| HBA API Overview
Frequently Asked Questions
Source
Specifications
HBA API In The News
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The SNIA Common HBA API is an industry standard "C"
language Application Programming Interface for management of
Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters and discovery of SAN
resources. Developed through the Storage Networking Industry
Association (SNIA), the HBA API has been overwhelmingly
adopted by Storage Area Network vendors to help manage,
monitor, and deploy storage area networks. It defines a scope
within which application software can be written without
attention to vendor-specific infrastructure
behavior. Included within the scope of the Common HBA API are
vendor independent interfaces and services such as:
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Observation and modification of descriptive and operational
characteristics of Fibre Channel HBAs and ports;
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Access to Fibre Channel Fabric Services;
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Discovery and characterization of FCP-2 storage resources;
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Access to Fibre Channel Extended Link Services sufficient to
satisfy the FC-MI manageability profile for Host Bus Adapters;
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Observation of Fibre Channel HBA, Port, and storage access
traffic statistics;
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Observation and modification of the availability and
representation of Fibre Channel storage resources to Operating
System applications;
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Timely and selective reporting of HBA and fabric
configuration, status, and statistical events.
The Common HBA API specification was developed in two
phases. Phase II, completed in March 2002, includes all of the
feature groups listed above. Phase I was an early implementers
version completed in September of 2000. It included feature
groups 1-3 and partial support for the remaining feature
groups.
An implementation of the Common HBA API specification of
either phase is based on two classes of software: A set of
Vendor Specific Libraries each of which provides the standard
API functions for a vendor specific HBA driver, and a Common
Library which provides a single entry point for each standard
API function even when HBAs from multiple vendors are
present.
Implementations of the Common HBA API are provided by vendors
of Fibre Channel HBAs and subsystems and SAN Management
Software. SNIA also sponsors an open-development reference
implementation of the Common Library for both phases at the
SourceForge.
The source code for this reference implementation of the
Common Library supporting both phases of the Common HBA API is
maintained here.
Source for a reference implementation of an older Common Library
supporting only Phase 1 can also be found there.
If you'd like to learn more about the HBA API, you can read
more about it:
For answers to common questions about the HBA API, see:
For links to official specifications and code samples, see:
Other related projects:
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