Horizontal Applications - Quantum DLT 2000 Handbook

Growth of SANs and NAS
One of the major factors in the continuing growth of the market
for DLTtape-technology-based automated libraries will be the
emergence of new storage models, including Storage Area
Networks (SANs) and Network Attached Storage (NAS). Both of
these storage concepts place increased emphasis on the need for
high-performance, high-capacity backup and recovery capabilities.
Those capabilities are being delivered by DLTtape libraries. (See
Figure 8-2.)
A Storage Area Network is a specialized network that provides servers
with fast, reliable access to a large pool of storage resources. A SAN
typically includes storage management software, a network infrastruc-
ture of hubs, routers, and switches, and may include Fibre Channel
(FC) connectivity. A SAN also includes a large pool of disk storage,
often in RAID configurations, and most often a large-capacity tape
library (or libraries) for backup. Applications for SANs are typically
ones that require large or very large storage capacity. They can be con-
ventional horizontal applications (backup and archiving), as well as
data intensive vertical applications (e-commerce, data mining, medical
imaging, video, and multi-media). DLTtape-based libraries provide the
critical advantages of high capacity and performance, as well as reliabil-
ity and a high-level of automated operation, reducing the need for
management and operator intervention to virtually zero.
Network Attached Storage (NAS) involves attaching storage resources
directly to the network, making them active nodes on the network,
easily available to servers on the network. The major benefits of the
NAS concept is that it is relatively simple to implement, because it
takes advantage of existing and proven network infrastructure.
Typically NAS is used in file-oriented applications, such as CAD,
graphic arts, and medical imaging. In these applications, NAS makes
high-volume storage available on the network to many users at low
8.4 AUTOMATION