Converged Network Adapter

A converged network adapter (CNA), also called a converged network interface controller (C-NIC), is a computer input/output device that combines the functionality of a Host Bus Adaptor to a storage area network with a network interface controller for a general-purpose computer network.

Support

Some products were marketed around 2005 with the term C-NIC which combined iSCSI storage functionality with Gigabit Ethernet. Later products used the marketing term converged network adapter (CNA), combining Fibre Channel over Ethernet with 10 Gigabit Ethernet, for example.

Brocade

Brocade Communications Systems offers two types of CNA's, both as PCI Express interface of the 2nd generation. The only difference between the two models are the number of interfaces on the cards: one or two. The two port model will allow connection to two different switches to create a redundant configuration without having to use two PCI slots.^[1]

Broadcom

In 2009 Broadcom entered the CNA market. Broadcom offers their CNAs under their own brandname but also sell the ASICs and required other chips to others. Their intended customers are the larger builders of server-systems such as Dell and HP. These vendors can then include the 10Gb CNA with their servers: as embedded interface on the motherboard (LOM or LAN on Montherboard), via a mezzanine card in blade servers or as PCI extension-card.^[2]

QLogic

Qlogic offers CNAs via their QLogic 8100 series adapters. They offer single and dual port PCI cards with copper or optical fibre interfaces.^[3] QLogic CNA's are available under the QLogic brandname and as OEM cards. The QME CNA and drivers were supported by Citrix, NetApp, EMC and IBM.^[4]

Hewlett-Packard

HP claims that their BL460c G7 was the first blade-server that offers FCoE via a LOM (Lan on Motherboard) instead of using a PCI-slot or mezzanine-card.^[5]

Dell

Dell uses the QLogic 8100 series in theire PowerEdge servers. For the M-series, blade-servers for the M1000e enclosure a specially made dual-port mezzanine card QME8142 is designed. For the normal tower- and rackservers Dell offers an OEM version of the standard QME 8152 is marketed.^[6]

Cisco

Cisco Systems offered FibreChannel over Ethernet marketed as their Unified Computing System via their UCS 81KR Virtual Interface Card CNA.^[7]

References

1. ^ Brocade website: Specifications of 1010 and 1020 CNA's, last visited 30 July, 2011
2. ^ Frenk Berry Blog on Network Computing: Broadcom unveils CNA, 29 Januari, 2010, visited: 31 Julu, 2011
3. ^ QLogic website: QLogic launches 8100 CNA, visited 31 July, 2011
4. ^ EMC joins QLogix CNA club, November 2010, visited 31 July, 2011
5. ^ ITBrand Pulse HP embeds 10Gb CNA, january 2011, downloaded: 31 July, 2011
6. ^ Storage Stategies Now report (republished on Qlogic website): Dell chooses QLogic, Deni Connor, December 2009, visited: 31 July, 2011
7. ^ Cisco website Cisco UCS M81KR Virtual Interface Card, visited 31 July, 2011