HPE SN4700B 64Gb 16/16 16-port 64Gb Short Wave SFP56 SAN Extension Fibre Channel Switch
In today's data-driven enterprises, maintaining continuous access to mission-critical information is non-negotiable. The HPE SN4700B 64Gb SAN Extension Switch is engineered to address the immense challenge of replicating massive data volumes between geographically dispersed data centers, ensuring your business continuity and disaster recovery strategies are built on a foundation of speed, security, and reliability.
This powerful Gen7 Fibre Channel solution securely moves more data, faster, over long distances. By consolidating high-speed Fibre Channel (up to 64Gbps) and IP storage replication workloads over modern 25GbE/100GbE WAN connections, the SN4700B provides the bandwidth and throughput necessary to meet stringent recovery point objectives (RPOs) and recovery time objectives (RTOs). It is purpose-built for the most demanding enterprise environments, protecting critical data anywhere in the world.
The HPE SN4700B is more than just a high-speed switch; it's a cyber-resilient replication connectivity platform. It integrates advanced performance and network optimization features that enable backup and replication applications to transfer more data in less time, maximizing the efficiency of your available WAN bandwidth. This accelerates recovery times and reduces the operational risks associated with data loss.
Designed for seamless integration and simplified administration, the SN4700B runs on the same Fabric OS (FOS) that powers the entire HPE B-series family, ensuring proven interoperability. Management is streamlined through familiar tools like Fabric Vision and WebTools, reducing the learning curve and operational overhead. Its robust architecture includes features to pre-validate network conditions and protect against link failures, delivering the continuous availability required for mission-critical operations.
Navigating the complexities of modern SAN extension and disaster recovery architecture requires a thorough evaluation of technology against specific business requirements. Nexus ITX provides the advisory assistance to help organizations assess how the HPE SN4700B aligns with their technical and operational goals.
We help organizations analyze product capabilities in the context of their unique environment, ensuring that the chosen solution meets performance, security, and scalability needs for both current and future states.
Q: What is the primary function of the HPE SN4700B switch?
A: The HPE SN4700B is a purpose-built SAN Extension Switch. Its main function is to connect two or more geographically separate Fibre Channel SANs over a wide area network (WAN) using the FCIP (Fibre Channel over IP) protocol, primarily for disaster recovery and data replication.
Q: What does "Gen7 Fibre Channel" mean for this switch?
A: Gen7 refers to the latest generation of Fibre Channel technology, which supports speeds up to 64Gbps. This provides the high bandwidth necessary to move large amounts of data quickly between data centers, reducing replication times and helping meet stringent recovery objectives.
Q: How does the SN4700B secure data in transit over the WAN?
A: It features strong, hardware-based AES 256-bit encryption that is applied to all data moving over the WAN links. Because this encryption is handled by dedicated hardware, it operates at full line speed without impacting the performance of data replication.
Q: Can this switch handle unreliable or failed WAN connections?
A: Yes. The switch includes advanced features for high availability, including the ability to load balance replication traffic across multiple WAN connections. If one link fails, traffic is automatically and non-disruptively rerouted over the remaining active links, protecting against data transfer interruptions.
Q: What is the purpose of the built-in WAN Test Tool (Wtool)?
A: The Wtool is a diagnostic utility that allows administrators to validate the WAN infrastructure before deploying replication traffic. It can test for latency, jitter, and packet loss, helping to ensure the network can meet performance requirements and proactively identify potential issues before they impact operations.
Q: Is the SN4700B compatible with other HPE B-series switches?
A: Yes. It runs on the same Fabric OS (FOS) that powers the entire HPE B-series SAN switch portfolio. This ensures seamless interoperability and allows for simplified management using familiar tools like Fabric Vision, WebTools, and the command-line interface (CLI).
Q: How can Nexus ITX assist with selecting the right SAN extension solution?
A: Nexus ITX can help your organization evaluate if the HPE SN4700B is the right fit for your specific disaster recovery and business continuity requirements. We assist in aligning the switch's technical capabilities, such as port density and performance, with your architectural needs and long-term scalability goals.
Contact us to evaluate how the HPE SN4700B can align with your disaster recovery strategy and technical architecture.
