Patent ID: 8798058

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a first interface configured to be communicatively coupled, via a network, to a second interface and a fibre channel services module, the first interface configured to: receive a fibre channel service from the fibre channel services module, wherein the fibre channel service includes providing a media access control (MAC) address of the fibre channel services module; establish communication with the second interface; transmit a request to the fibre channel services module for the MAC address of the fibre channel services module; receive the MAC address of the fibre channel services module; transmit at least one of a fabric login command and a fabric discovery command to the MAC address of the fibre channel services module to request a source fibre channel ID and a source MAC address associated with the first interface; receive the source fibre channel ID and the source MAC address associated with the first interface; encode the source fibre channel ID within the source MAC address and a destination fibre channel ID within a destination MAC address, and include the source MAC address and the destination MAC address in a fibre channel over Ethernet (FCoE) frame, the destination fibre channel ID corresponding to a logical unit number identifying a storage array in data storage; and communicate the FCoE frame to the second interface, via a forwarder that forwards the FCoE frame without employing a fibre channel switching element.