i don't understand, if fiber channel is so damn fast then why hasn't it caught on, there must be some disadvante to it.
The disadvantage is cost. You have to keep in mind that fiber channel is often (as its name implies) run over fiber optics. Getting even 1Gbit of transfer rate over two copper signaling wires takes some clever hacks, and the end result is never quite as reliable or as flexible as fiber, so fiber-optic cable is usually what's used. Transceivers, termination, and cable for fiber optics has always been expensive.
Do a search and see what you come up with....i found IBM Ultrastar 36LZX 18gb Fiber Channel Drive! for $1.25 after 3 bids it's still this low, something can't be right.
When I last tried to sell my Ultra2 RAID cabinet on eBay, I couldn't even get $100 for it (I set a reserve of $400). I originally paid about $3000 for it new, and buying a brand-new equivalent of it would cost about the same today. So eBay isn't really a good measure of how cheap something should be, unless you <i>only</i> shop on eBay.
And i found this sick bastard: 288GB FIBER/FIBRE CHANNEL DISK ARRAY SET for $355 compromised of 8 36 gb fiber channel hds.
Nice! Does it include the necessary controller, cabling, et al? How old are the disks? What transfer rate does the interface support? How many disks, and what rotational speed? What RAID levels does it support?
(I'm not being sarcastic here. That thing might be nice to go for...)
<i>I can love my fellow man...but I'm damned if I'll love yours.</i>