmark initiative has completed seven SANmark Conformance Documents (SCD), providing standardized test procedures to the Fibre Channel industry. The three test periods have been established to mature operation of the conformance procedures, on more than one test equipment platform.
SANmark enables end-users, integrators, and OEMs benefit from interoperable Fibre Channel solutions and provides a means to mandate conformance and interoperability in their purchase specifications. ``Through SANmark, both end users and vendors receive the benefits of proven Fibre Channel technology, necessary for the secure deployment of mission critical storage networking solutions,'' said Michael Hoard, FCIA board member. ``The SANmark program is an excellent example of the FCIA's continued ability and commitment in driving the application of open standards for the Fibre Channel industry.''
The development SGTPs are open to all Fibre Channel vendors and will be conducted on April 23rd - 27th and May 21st - 25th at the University of New Hampshire and on June 25th - 29th at the Storage Networking Industry Association test labs in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Official release of the approved SANmark conformance test procedures is scheduled for mid July, at which time the FCIA will begin to accept applications for use of the SANmark trademark based on self-qualification test results. All of the SANmark conformance tests are intended to be run by vendors in their own labs. The current round of activity will culminate at the July 23rd - 27th ``Large Group Plugfest,'' where the FCIA will sponsor a variety of education programs around the program, as well as begin test exploration on the next key areas of heterogeneous SAN interoperability.
The purpose of the SANmark program is to address key protocol and system integration elements for industry-wide implementation, to promote mainstream compatibility and consistency within multi-vendor Fibre Channel based SANs. The FCIA, with assistance from the University of New Hampshire Interoperability Lab and a wide number of industry volunteers, have built tests that can be used by Fibre Channel vendors to test these vital system elements, eliminating multi-vendor interoperability issues.
For more information on the SANmark testing groups and ``Plugfest,'' please visit the FCIA booth at NAB: No. 8757, Sands Convention Center, Upper Level.
About the FCIA
SO looks like by the end of July most vendors except BRCD will start to sport SANmark stickers and perhaps some of the vendors will put the stickers on their FC stuff too?
Any help out there on the E-port front? |
