Storage Management Strategies for the CIO
Access "Getting ready for IP SANs"
This article is part of the Vol. 2 No. 11 January 2004 issue of Storage products of the year 2003
Understanding iSCSI host connections Because iSCSI sits on top of TCP/IP, any standard network interface card (NIC) could be used to connect a host to an IP storage area network (SAN). However, special-purpose iSCSI cards are becoming available that can reduce CPU utilization and potentially provide greater levels of performance--albeit at a higher price--than a general purpose NIC (See "Network interface card options," below). With a conventional NIC, all functionality above the GigE level is provided in software, including all SCSI, iSCSI and TCP/IP functions. The impact on the host depends on the CPU load and the I/O characteristics of the application. A lightly loaded CPU may have sufficient headroom to provide good iSCSI performance. A moderately busy CPU may even be able to support a light to moderate iSCSI load. There are two alternatives for offloading the iSCSI processing overload: TOE NICs and iSCSI adapters. A TCP/IP Offload Engine (TOE) NIC offloads all TCP/IP operations. This type of interface isn't specific to iSCSI at all, and could be used as... Access >>>
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What's Inside
Features
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Recent Funding
Cash for several storage startups
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Modular arrays earn new trust
Modular arrays have come a long way recently, but are you ready to risk all of your company's mission-critical data on them?
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Disk encryption: not just for paranoids
by Jeff Moad
Many companies are beginning to do something that years ago would have been thought of as overkill: encrypting data while it is sitting on the array. This article will help you decide if this is something your company should do.
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Firm Eliminates Hassles of Clustered Apps
Alluring Linux clusters
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NetApp Opens Up Software
NetApp branches out.
- Is it Wise to Encrypt Blocks?
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Getting ready for IP SANs
by James Damoulakis and Larry Coblentz
IP SANs promise benefits to groups within your organization that up until now haven't had access to these kinds of capabilities. But before you even think of deploying an IP SAN, read this article.
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Recent Funding
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Plan on disk-based backup
by Shane O'Neill
Will 2004 be a breakthrough year for disk-based backup solutions? A new survey of Storage readers finds that while users are reluctant to completely eliminate tape from their backup environments, many are planning to deploy disk to complement tape in the next year.
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Making Sense of New Intelligent Switch Products
Smart switches have arrived
- Consultancy Cuts Telecom Costs
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Best storage products of 2003
by Editors of Storage and SearchStorage.com
The editors of Storage and SearchStorage.com present the winners of the second-annual Products of the Year.
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Denser Optical Disks in View
Dense disks make sense
- Beware of Big Disk Drives
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Plan on disk-based backup
by Shane O'Neill
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Columns
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Best and worst list for 2003
Storage Bin: Steve Duplessie's best and worst list for 2003.
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One-stop shop or flop?
by Mark Schlack
One-stop shop or flop?
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Snapshot: Using NAS for databases
Do You Store Any Databases On NAS?
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Brocade XPath Technology standard
by Darryl Brooks
Brocade has just submitted its XPath Technology to the T11.5 task group to adopt as the new standard for the Fabric Application Interface Standard. Here's a look at how it could change your life.
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Get your storage team serious about data storage security
by Jon Oltsik
Storage teams are still confused about their place in information security, and security isn't an issue you can afford to ignore. Here's how to organize and empower your team.
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Disaster recovery planning on a budget
by James Damoulakis
Tips on how to plan a disaster recovery initiative that helps you get the most bang for your buck.
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Best and worst list for 2003
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