Storage Networking Fundamentals

Unlike networking technology, where there is already a great deal of literature available, many professionals still need to understand the basic building blocks of storage networking. This book provides vendor-neutral, independent analysis and terminology.

A comparative analysis of Ethernet, TCP/IP, and Fibre Channel in the context of SCSI Introduces network administrators to the requirements of storage protocols Explains the operation of network protocols to storage administrators Compares and contrasts the functionality of Ethernet, TCP/IP, and Fibre Channel Documents the details of the major protocol suites, explains how they operate, and identifies common misunderstandings References the original standards and specifications so you can get a complete understanding of each protocol Helps you understand the implications of network design choices Discusses advanced network functionality such as QoS, security, management, and protocol analysis Corporations increasingly depend on computer and communication technologies to remain competitive in the global economy. Customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning, and e-mail are a few of the many applications that generate new data every day. Effectively storing, managing, and accessing that data is a primary business challenge in the information age. Storage networking is a crucial component of the solution to meet that challenge. Written for both storage administrators who need to learn more about networking and network administrators who need to learn more about storage, Storage Networking Protocol Fundamentals is a concise introduction to storage networking protocols. The book picks up where Storage Networking Fundamentals left off by focusing on the networking protocols that underlie modern open systems: block-oriented storage networks. The first part of the book introduces you to the field of storage networking and the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model. The second part compares networked storage technologies, including iSCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface over IP) and Fibre Channel. It also examines in detail each of the major protocol suites layer-by-layer within the OSI reference model. The third part discusses advanced functionalities of these technologies, such as quality of service (QoS), load-balancing functions, security, management, and protocol analysis. You can read this book cover to cover or use it as a reference, directly accessing the particular topics of interest to you. “Storage networking is a critical concept for today’s businesses, and this book provides a unique and helpful way to better understand it. Storage networking is also continuously evolving, and as such this book may be seen as an introduction to the information technology infrastructures of the future.” —from the foreword by Claudio DeSanti, vice-chairman of the ANSI INCITS T11 Technical Committee

Storage Area Network Fundamentals looks at the various areas and technologies associated with SANs, the available SAN technology, its limitations, expenditures and ways to minimize them, and the forthcoming technology, so that organizations can deploy real operational storage in data centers without further delay. Designed as an introduction to SANs, Storage Area Network Fundamentals develops an understanding of SAN basics and how to plan, implement, and manage a storage area network. The book covers the different topologies, protocols, and products required to implement and manage efficient SANs, as well as questions to test the knowledge imparted to the reader.

The inside scoop on a leading-edge data storage technology The rapid growth of e-commerce and the need to have all kinds of applications operating at top speed at the same time, all on a 24/7 basis while connected to the Internet, is overwhelming traditional data storage methods. The solution? Storage Area Networks (SANs)--the data communications technology that's expected to revolutionize distributed computing. Written by top technology experts at VERITAS Software Global Corporation, this book takes readers through all facets of storage networking, explaining how a SAN can help consolidate conventional server storage onto networks, how it makes applications highly available no matter how much data is being stored, and how this in turn makes data access and management faster and easier. System and network managers considering storage networking for their enterprises, as well as application developers and IT staff, will find invaluable advice on the design and deployment of the technology and how it works. Detailed, up-to-date coverage includes: The evolution of the technology and what is expected from SANs Killer applications for SANs Full coverage of storage networking and what it means for the enterprise's information processing architecture Individual chapters devoted to the storage, network, and software components of storage networking Issues for implementation and adoption

The amount of data being generated, processed, and stored has reached unprecedented levels. Even during the recent economic crisis, there has been no slow down or information recession. Instead, the need to process, move, and store data has only increased. Consequently, IT organizations are looking to do more with what they have while supporting gr

The superabundance of data that is created by today's businesses is making storage a strategic investment priority for companies of all sizes. As storage takes precedence, the following major initiatives emerge: Flatten and converge your network: IBM® takes an open, standards-based approach to implement the latest advances in the flat, converged data center network designs of today. IBM Storage solutions enable clients to deploy a high-speed, low-latency Unified Fabric Architecture. Optimize and automate virtualization: Advanced virtualization awareness reduces the cost and complexity of deploying physical and virtual data center infrastructure. Simplify management: IBM data center networks are easy to deploy, maintain, scale, and virtualize, delivering the foundation of consolidated operations for dynamic infrastructure management. Storage is no longer an afterthought. Too much is at stake. Companies are searching for more ways to efficiently manage expanding volumes of data, and to make that data accessible throughout the enterprise. This demand is propelling the move of storage into the network. Also, the increasing complexity of managing large numbers of storage devices and vast amounts of data is driving greater business value into software and services. With current estimates of the amount of data to be managed and made available increasing at 60% each year, this outlook is where a storage area network (SAN) enters the arena. SANs are the leading storage infrastructure for the global economy of today. SANs offer simplified storage management, scalability, flexibility, and availability; and improved data access, movement, and backup. Welcome to the cognitive era. The smarter data center with the improved economics of IT can be achieved by connecting servers and storage with a high-speed and intelligent network fabric. A smarter data center that hosts IBM Storage solutions can provide an environment that is smarter, faster, greener, open, and easy to manage. This IBM® Redbooks® publication provides an introduction to SAN and Ethernet networking, and how these networks help to achieve a smarter data center. This book is intended for people who are not very familiar with IT, or who are just starting out in the IT world.

Network Storage: Tools and Technologies for Storing Your Company’s Data explains the changes occurring in storage, what they mean, and how to negotiate the minefields of conflicting technologies that litter the storage arena, all in an effort to help IT managers create a solid foundation for coming decades. The book begins with an overview of the current state of storage and its evolution from the network perspective, looking closely at the different protocols and connection schemes and how they differentiate in use case and operational behavior. The book explores the software changes that are motivating this evolution, ranging from data management, to in-stream processing and storage in virtual systems, and changes in the decades-old OS stack. It explores Software-Defined Storage as a way to construct storage networks, the impact of Big Data, high-performance computing, and the cloud on storage networking. As networks and data integrity are intertwined, the book looks at how data is split up and moved to the various appliances holding that dataset and its impact. Because data security is often neglected, users will find a comprehensive discussion on security issues that offers remedies that can be applied. The book concludes with a look at technologies on the horizon that will impact storage and its networks, such as NVDIMMs, The Hybrid Memory Cube, VSANs, and NAND Killers. Puts all the new developments in storage networking in a clear perspective for near-term and long-term planning Offers a complete overview of storage networking, serving as a go-to resource for creating a coherent implementation plan Provides the details needed to understand the area, and clears a path through the confusion and hype that surrounds such a radical revolution of the industry

Learn storage system usage in various solutions to meet enterprise companyÕs business objectives Ê DESCRIPTION With the advancement of computer, mobile and popularity of internet and social media, digital data is growing exponentially. Current total global data is almost double than what was there two years back. Computer storage technologies have become most important and critical that supports this enormous growth of digital data and stores them more efficiently. Therefore demand for computer storage knowledge increased drastically in recent years. Ê This book explains the basic concept of computer storage and its fundamental features and functionalities. It also includes topics on how the application servers access storage systems through the network. Different storage vendors use different name for physical and logical components of a storage system, but this book primarily focuses on the concept of storage systems using simple and commonly understood terminologies. Almost all modern storage systems have virtualization implemented to enhance performance and fault tolerance. This book explains these implementation aspects in simple terms. Ê KEY FEATURES Different type of storage systems and their solutions are discussed. Learn the components of a storage solution, storage disk array, host servers, storage networking components and their communications. Storage performance, fault tolerance and space efficiency and their related features are explained in detailed. Storage management software suite that enables administrator to manage all storage hardware and software components and their features and functionalities that are discussed. Ê WHAT WILL YOU LEARN Storage System, Storage Infrastructure Storage Disk Array and Communication Protocols Storage Networking, Management and Performance Fault Tolerance and Data Protection Space Efficiency Ê WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR IT professionals, undergraduate and postgraduate engineering students, researchers and storage administrators. Ê Table of Contents 1. Ê Ê Storage System and Solutions 2. Ê Ê Storage Infrastructure 3. Ê Ê Storage Disk Array 4. Ê Ê Storage Communication Protocols 5. Ê Ê Storage Networking 6. Ê Ê Storage Performance 7. Ê Ê Fault Tolerance and Data Protection 8. Ê Ê Space Efficiency 9. Ê Ê Storage Management