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Bring yourself up to speed with our introductory content.
Server SAN infrastructure model of Google, Facebook poised to spread
Wikibon senior analyst predicts that the server SAN infrastructure model of Google, Facebook, Amazon could spread to enterprise IT, service providers. Continue Reading
Curbing data storage capacity demand
Analyst Jon Toigo's series of tips on common data reduction approaches will help IT pros make better use of their capacity. Continue Reading
External storage might make sense for Hadoop
Using Hadoop to drive big data analytics doesn't necessarily mean building clusters of distributed storage; a good old array might be a better choice. Continue Reading
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Building a better archival storage strategy
This guide walks through important tips and considerations regarding storage archive design strategies and technologies. Continue Reading
Crafting a data lifecycle management strategy to control capacity
Jon Toigo explains how an information lifecycle management strategy helps classify data so it can live on the most appropriate storage. Continue Reading
How DRAM or NVRAM cache can reduce flash SSD write amplification
DRAM/NVRAM caching provides SSD systems with better performance while reducing flash SSD write amplification.Continue Reading
hot data
Hot data is a reference to data that is accessed the most by an organization.Continue Reading
cache algorithm
A cache algorithm is a detailed list of instructions that decides which items should be discarded in a computer's cache of information.Continue Reading
Hyper-V deployment: Focus on scalability and storage clarification
Expert Brien Posey says to use private cloud strategy decisions when working with Hyper-V to focus on scalability and storage classification issues.Continue Reading
soft zoning
Soft zoning is used to allocate resources and control access in a storage-area network (SAN).Continue Reading
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When and how to implement an object storage platform
Analyst Arun Taneja outlines what IT pros should be asking themselves to determine the best way to implement object storage.Continue Reading
Express Bay
Express Bay is an externally accessible storage slot that is designed to accept a high-performance PCI Express (PCIe) solid-state drive (SSD),Continue Reading
How to avoid wasted disk storage capacity
Jon Toigo explains how hierarchal storage management and other technologies can help make the most of disk capacity.Continue Reading
Is there a difference between traditional tiering and sub-LUN tiering?
Sub-LUN tiering can help with performance in some environments, but according to analyst Jon Toigo, it can also get complicated with growing capacity.Continue Reading
Using the RESTful API as an onramp to object storage
RESTful APIs are essential in moving data on and off of object storage systems. Expert Marc Staimer describes the three options currently available.Continue Reading
deep archive
A deep archive is a type of data archiving that refers to a storage location for data that will likely never be accessed again, but can't be deleted.Continue Reading
hard zoning
Hard zoning is used to allocate resources and control access in a storage-area network (SAN).Continue Reading
Designing a private cloud storage architecture using object storage
When designing a private cloud using object storage, you need to consider the data that will live on it, and how data will be migrated and recalled.Continue Reading
read cache
A read cache is a computer storage component that temporarily keeps a copy of data from a slower permanent storage location in order to accelerate the fulfillment of future requests for the data.Continue Reading
HA storage (high-availability storage)
High-availability storage (HA storage) is a storage system that is continuously operational or provides at least 99% uptime.Continue Reading
Tier 1 storage
Tier 1 storage is a reference to the higher performing systems in a tiered storage environment.Continue Reading
OpenNebula
OpenNebula is an open source management tool that helps virtualized data centers enable private clouds, public clouds and hybrid clouds.Continue Reading
Big data storage challenges eased by metadata, caching and compression
Systems that provide fast access to metadata, caching and heavy compression help ease media-rich big data storage challenges, Wikibon CTO says.Continue Reading
Microsoft's SMB 3.0 for virtualization
With SMB 3.0 included in Windows Server 2012, using Windows file sharing for virtual environments is much faster, safer and easier.Continue Reading
delta differencing
Delta differencing is an incremental approach to backup that only backs up blocks that have changed after the first full backup. The differences are recorded in files called deltas.Continue Reading
Complete guide to Hadoop technology and storage
Learn how Apache Hadoop works, some of its benefits and drawbacks, and what it means for big data and cloud storage.Continue Reading
XFS file system
XFS is a 64-bit, highly scalable file system that was developed by Silicon Graphics Inc. (SGI) and first deployed in the Unix-based IRIX operating system (OS) in 1994.Continue Reading
Erasure coding tradeoffs include additional storage, disk update needs
Erasure coding tradeoffs include requirement for additional data storage, need to update extra disks for redundancy purposes, UC professor cautions.Continue Reading
Erasure coding brings trade-off of resilience vs. performance
IT's decision on using erasure coding in storage rests on data importance, durability more than amount of data, says storage consultant Marc Staimer.Continue Reading
Erasure coding definition: RAID 5, RAID 6 are most common forms
Erasure coding definition: RAID 5, RAID 6 are most common forms; UC professor explains different types, appropriate workloads, product differentiators.Continue Reading
Wikibon CTO: Erasure coding can help reduce data backup costs
Erasure coding can help reduce the data needed for backups and lower the cost of backup and recovery over the traditional approach, Wikibon CTO says.Continue Reading
Accelerate the performance of virtual machines with flash technology
Learn where to implement flash in your environment to tackle virtual machine performance issues.Continue Reading
Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA)
The Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA) is an international organization whose goal is to help its members promote Fibre Channel (FC) technology.Continue Reading
XAM (eXtensible Access Method)
XAM (eXtensible Access Method) is a standard that makes it easier to manage fixed content by freeing data from dependencies on location, applications and storage devices.Continue Reading
Storage considerations for a big data infrastructure
Jon Toigo discusses what big data is, the popularity of object storage and how to determine the best storage for a big data infrastructure.Continue Reading
cloud-integrated storage (CIS)
Cloud-integrated storage (CIS) is a term that refers to a conventional storage-area network (SAN), network-attached storage (NAS) or unified storage system that tiers and/or caches data to cloud-based storage and treats the cloud storage as if it ...Continue Reading
SCSI controller (Small Computer System Interface controller)
A SCSI controller, also called a host bus adapter (HBA), is a card or chip that allows a SCSI storage device to communicate with the operating system across a SCSI bus.Continue Reading
data destruction
Data destruction is the process of destroying data stored on tapes, hard disks and other forms of electronic media so that it is completely unreadable and cannot be accessed or used for unauthorized purposes.Continue Reading
ODCA (Open Data Center Alliance)
The Open Data Center Alliance (ODCA) is an independent information technology (IT) consortium whose goal is to develop a unified vision of cloud requirements.Continue Reading
Windows Storage Spaces
Windows Storage Spaces is a feature in Microsoft Windows Server 2012 that is used to virtualize and provision storage.Continue Reading
hot spare
A hot spare, also called a hot standby, is a backup component that can be placed into service immediately when a primary component fails. Continue Reading
semiconductor fab
A semiconductor fab is a manufacturing plant in which raw silicon wafers are turned into integrated circuits. Continue Reading
SAN and NAS storage trends include software-defined storage, flash
Forrester Research analyst Henry Baltazar predicts the top SAN and NAS storage trends over the next five years.Continue Reading
I/O contention (input/output contention)
I/O contention (input/output contention), occurs when virtual machines compete for I/O resources because there is a limited storage bandwidth.Continue Reading
Expert offers top tips on Amazon S3 vs. Azure storage
Consultant Marc Staimer offers practical advice on comparing Amazon S3 and Windows Azure Storage with use cases for enterprise IT shops in mind.Continue Reading
cloudware
Cloudware is software that runs on a remote Web server rather than on a mobile computing device, personal computer (PC) or traditional on-premises application server.Continue Reading
I/O blender effect
The I/O blender effect is a phenomenon in virtualized environments that degrades storage performance. The I/O blender effect occurs when multiple virtual machines (VMs) all send their input/output (I/O) streams to a hypervisor for processing.Continue Reading
Understanding stripped-down hyperscale storage for big data use cases
Stripped-down hyperscale storage provides rapid, efficient expansion to handle big data use cases such as Web serving and database applications.Continue Reading
ODX (Offloaded Data Transfer)
Offloaded Data Transfer (ODX) is a feature in Microsoft Windows Server 2012 that speeds up copy and move operations by allowing them to be performed by the storage hardware rather than the operating system.Continue Reading
pNFS (Parallel NFS)
The Parallel Network File System (pNFS) is part of the NFS v4.1 protocol that allows compute clients to access storage devices directly and in parallel.Continue Reading
Windows Storage Server 2012
Microsoft Windows Storage Server 2012 (WSS 2012) is a platform for network-attached storage (NAS ) appliances and iSCSI storage systems.Continue Reading
What you need to know about improving iSCSI performance
Storage expert Dennis Martin discusses how technologies like Data Center Bridging, CHAP, IPsec and iSCSI offload adapters affect iSCSI performance.Continue Reading
Define SSD: Top terms you need to know
How do you define SSD? Check out this list of important SSD terms. The list includes terms you should know and some that may seem obscure.Continue Reading
auxiliary storage
Auxiliary storage is all addressable data storage that is not currently in a computer's main storage or memory.Continue Reading
cloud NAS (cloud network attached storage)
Cloud NAS (network attached storage) is remote storage that is accessed over the Internet as if it was local.Continue Reading
clustered network-attached storage (clustered NAS)
A clustered NAS system is a distributed file system that runs concurrently on multiple NAS nodes.Continue Reading
Cloud Data Management Interface
Cloud Data Management Interface (CDMI) is a Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) industry standard that defines the interface that applications will use to create, retrieve, update and delete data elements from the cloud.Continue Reading
RAID with SSD: A primer
While RAID is still a storage standard, questions remain about RAID’s relevance with SSDs. This tip will explore the basics of using RAID with SSD.Continue Reading
NetApp Inc. OnCommand Insight Balance
NetApp OnCommand Insight Balance collects performance-related data, models app and component behaviors, and analyzes the app-to-storage route for performance bottlenecks.Continue Reading
Brocade Communications Systems Inc. 1860 Fabric Adapter
The Brocade 1860 Fabric Adapter can partition individual physical adapters into as many as 16 virtual HBAs or virtual NICs with flexible bandwidth allocation.Continue Reading
VMware Inc. vCenter Site Recovery Manager (SRM) 5
vCenter Site Recovery Manager 5 is the first hypervisor-level replication product on the market. It can also automatically move virtual machines to a primary site after a failover.Continue Reading
Brocade Communications Systems Inc. 6510 SAN Switch
The Brocade 6510 SAN Switch has industry-first 16 Gbps Fibre Channel (FC) support, flexible port configuration and full-duplex 768 Gbps aggregate port throughput.Continue Reading
enterprise MLC (eMLC)
Enterprise MLC (eMLC) is a type of MLC flash that has been enhanced to accommodate more write cycles than consumer-grade MLC flash offers.Continue Reading
array-based SSD
An array-based SSD is a solid state drive manufactured in a form factor that can be installed in a typical storage array.Continue Reading
Shared SAS
Shared serial-attached SCSI (SAS) is a method for attaching more than one server to a storage array via individual point-to-point or SAS switched connections.Continue Reading
steady state
Steady state is a condition in which a solid state flash drive has experienced enough program/erase (P/E) cycles that performance times for write operations becomes stable and can be evaluated in a consistent manner.Continue Reading
server-based SSD
A server-based SSD is a solid state drive that may be manufactured in a PCI Express form factor.Continue Reading
managed storage
Managed storage is the process of offloading an organization’s data storage requirements to an outside managed service provider.Continue Reading
fresh out of the box (FOB)
Fresh out of the box (FOB) is a term used in solid state storage (SSS) to describe a flash memory device that has experienced few or no program/erase (P/E) cycles since the device was manufactured.Continue Reading
write amplification factor (WAF)
Write amplification factor (WAF) is a numerical value that represents the amount of data a solid state storage controller has to write in relation to the amount of data that the host’s flash controller has to write.Continue Reading
SSD form factor
An SSD form factor is the size, configuration or physical arrangement of solid state storage (SSS) media.Continue Reading
overprovisioning (SSD overprovisioning)
Overprovisioning, in a storage context, is the inclusion of extra storage capacity in a flash solid state drive (SSD). The extra capacity is not visible to the host as available storage.Continue Reading
solid state module (SSM)
A solid state module is solid state storage that resides in a Dual In-line Memory Module (DIMM) or similar form factor. Continue Reading
Solid State Storage Performance Test Specification (SSS PTS)
Solid State Storage Performance Test Specification (SSS PTS) is a set of procedures for evaluating the performance of NAND-based solid state storage (SSS). Continue Reading
SSD purge (solid state drive purge)
SSD purge is the process of returning a flash memory device to its original state at the time of manufacturing and effectively erasing any data that has been written to the device. A purge is sometimes called a hard reset or digital sanitization. Continue Reading
RAM-based solid state drive (SSD)
A RAM-based solid state drive is a storage device that is made from silicon microchips, has no moving parts and stores data electronically instead of magnetically.Continue Reading
write amplification
Write amplification is an issue that occurs in solid state storage devices that can decrease the lifespan of the device and impact performance.Continue Reading
NAND flash wear-out
NAND flash wear-out is the breakdown of the oxide layer within the floating-gate transistors of NAND flash memory.Continue Reading
solid-state storage UBER
Solid-state storage UBER (unrecoverable bit error rate) is the percentage of bits that have errors relative to the total number of bits that have been read.Continue Reading
short stroking
Short stroking is the practice of formatting a disk drive such that data is written only to the outer sectors of the disk's platters.Continue Reading
P/E cycle
A solid-state-storage program-erase cycle is a sequence of events in which data is written to solid-state NAND flash memory cell (such as the type found in a so-called flash or thumb drive), then erased, and then rewritten.Continue Reading
solid state storage auto-tiering
Solid state storage auto tiering is automatically moving data that needs to accessed frequently to more expensive single-level cell (SLC) solid state storage and moving data that does not require frequent access to less expensive multi-level cell (...Continue Reading
tunnel release
Tunnel release, also called Fowler-Nordheim tunnel release, is the process by which data is erased from NAND flash memory. Continue Reading
flash-based solid state drive (SSD)
A flash solid state drive (SSD) is a non-volatile storage device that stores persistent data in flash memory. Continue Reading
stand-alone solid state storage (SSS)
Stand-alone SSS is solid state storage that is not integrated with spinning hard drive disks as in a hybrid flash array.Continue Reading
client solid state drive (SSD)
Client solid state drive (SSD) is a marketing term used by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and value-added resellers (VARs) to differentiate between solid state drives built for consumers and solid state drives built for the enterprise.Continue Reading
solid state drive (SSD) capacity
solid state drive (SSD) capacityContinue Reading
conductive metal-oxide (CMOx) technology
Conductive metal-oxide (CMOx) technology is a nonvolatile storage technology that works by moving oxygen ions between conductive and insulating metal-oxide layers within a single chip.Continue Reading
queue depth
Queue depth, in storage, is the number of pending input/output (I/O) requests for a volume.Continue Reading
MO-297
MO-297 is a JEDEC standard that defines the layout, connector positions and physical dimensions for a 54mm x 39mm solid state drive (SSD) with a Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) connector. Continue Reading
solid state storage (SSS) garbage collection
Garbage collection, like TRIM, pro-actively eliminates the need for whole block erasures prior to every write operation.Continue Reading
write endurance
Write endurance is the number of program/erase (P/E cycles) that can be applied to a block of flash memory before the storage media becomes unreliable. Continue Reading
SNIA Solid-State Storage Initiative (SSSI)
The Solid State Storage Initiative (SSSI) is an initiative formed by the Storage Network Industry Association (SNIA) to help foster and grow the adoption of solid-state storage in enterprise and client environments.Continue Reading
IBM racetrack memory
Racetrack memory is a type of non-volatile, solid-state nanotech memory being developed by IBM.Continue Reading
tunnel injection
Tunnel injection, also called Fowler-Nordheim tunnel injection, is the process by which data is written to NAND flash memory. Continue Reading
flash cache appliance
A NAND flash cache appliance is a dedicated network appliance that resides between the hosts and underlying storage arrays.Continue Reading
Storage Networking Industry Association
The Storage Networking Industry Association, also known as SNIA, is a nonprofit trade group that promotes standards and technologies for the storage industry and offers education services, technical work groups and certifications for IT ...Continue Reading
host-based replication
Host-based replication is the processes of using servers to copy data from one site to another.Continue Reading
desktop NAS
Desktop NAS (network-attached storage) is a device that stores and serves the file-level data of networked computers.Continue Reading
NAS Appliance
NAS appliances are commodity hardware that includes their own dedicated storage disks and RAID that can easily scale as more capacity is needed.Continue Reading