Zoning enforcement mechanisms:

• Soft Zoning: Name Server assisted

1. Name Server restricts visibility
2. Always available when zoning enabled
3. No reduction in performance
• Hard Zoning: Hardware Enforced
1. Available when certain rule checking criteria are met through hardware logic
checking.
2. Provides additional security in addition to Soft zoning
3. Prevents illegal access from “bad” citizens.
4. No reduction in performance with hard-Port level zoning.
Zone Object types:
• Configurations
1. Allows one or more “Defined Configuration”.
2. Up to one “Effective Configuration”
3. Can consist of one or more Zones.
• Zones
1. Can consist of one or more Zone members.
2. May exist across multiple zone configurations.
• Zone Members
1. Domain/Port or WWN or Aliases
2. Properties
3. Special handling when defined across zones.