SAN, NAS, solid state, RAID

Clustered NAS vs traditional NAS solutions

Clustered NAS offers file visibility across petabytes of storage and is hugely scalable with the ability to increase throughput, IOPS or disk space by adding extra nodes. Continue Reading

Object-based storage promises scalability and flexibility for static, unstructured data needs

Object storage gets rid of traditional file system hierarchies and puts in place a flat access structure that provides a good basis for hugely scalable unstructured data access. Continue Reading

How to set up a Dell EqualLogic configuration in a VMware environment

Find out what the key steps are for setting up a Dell EqualLogic configuration for an iSCSI SAN in a VMware virtual server environment. Continue Reading

SAN troubleshooting: What are the key steps and best practices when troubleshooting a SAN?

Learn which tools you need to perform SAN troubleshooting, which metrics point to a sign of trouble, and why granular and regular data collection is important. Continue Reading

How does the RAID 5 calculation work?

Learn how to determine how much capacity you'll have in a RAID 5 drive configuration. Continue Reading

MLC vs SLC: Which flash SSD is right for you?

Which flash SSD you choose depends on the performance you need and the price you want to pay, but the differences are not as great as you may think Continue Reading

EMC won’t sell one VNX product in Australia

EMC has officially launched its new VNX and VNXe products, but will leave one of the new products out of its local range and sell a Clariion system instead. Continue Reading

What does the parity bit do in RAID?

Find out how the use of a parity bit protects RAID groups and how it's used as a method for error detection. Continue Reading

ISCSI replacing Fibre Channel as dominant storage network technology

ISCSI is well on its way to replacing Fibre Channel as the de facto technology for SANs. Continue Reading

ISCSI storage gets performance makeover

Vendors, including Ibrix, Mellanox, Alacritech and EqualLogic, are offering juiced-up new iSCSI configurations, while 3PAR, CipherMax and NeoScale boost data security products. Continue Reading

RAID 5 recovery: What is the maximum number of physical drives in a RAID 5 configuration?

Adding drives to a RAID 5 set increases your ROI and the likelihood of simultaneous drive failures, and lengthens RAID rebuild times. So what should be your physical drive limit? Continue Reading

Do all drives in a RAID 10 array need to be the same specification?

We tell you the one requirement when matching drive specs in a RAID 10 array. But will mixing drives of various performance levels compromise your RAID level? Continue Reading

RAID 10 vs RAID 50: What is the best way to configure a storage array with 16 1 TB drives?

Learn the characteristics of RAID 10 and RAID 50, as well as which RAID level is appropriate for your applications. I/O and protection needs contribute to your RAID choice. Continue Reading

Small storage devices a hit at big hotel

Riverbed working to optimise iSCSI performance over wide area networks, to boost storage systems’ performance in cloud computing rigs. Continue Reading

How to evaluate and purchase a SAN

The Royal Horticultural Society's network manager Martin Taylor guides users through the process of evaluating and purchasing a SAN. Continue Reading

Hard disk drive specifications guide: What to look for when buying disk storage

Seek times, latency, data transfer rates, error correction codes and cache are important hard disk drive specifications. Learn the key features of hard disks drives so you can specify the right one for your data centre. Continue Reading

RAID 10 vs. RAID 1: Mirrored drives matter

While RAID 10 and RAID 1 are both mirroring technologies that utilise half the available drives for data, a crucial difference is the number of drives they can use in a RAID group. Continue Reading

RAID 10: How many disk drives should you use?

The minimum number of drives required for RAID 10 is four. RAID 10 should not be confused with RAID 0+1, which involves creating two RAID 0 stripe sets and then mirroring them. Continue Reading

Which RAID level has the best price-to-performance comparison?

Configuring disk in RAID arrays brings a variety of benefits, most notably data protection and I/O performance. But which RAID level wins in terms of price vs. performance? Continue Reading

BlueArc challenges NetApp in the enterprise with Mercury 50, Mercury 100 network-attached storage (N

With NetApp distracted by Data Domain and late delivering Ontap with clustered NAS capabilities, BlueArc targets the enterprise NAS market with Mercury 50, Mercury 100 NAS systems. Continue Reading

What is a LUN and why do we need storage LUNs?

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RAID 5 configuration: How to calculate disk space for data storage and parity storage

Find out how to calculate the disk space available for data storage and how much disk space is utilised for parity storage in a RAID 5 configuration. Continue Reading

NAS Backup: What are my options?

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LUN storage and its role in SAN management

Explore logical unit number (LUN) storage and its role in SAN management. Learn how to create a LUN, how to share a LUN, and find out about LUN provisioning and LUN masking. Continue Reading

Thin provisioning FAQ

Tony Lock, programme director at analyst group Freeform Dynamics, answers common questions on thin provisioning. Continue Reading

How to evaluate and purchase a SAN

The Royal Horticultural Society's network manager Martin Taylor guides users through the process of evaluating and purchasing a SAN. Continue Reading

Pivot3 consolidates physical servers onto storage arrays

Pivot3's IP SAN offers Serverless Computing, which eliminates the need for application servers by running them as guests on its storage arrays. Continue Reading

Clariion array update blurs line between EMC platforms

A bigger, faster Clariion with advanced features, which first appeared in the Symmetrix line, has industry observers wondering about the increasing overlap between EMC systems. Continue Reading

NAS virtualization explained

NAS virtualization can refer to the ability to virtualise multiple NAS heads into a single virtualised file system or the ability to spawn multiple virtual file servers within a physical file server. Either way, performing NAS virtualisation via a virtualised file system gives a storage administrator greater flexibility in responding to the needs of the enterprise. Continue Reading

iSCSI SANs getting enterprise boost by shared storage, virtual servers

Enterprises are increasingly considering iSCSI SANs for departmental applications, server workloads that aren't bandwidth-intensive, and virtual servers. In fact, the connection between shared storage and virtualised servers is changing the iSCSI SAN game. Continue Reading

Optimising iSCSI SANs with the right Ethernet switch

iSCI SANS are now within the reach of many small businesses. Here's how to make sure the SAN works best, by optimising the supporting network. Continue Reading

EMC gives Centera a software refresh

EMC has tweaked the software for its Centera archiving system with an emphasis on handling more pieces of data rather than sheer bulk of information stored. Continue Reading

NAS product specifications

NAS is so easy to install and manage that NAS sprawl is a common problem. This is why NAS is often a prime candidate for consolidation initiatives. Learn how to purchase NAS appliances with an eye toward NAS storage consolidation. Continue Reading

VMware, LeftHand offer iSCSI SAN as virtual machine

Channel partners will bundle LeftHand's virtual SAN appliance with VMware licenses for an ESX infrastructure that can run on one piece of physical hardware. Continue Reading

HP exec: Storage blades may replace disk arrays in data center

An HP storage executive predicts that storage blades -- storage devices using the form factor and plug-and-play philosophy of blade servers - may replace disk arrays in the next 18 months Continue Reading

Learn all about LUNs

A LUN is the unique address for a SCSI device or a virtual hard disk partition in a RAID configuration. This handbook tells how to manage and partition LUNs. Continue Reading

How to integrate iSCSI and Fibre Channel, and make it work

Learn about eight best practices for integrating iSCSI into a Fibre Channel SAN, as well as best deployment practices for iSCSI. Continue Reading

LeftHand adds hardware to iSCSI SANs

LeftHand makes its iSCSI SAN software available on two prepackaged appliances; sources indicate the hardware comes from Dell. Continue Reading

NetApp releases $3K iSCSI SAN

NetApp is continuing a push down-market with the release of the S300, the latest SMB iSCSI SAN in its StoreVault line. Continue Reading

Virtual appliance lets users convert DAS to iSCSI SAN

NetApp is continuing a push down-market with the release of the S300, the latest SMB iSCSI SAN in its StoreVault line. Continue Reading

Download NAS Upgrades Buying Guide: Chapter 2 -- NAS management software

You asked for it, so here it is -- a printable version of our NAS Buying Guide. Continue Reading

Storage Basics Part 3: Getting the most out of iSCSI

The Storage Basics series continues, with a look at how to get the most out of iSCSI. Continue Reading

Storage Basics Part 2: What is iSCSI?

Day two of our storage basics special explains iSCSI. Continue Reading

New iSCSI SAN/NAS box touts better performance

Agami's new low-end iSCSI SAN/NAS box is pricier than other scaled-down offerings, but has a few more high-end features Continue Reading

Users make iSCSI SANs with USB keys

Users say that Open-E's iSCSI SAN software, which is delivered on a USB stick, is more affordable than prepackaged systems and has more support than free iSCSI target products. Continue Reading

LeftHand refreshes iSCSI SAN software

Version 7.0 of LeftHand's iSCSI SAN software contains dozens of new features, including support for four-way replication and brushed-up thin provisioning. Continue Reading

EMC upgrades hardware range, goes green - UPDATE

EMC has upgraded its five main hardware lines, introduced power-saving technology and hinted at enhancements to its data de-duplication tools. Continue Reading

Sun reveals open appliances

EMC has upgraded its five main hardware lines, introduced power-saving technology and hinted at enhancements to its data de-duplication tools. Continue Reading

Temp agency moves hundreds of terabytes to iSCSI SAN

Adecco replaces 120 TB of Fibre Channel storage with an iSCSI SAN from LeftHand, including storage for large production databases; Exanet adds search; NetApp unleashes Topio. Continue Reading

LUN management at the heart of SAN configuration

Disk drives are the foundation of modern data storage, but operating systems cannot use physical storage directly. The physical drive must be translated into a logical space that an operating system sees as a linear address space comprised of fixed-size blocks. Storage networks must also partition their physical disks into logical entities so that host servers can access storage area network (SAN) storage, and each logical portion is called a logical unit number (LUN). This article explains essential LUN concepts and the role of LUNs in SAN technology. Continue Reading

ISCSI TCP/IP TOE card specifications

One means of improving iSCSI traffic performance is to include TOE (TCI/IP Offload Engine) capability on the Ethernet card itself. An iSCSI TOE allows the network adapter to process iSCSI traffic (often all Ethernet LAN traffic) locally -- relieving those burdensome processing tasks from the host server or other computers connected to the LAN. To implement this capability, iSCSI servers must be upgraded with Ethernet NICs that include a TOE chip onboard. Although the selection of iSCSI TOE cards is generally limited to just a few manufacturers, it's important to consider the available ports, host interface, and other card characteristics before making a purchase. The product snapshots in this segment highlight key specifications for a cross-section of popular iSCSI TOE cards. Continue Reading

ISCSI for beginners

iSCSI is an Internet Protocol (IP)-based storage networking standard for linking data storage facilities. Learns the basics in this fast guide. Continue Reading

NAS appliance purchase considerations

NAS appliances are frequently touted for bringing convenience and simplicity to network storage. Appliances include their own dedicated disks for storage and RAID, and most NAS appliances can be upgraded with more or larger disks for additional storage space. However, NAS appliances do pose some disadvantages. Consequently, the choice of NAS appliance requires careful evaluation. Now that you've reviewed the essential issues involved in any NAS product, this guide focuses on specific considerations for dedicated NAS appliances. You'll also find a series of specifications to help make on-the-spot product comparisons between vendors. Continue Reading

NAS gateway purchase considerations

NAS gateways overcome the inherent limitations of scale and flexibility by utilizing externally connected storage as external standalone disk arrays. NAS storage capacity is typically expanded by simply adding more disks to the appliance, but this only allows users to scale up to the capacity limit of the appliance. It's also common for a NAS gateway to share storage through a storage area network (SAN), allowing users to consolidate their NAS data on SAN storage and realize the benefits of high performance and redundancy. Now that you've reviewed the essential issues involved in any NAS product, this Buying Guide focuses on specific considerations for NAS gateway products. Continue Reading

NAS gateway specifications

A NAS gateway offers file-based accesses to external storage on a disk array -- or a SAN, where users can take advantage of superior performance and reliability while maintaining a level of simplicity. Since storage is moved off of the NAS device, interoperability and connectivity are crucial issues, and virtualization is increasingly important for superior scaling and utilization of the storage resources. The product snapshots in this chapter highlight key specifications for a cross section of major NAS gateway products. Continue Reading

NAS management software specifications

Network attached storage (NAS) appliances and gateways must be configured and managed using NAS management software that allows administrators to allocate space, manage RAID and storage behaviors, perform routine maintenance, and other tasks. Management software ideally provides interoperability with a variety of NAS devices from different vendors and can automate many of the routine management tasks that would otherwise demand manual attention. The product snapshots in this chapter highlight key specifications for a cross section of major NAS management software products. Continue Reading

Virtualisation buying guide [Day Two: Virtualisation software examined]

Deploying software on a server or dedicated appliance is often easier for smaller organisations, but the actual product choice demands careful consideration. Now that you've reviewed the essential issues involved in any virtualisation product, this guide focuses on specific considerations for key virtualisation software products. You'll also find a series of specifications to help make on-the-spot product comparisons between vendors, like DataCore Software Corp., EMC Corp., FalconStor Software Inc. and IBM. Continue Reading

ISCSI gains strength from servers

More powerful servers are helping ease some performance concerns for users considering IP SANs, but others say they still want to see more improvement. Continue Reading

iSCSI network configuration, design and optimization

It's a must to consider more than just cabling when designing an iSCSI-based storage network. Learn to look at the bigger picture when configuring or optimizing an iSCSI-based storage network. Continue Reading

Testing iSCSI SAN performance with Iometer

Iometer, a performance test tool for tuning Windows environments, can also be used to tune performance in iSCSI SANs. The tool lets you simulate the SAN's performance by setting many of the parameters and running tests. Repeated runs with different parameters such as block sizes will let you tune your system. Continue Reading

NAS: How does a client access files?

NAS expert Randy Kerns offers advice to a reader who asked: "How does NAS appear to machines accessing files from it?" Continue Reading

NAS: Can you add capacity non-disruptively?

Storage expert Randy Kerns offers advice about adding capacity to a NAS system non-disruptively in this Q&A. Continue Reading

ISCSI SANs: How to alleviate the congestion

Careful configuration of an iSCSI SAN will usually preclude most problems. But for slow network performance, adapter and switch settings can help speed things up. Continue Reading

How to use NAS gateways

What you will learn from this tip: NAS gateways are moving off the array and into the network. Here's how to manage them. Continue Reading

Five ways to secure iSCSI

Storage expert Stephen Foskett outlines five specific ways to secure an iSCSI SAN. Continue Reading

Microsoft supports iSCSI SAN clusters -- kind of

This expert tip outlines how to get the support you need for iSCSI SANs using more than two clusters. Continue Reading