A storage area network (SAN) is defined as a set of interconnected devices<\/em> (e.g. disks and tapes) and servers<\/em> that are connected to a common communication and data transfer infrastructure such as a fibre channel. The common communication and data transfer mechanism for a given deployment is commonly known as the storage fabric<\/em>. The purpose of the SAN is to allow multiple servers access to a pool of storage in which any server can potentially access any storage unit. Clearly in this environment, management plays a large role providing security guarantees (who is authorized to access which devices) and sequencing or serialization guarantees (who can access which devices at what point in time).<\/p>\n Why use a SAN?<\/em><\/p>\n Storage area networks provide a broad range of advantages over locally connected devices. They allow compute units to be detached from storage units, thereby allowing flexible deployment and re-purposing of both servers and storage dynamically to suit the current business needs without having to be concerned about buying the right devices for a given server or without re-cabling a datacenter to attach storage to a given server.<\/p>\n Can a cluster be connected to a SAN?<\/em><\/p>\n Yes, Microsoft fully supports storage area networks both as part of the base Windows platform and as part of a complete Windows Clustering high availability solution.<\/p>\n Can a cluster co-exist on a SAN with other servers?<\/em><\/p>\n One or more Server clusters can be deployed in a single SAN environment along with standalone Windows servers and\/or with other non-Windows platforms.<\/p>\n If you’re in the market for a SAN, check out these questions to help make your purchasing decision a lot easier! <\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5984","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-san-solution"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t![\"storagean\"](\"http:\/\/aerocominc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/storagean.png\")
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