Building Storage Networks ^{2nd Ed.}

Plan, design, and implement network storage solutions with help from this definitive guide

Develop and design successful storage systems using this in-depth resource, now in a completely revised second edition. Covering everything from basic fundamentals — such as I/O components and file systems to emerging topics such as i-SCSI and DAFS — this book delivers the background information and technical know-how to implement large-capacity, high-availability storage networks throughout your enterprise. Filled with diagrams and easy-to-understand explanations, this book will help you identify and apply network storage technology to best meet the needs of your organization.

• Part I: Introduction to Network Storage
1. Getting a Handle on Storage Networking
• The Changing Role of Data as a Business Asset
• Fundamental Concepts of Storage Networking
• Requirement for Storage Networking
• The Pillars of Storage Networking
• An Overview of Traditional Open Systems Storage
• Storage on Open Systems Servers
• SCSI: The Reigning Technology for Open Systems Storage
• Traditional Systems Wiring: The SCSI Bus
• SCSI Bus Implementation Variables
• New Storage Connectivity Options That Extend the I/O Channel
• Network Attached Storage
• Fibre Channel
• Storage Area Networks
• Summary
• Exercises
2. Piecing Together a 2Path for Storage I/O
• Identifying the Physical I/O Building Blocks
• System Memory Bus
• The Host I/O Bus
• Host I/O Controllers and Network Interface Cards
• Storage Networks and Buses
• Storage Devices and Subsystems
• Media
• The Logical Components of the I/O Channel
• Application Software
• Operating System
• File Systems and Database Systems
• Volume Managers
• Device Drivers
• Combining Hardware and Logical ComponentS into an I/O Stack
• I/O Stack Functions
• Summary
• Exercises
3. Charting the I/O Path
• The I/O Path for Local Storage
• Local I/O
• A Detailed Examination of the Local I/O Path
• Considerations for I/O on Network Servers
• Theme and Variations on the Local I/O Path
• The Client/Server I/O Path
• Client I/O Redirection
• The Server Side of Client/Server Storage I/O
• Implementing Device Virtualization in the I/O Path
• Locations in the I/O Path for Device Virtualization
• Channel Virtualization
• Summary
• Exercises
• Part II: Fundamental Storing Applications
4. Disk Mirroring and Replications for Data Redundancy
• Safeguarding Your Data with Disk Mirroring
• The Mechanics of Disk Mirroring
• Implementing Disk Mirroring in the I/O Path
• Performance Characteristics of Mirroring
• Increasing I/O Performance with Disk Mirroring
• Planning a Disk Mirroring Configuration
• Mirroring External Disk Subsystems
• Mirror-Based Data Snapshots
• Subsystem Mirroring Beyond the Local Area
• Disk Mirroring over a Wide Area Network
• File Replication
• Summary
• Exercises
5. Boosting Performance Through Caching
• Caching Basics
• Cache Hits and Cache Misses
• Caching Theme and Variation
• Reading and Writing and (Algo) ‘rithmetic’
• Cache Reading Algorithms
• Cache Writing Algorithms
• Disk Cache Mechanics
• Tagged Command Queuing
• Using Intelligent Processors in Disk Drives
• Effectiveness of Tagged Command Queuing
• Importance of the I/O Path in System Performance
• Balancing Processor and I/O Performance
• Summary
• Exercises
6. Increasing Availability with RAID
• Three Reasons for RAID
• RAID Capacity and Manageability
• Scaling Up with Capacity
• Management Advantages of RAID
• RAID for Performance
• Performance Through Striping
• RAID Reliability and Availability Advantages
• Data Reliability Through Redundancy
• Power Protection
• Hot Spares and Hot Swapping
• The Internal I/O Paths in a RAID Subsystem
• Organizing Data in RAID Arrays: Extents, Strips, and Stripes
• Array Management Software
• Applying Parity to Striped Data
• Creating Check Data with the XOR Function
• Parity in Interlocked Access RAID
• Parity in Independent Access RAID
• Comparing RAID Levels
• The RAID Advisory Board
• RAID Level 0: Striping
• RAID Level 1: Mirroring
• RAID Level 2: Interlocked Access with Specialized Disks
• RAID Level 3: Synchronous Access with a Dedicated Parity Disk
• RAID 4: Independent Access with a Dedicated Parity Disk
• RAID 5: Independent Access with Distributed Parity
• RAID Level 6: Independent Access with Double Parity
• Combining RAID Levels
• Objectives of Multilayered RAID Arrays
• Striping and Mirroring Combined—RAID 0+1/RAID 10
• Locating RAID Functionality in the I/O Path
• RAID in Host-Based Volume Management Software
• Host I/O Controller–Based RAID
• Disk Subsystem–Based RAID
• Setting Fault-Tolerant Standards: the RAID Advisory Board (RAB)
• Summary
• Exercises
7. Network Backup: The Foundation of Storage Management
• Network Backup and Recovery
• Hardware Used in Network Backup Systems
• Media Components for Network Backup
• Software Components
• Working with Backup
• Types of Backup Operations
• Backing Up Live Systems
• The Special Case of Image Backup
• Restoring Data
• Integrating Restore with File Systems and Databases
• Types of Restore Operations
• Importance of Media Management to Restores
• Backing Up and Restoring Security Data
• Data Access Components
• Tape Rotation
• The Necessity of Tape Rotation
• Commonly Used Tape Rotation Models
• Problem Areas for Backup and Recovery
• Measurable Variables in Backup
• Summary
• Exercises
• Part III: The Storage Channel Becomes a Network
8. SAN and NAS as Storing and Filing Applications
• Recapitulating Wiring, Storing, and Filing
• Storage Networking Is an Application
• Wiring
• Storing Recap
• Filing
• The Integration of Wiring, Storing, and Filing in Storage Networks
• Storing and Filing as Network Applications
• Aligning the Building Blocks of Storage Networking
• Start Your Engines, the Race for Wiring Supremacy Has Begun!
• Summary
• Exercises
9. SAN Structures and Topologies
• Transforming the Network Storage Channel with SANs
• Structures for Scaling
• Structures for Availability
• Network Topologies in SANs
• Transmission Frame Structure
• Switched Networks
• Ring Networks
• Variations and Extensions to SAN Structures
• Segregating Access to Storage in SANs
• Embedding Network Wiring in Storage Subsystems
• Storage Domain Controllers
• Summary
• Exercises
10. SAN Solutions
• Solving Storage Problems with SANs
• Storage Pooling
• High Availability Through Pathing
• Data Moving
• Backup over the SAN
• Three Stages of SAN Backup Development
• First Stage: LAN-Free, Virtual Private Backup Networks
• Stage 2: Integrating Media and Devices
• Stage 3: Serverless Backup
• Combining Serverless with Integrated SAN Backup
• Subsystem-Based Backup
• A Brief Overview of Subsystem-Based SAN Backup
• Summary
• Exercises
• Part IV: Wiring Technologies
11. Wiring SANs with Fibre Channel
• The Structure of Fibre Channel
• The Physical Aspects of Fibre Channel Wiring
• Cabling
• Transceivers: The System-to-Network Interface
• Encoding and Error Detection at FC-1
• The Logical Side of Fibre Channel
• Fibre Channel Port Types
• Flow Control in Fibre Channel
• Class of Service
• Naming and Addressing in Fibre Channel
• Establishing Connections in a Fibre Channel Network
• Communication Syntax in Fibre Channel
• FC-4 Protocol Mappings in Fibre Channel
• Two Different Networks Using a Common Name
• A Historical Perspective
• Fabrics
• Latency
• Switches in Fabrics
• Loop Communications
• Loop Internals
• Summary
• Exercises
12. Wiring Storage with Ethernet and TCP/IP Networks
• A Historical Perspective on Storage and Ethernet/TCP/IP
• Clarification in Terminology Used for Ethernet and TCP/IP
• A Brief Overview of Ethernet and TCP/IP
• Wiring Ethernet/TCP/IP into Storage Network
• Server Boundary Integration
• Storage Tunneling
• Ethernet/TCP/IP Storage Network Tunnels
• Tunneling Ethernet/TCP/IP Traffic Through a Fibre Channel Network
• Native Ethernet/TCP/IP Storage Networks
• The Local Native Storage Network
• The Optional Wide Area Native Storage Network
• Characteristics of Gigabit Ethernet for Storage Wiring
• Latency Issues in Ethernet/TCP/IP Networks
• Characteristics of the TCP/IP Protocol Suite
• The Performance "Gotcha!" of Processing TCP Algorithms
• Network Protocol Processors
• Saved by the Network Protocol Processor
• iSCSI
• Summary
• Exercises
13. Wiring Storage Networks and Clusters with InfiniBand
• InfiniBand as a PCI Replacement
• The InfiniBand System Network
• An Overview of Clustering
• The Market Context for Clustering
• Why Clusters?
• Cluster Processes
• Creating a Two-Node Cluster with NAS and SAN Elements
• InfiniBand in Cluster Networks
• Components of InfiniBand Networks
• Managing Remote Systems Memory with the VI Protocol
• Implementing InfiniBand with Storage Networks
• InfiniBand Clusters
• PCI Replacement Structures
• Summary
• Exercises
• Part V: Filing, Internet Storage, and Management
14. Network Attached Storage Appliances
• NAS Software
• Filing in NAS
• NAS Hardware Implementations
• NAS Appliance Hardware Components
• NAS Applications and Configurations
• Network Considerations for NAS
• Storage Applications of NAS Appliances
• Backup and Recovery for NAS Appliances
• Protocols and File System Operations with NAS
• Comparing NAS Communication and Filing Methods
• CIFS Emulation for NFS Servers
• New Developments in Network Attached Storage: NASD and DAFS
• NASD
• DAFS
• Summary
• Exercises
15. Filing: The Great Frontier of Storage Networking
• Requirements for File Systems in Storage Networks
• Journaling File Systems
• Software Snapshots
• Dynamic Filing System Expansion
• Database Filing Technologies
• Direct File I/O
• Database Mirroring and Replication
• Packing Intelligence into Storage Devices and Subsystems
• Deconstructing Filing Functions
• Filing Functions in Network Storage
• Object-Based Storage in Disk Drives
• Storage Network Filing Systems Designs
• Four Approaches to Storage Network Filing
• Data Sharing: The Holy Grail of Storage Management?
• Benefits of Data Sharing Filing Systems
• Data Sharing Implementation Issues
• Data Structure Functions in Data Sharing Filing Systems
• Resolving Locks and Semantic Differences
• Lock Management for Network Storage
• File-Level Virtualization
• The Grandfather of File-Level Virtualization: HSM
• OnLine File-Level Virtualization
• Summary
• Exercises
16. Storing and Retrieving Data on Public Networks
• Internet Infrastructure Storage
• Scaling to Server-Side Requirements
• Industrial Strength Internet Storage Services
• Internet Data Center Storage Services
• Personal Storage Sevices and Technolgies
• Internet Storage Methods
• Web-Based Storage
• Personal Internet Backup Software and Services
• Summary
• Exercises
17. Managing Storage Networks
• Management Designs
• Catastrophes, Pathologies, and Bugs
• SNMP Enterprise Network Management
• SNMP in Storage Networks
• Web-Based Management
• Storing Management
• Storage Resource Management
• SCSI Enclosure Services
• Virtualization as a SAN Management Tool
• Summary
• Exercises

A pretty decent introduction to Storage issues. It is a bit aged, but it is still valid (and there are some silly mistakes in the book, but you can live with it).

Recommended for anyone who needs to understand what Storage is.