Storage Networking Fundamentals: An Introduction to Storage Devices, Subsystems, Applications, Management, and Filing Systems

The Complete I/O Process for File I/O in a Network

Readers sometimes find it helpful to think about the complete storage process used for file I/O operations. The steps taken to read data using a network file system are shown in Figure 15-2 and are discussed in the following list. Each letter in the list corresponds to a location in the I/O path where there is some interaction involving network filing data access. Notice that most letters show up twice in the list. That's because commands and responses travel the same path, but in opposite directions.

1. The client application asks the client operating system for a file. The application and the client operating system establish handles to exchange file contents.

2. The client operating system engages ...