Redirected I/O for scalable performance storage architecture

A system and a method to transfer data between a host computer and a storage device. The storage controller architecture is organized into its functional modules based on whether a module primarily performs a control function or a data transfer function. The data paths that connect various functional units (for example, switching unit, parity logic, memory module, etc.) may then be sized to the required bandwidth. This effectively makes the iops (I/O operations per second) and bandwidth capability of a storage controller scalable independently of each other. A data transfer command from a host computer is decoded and translated into one or more data transfer commands by the control module in the storage controller. The control module then sends a list of translated commands to the host. Parity calculation, caching, one or more RAID levels and other relevant data transfer information may also be included as part of the translated set of commands. The host directly transmits the data transfer commands received from the control module to appropriate storage devices in the system. This allows for a direct transfer of data between the host and one or more storage devices without any need to route the data via the control module. The messaging scheme may be conveniently employed in a situation involving a two-party interface protocol (e.g., the fibre channel protocol) without modifying the standard architecture of the corresponding controller switch.