A storage area network is a specialized network dedicated to communication between storage devices and servers. Devices are interconnected via a high speed backbone, commonly Fibre Channel. It generally serves to interconnect the storage-related resources that are connected to one or more servers. The SAN can be easily accessed by application servers and provides the ability to connect multiple varying devices thus enabling any-to-any connectivity.
What are the key benefits of SAN?
The primary goal of a SAN is to separate storage from the servers and the Local Area Network (LAN) so that it can be centralized. Once centralized, the storage will be more efficient, more available and easier to maintain. This also reduces traffic on the LAN. Additional benefits include the ability to share storage, extended distances and addressing; easy connectivity, improved manageability, and lower total cost of ownership.
What is Fibre Channel?
Fibre Channel is the protocol that is commonly used in a SAN. It is a set of standards for the high-speed transfer of large amounts of information. Fibre Channel supports multiple network protocols over both copper and fiber optic cabling. Fibre Channel is capable of transmitting data at 100 MB/second over distances of up to 10 kilometers. In the near future, speeds of 200 MB/second and 400 MB/second will be common.
Are the terms SAN and Fibre Channel synonymous?
No, SAN is the acronym for storage area network while Fibre Channel is the protocol that is commonly utilized within the SAN. While Fibre Channel is the most common protocol utilized, there are also other methods of connecting a SAN, such as IP.
What does "native Fibre Channel interface" mean?
The term "native Fibre Channel" indicates that the tape drive has a Fibre Channel interface, as opposed to having a "bridged" solution. Many of the Fibre Channel libraries available today from our competitors have a bridge embedded inside the library. Only Exabyte and Storage Technology have native fibre tape libraries.
What are the key benefits of Fibre Channel?
Increased performance. Increased reliability. Lower overhead. Easy connectivity. Scalability. Extended distances and addressing. Decreased total cost of ownership.
Which Exabyte products are available with a native Fibre Channel interface?
Currently, the 221L, Magnum 6x60 and Magnum 8x143 libraries are available with the native Fibre Channel Interface. As the SAN market continues to develop, Exabyte will make this interface available on other library products as well. If other tape technologies provide this feature, Exabyte multi-technology libraries are well positioned to take full advantage of the feature.
How can my customer hook his SCSI library to a SAN?
There are a number of FC-SCSI bridge products that allow SCSI devices to hook up to other Fibre Channel components. Although Exabyte doesn't sell these bridges, they are commonly available from companies such as Crossroads, Chaparral, and ATTO.
What is "serverless backup?"
Serverless backup is an application that uses the SCSI "Extended Copy" or "E-copy" command to transfer blocks of data directly between disk and tape rather than through a server. The application specifies the location of the data to be moved, and the tape drive controls the actual data movement, eliminating server overhead.
What are the benefits of utilizing serverless backup?
Serverless backup allows block transfer between storage devices, without transferring the data through the server. This greatly reduces the I/O on the server, freeing it up to do other tasks. This also eliminates the bottlenecks created by the operating system.
Where does the serverless backup functionality currently reside?
Yes, serverless backup functionality can reside in a number of the FC-SCSI bridge products. When placed in the bridge, each bridge undertakes the functions of both conversion from FC to SCSI and E-copy execution for all of the tape drives.
What is the difference between serverless backup, extended copy, x-copy, server-free backup, third party copy and Celestra?
With the exception of the last two, they are all names for the same thing - serverless backup. Third-party copy is similar to serverless backup in that a device other than the server controls the data movement. However, with third-party copy, the device controlling the data movement instructs two other devices to transfer data between themselves. The data is not transferred to or from the controlling device. Celestra is Legato's name for their serverless backup software.
