Other standards solve other problems

SCSI over IP, or iSCSI, is not the only storage interconnect protocol under development by the Internet Engineering Task Force.

Unlike iSCSI, two other options aim to coexist with Fibre Channel.

FC/IP, a protocol for "tunneling" Fibre Channel through an IP network, interconnects two or more remote Fibre Channel storage-area network "islands." Once connected, the remote SANs become part of a single, larger SAN entity.

IFCP is an encapsulation of the Fibre Channel Protocol for delivery across IP networks. Unlike FC/IP-based solutions, iFCP does not create a single, larger SAN entity when connecting remote SAN

islands. Instead, each SAN is a discrete entity communicating with a remote entity conceptualized as a separate SAN.

FC/IP and iFCP are close to being finalized by the task force, but iSCSI advocates say they are temporary fixes that do not address the fundamental limitations of Fibre Channel. They likely will find a home where Fibre Channel has already been deployed, but like Fibre Channel SANs in general, they will lose their relevance as iSCSI SANs enter the market.