How does Gigabit Ethernet compare to Fiber Channel?
A Gigabit Ethernet seeks to leverage existing solid technologies, and therefore leverages Fiber Channel’s physical layer. The difference is that Gigabit Ethernet is a general-purpose networking technology useful for small to large LANs, whereas Fiber Channel is used primarily in more specialized applications like high-speed I/O (storage), clustering, and so on, where a general-purpose LAN is not needed. Fiber Channel is an excellent technology for these applications, but tends to be more expensive per port and is optimized for these types of connections. Gigabit Ethernet will leverage the Ethernet/Fast Ethernet cost models and be optimized for general-purpose networking.
