What technology must be enabled on a fabric switch port to support FC LIFs?

N_Port ID Virtualization (NPIV) must be enabled on a fabric switch port to support Fibre Channel Logical Interfaces (FC LIFs). NPIV allows multiple N_Port IDs to be associated with a single physical Fibre Channel port, enabling a single switch port to support multiple FC LIFs. This technology is essential for environments where virtualization or multiple initiators need to communicate through the same physical switch port, as it enhances resource utilization and simplifies management in SAN (Storage Area Network) configurations.

In scenarios where FC LIFs are used, NPIV not only allows for improved flexibility but also enables the support of multiple hosts connecting to shared storage resources over a single Fibre Channel port, which is crucial in enterprise environments. Without NPIV, each N_Port would require a dedicated physical port, leading to inefficient use of hardware resources.

While other technologies mentioned may have their specific roles in storage networking, they do not specifically address the requirement for supporting FC LIFs in the manner NPIV does. For instance, iSCSI Initiator Configuration and Multi-Path I/O are relevant to their respective protocols but not directly applicable to Fibre Channel LIF support, and Fibre Channel Forwarding is more about directing traffic rather than managing connections per port.