Glossary

active alternate

The alternate path that is currently handling I/O for a pathgroup.

AP database (or simply "database")

A database that is maintained by the AP subsystem. The AP database contains all of the information needed to maintain the configuration's alternate paths.

alternate path

One of the physical paths within a pathgroup.

committed database entry

An entry in the AP database that is currently being used by AP to manage access to a disk or network. (Compare with uncommitted database entry.)

pathgroup

A set of two alternate paths that provide access to the same device or set of devices.

metadisk

A disk abstraction that provides access to an underlying group of two physical paths to a disk.

metanetwork

A network abstraction that provides access to an underlying group of two physical paths to a network.

physical path

The electrical path from the host to a disk or network.

pln port

An optical link connection (OLC) module on an SSA controller that can be connected to an SSA port.

primary path

The alternate path in a pathgroup that is initially the active alternate. The name of the primary path is used when constructing the name of the metadisk or metanetwork. The primary path does not change when a switch occurs.

SSA

A SPARCStorage Array, a collection of disks within a hardware peripheral. The SSA provides access to each of its housed disks via two ports.

SSA port

An optical link connection (OLC) module on an SSA that can be connected to a pln port.

SSA controller

A controller that resides on the host system and has one or two pln ports (also called a SOC controller).

switch

The act of establishing a new alternate path as the path to be used for a given pathgroup. Note that switching does not change the primary path.

uncommitted database entry

An entry in the AP database that has not been committed and is therefore not currently in effect. If a pathgroup has been created but the database entry has not been committed, that pathgroup is not currently used by AP to manage access to a disk or network. If a previously committed pathgroup has been deleted, but that database entry has not been committed, that pathgroup is still being used by AP to manage access to the disk or network.