Storage Area Networks For Dummies®

Part III. Using Advanced SAN Features

In this part ...

Don't let the word advanced scare you. In previous chapters, we cover the parts, reasons, and steps that go toward building a SAN. But up to now, the concepts have been pretty basic; after all, what's a brand-new home stereo system without some music cranking through it? You didn't get this far to stare at a bunch of boxes connected with wires. You want to see what advantages this new technology offers you.

This part of the book dives into how you can use your SAN-based storage in a different, more flexible manner than you're used to with the internal disk drives in servers. We go into the new possibilities that SANs offer you, such as more efficient data backup solutions, using snapshots, and using the SAN to make multiple copies of your data (giving you more options for using that data for different purposes simultaneously). And these topics are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what a SAN can do for you.