This vendor-written tech primer has been edited by Network World to eliminate product promotion, but readers should note it will likely favor the submitters approach.

Troubleshooting Fibre Channel networks can be as much an art as it is a science, but there are some basic best practices you can follow to reduce the guessing and speed resolution. Here are 10 tips to help you get to the bottom of pesky problems:

1. Generally, problems are reported by the application user. As a first step, the SAN admin will usually gather dumps, logs and traces. At the same time, hell sometimes remove other users or applications that are less critical; perhaps hell stop backups, and remove other potential bottlenecks. While this may fix the immediate problem, it often stops the underlying cause from being discovered. If youve only removed the symptom and you stop there, youre likely to see trouble later on.

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