Technical White Paper

Networking with Combining ease of use with low cost,

iSCSI: Affordable iSCSI technology allows all enterprises
to enjoy the benefits of Storage Area
SANs for Everyone
Networks.

Contents

NAS vs. SAN 2

Additional Advantages of SAN 2

iSCSI SANs 3

How iSCSI Works 3

Benefits of iSCSI 4

iSCSI and Data Protection 5

March 18, 2009

Most small and medium businesses already understand the benefits of Network Attached
Storage (NAS) devices. Most simply, NAS are the storage elements that connect to
a network and provide file-level access to multiple systems. With a NAS, you can
consolidate backups and make information readily available to several computers at once.
With the addition of iSCSI, a NAS can do much more for your business, allowing you to
build a global storage network and manage it from a central location using your existing
IP network infrastructure.

NAS vs. SAN

Although it sounds complex, a SAN is simply a network with the primary purpose of
transferring data between computer systems and storage elements and among storage
elements. Like other network storage, a SAN supports centralized storage management
and make it possible to move data between various storage devices, share data between
multiple servers, and back up and restore data rapidly and efficiently.

Network Attached Storage Storage Area Network

NAS identifies data by file name and byte A SAN addresses data by disk block
offsets, transfers file data or file meta-data number and transfers raw disk blocks, a
(file owner, permissions, creation date), faster and more efficient way to capture
and handles security, user authentication, point-in-time snapshots.
and file locking.
Works well for file servers and printer Database applications, such as SQL, often
servers require direct access to block storage
Traditionally, a SAN was used for block data transfer while NAS was considered a more
effective tool for file-level storage. The operating system on a NAS, like EMC’s Lifeline,
uses a file system device driver to access data using standard protocols such as Network
File System (NFS) or Common Internet File System (CIFS). With a NAS, you are generally
transferring file-level data over an Ethernet network. A SAN, on the other hand, has been
traditionally considered a better alternative for storing and moving block-level information.
Block-based backups bypass file systems almost completely and read data directly
form the Disk or Volume. Bypassing the file system can dramatically improve backup
performance, particularly if your backup has a large number of files. Block based backups
always have built-in support for point-in-time snapshots.
SANs really can be any kind of interconnected storage devices and servers where block
and file data moves among storage elements, storage devices, computer systems, over
a network. Most businesses need a storage network that includes both block data (SAN),
and file data (NAS).

Additional Advantages of SAN

Any type of shared storage simplifies IT administration and adds flexibility to your system,
since cables and storage devices do not have to be physically moved to shift storage
from one server to another. With a SAN, you can simplify common server maintenance
like applying patches, installing and upgrading software, as well as adding capacity or
consolidating servers, deploying servers remotely or backing up data.
Like other networked storage, a SAN allows an array of devices to access storage
seamlessly. With a SAN, data backup is automatic and storage consolidation is centralized,
adding up to easier administration. In addition, you can set up your servers to boot from

iSCSI: Affordable SAN for Everyone 2

the SAN. This allows you to replace faulty servers in as little as 30 minutes by simply
reconfiguring the SAN so the replacement server uses the LUN of the faulty server.
The physical components of a SAN can be grouped in a single rack or data center or
connected over long distances. Because they can be geographically separated, SANs also
offer effective disaster recovery and high availability. A SAN can span to another business
location with a secondary storage array. With an iSCSI SAN in place, you can take
advantage of the least costly method of long-distance data transport. This makes a SAN
an affordable business continuity solution for companies of any size: the SAN can grow
easily with the business it supports.

iSCSI SANs
In the past, setting up a SAN usually required very expensive hardware and high-end
management software. Most small-to-medium businesses just couldn’t afford the time or
money associated with a Fibre Channel SAN. Storage over IP, or iSCSI, changes that. With
iSCSI, you can easily and efficiently transfer block data over an IP (Ethernet) network.
Understood most simply, iSCSI enables standard SCSI commands to be passed between
host systems (initiators) and storage devices (targets) over an Ethernet/IP network. With
iSCSI technology, storage becomes an abstract resource to be allocated, rather than a
discrete property of individual physical servers. Here’s how it works. A server will see the
storage it is connected to as it does standard SCSI or direct-attached storage. The reality
is that instead of the SCSI driver sending commands down the SCSI bus adapter (HBA),
an iSCSI driver will intercept the request, repackage it, and ship it through an iSCSI HBA
via Ethernet.

How iSCSI Works

iSCSI is built on two of the dominant standards for storage and networking: SCSI and
Ethernet. Using an ordinary IP network, iSCSI transports block-level data between an
iSCSI initiator on a server and an iSCSI target on a storage device. The iSCSI protocol
encapsulates SCSI commands and assembles the data in packets for the TCP/IP layer.
Packets are sent over the network using a point-to-point connection. Upon arrival, the
protocol translates data back to SCSI. Security is provided through iSCSI authentication
and virtual private networks (VPNs), as needed.

iSCSI: Affordable SAN for Everyone 3

 1. A server requests data, a file or an application. The operating system generates
the SCSI commands and data request, encapsulated it into a packet, and transmitting
it over an Ethernet connection.
2. At the receiving end, the SCSI commands and data are extracted.
3. The SCSI commands and data are sent to the NAS.

Data is returned in response to the request the same way.

When an iSCSI initiator connects to an iSCSI target, the storage is seen by the operating
system as a local storage device. The process is transparent to applications, file systems,
and operating systems. By consolidating storage with an iSCSI SAN, different platforms
can share the same storage, greatly improving utilization and efficiency.
To access iSCSI storage, all a server needs is an iSCSI initiator connected to a network.
An initiator can be an iSCSI driver with a standard network card. On the target side,
storage devices similarly implement the iSCSI protocol stack. Fortunately, because of
the use of TCP/IP, initiators and targets are software and hardware independent. With a
robust network stack, software and hardware interoperability isn’t an issue.
With the advent of Gigabit Ethernet, iSCSI can deliver performance comparable to a Fibre
Channel SAN.

Benefits of iSCSI
Using iSCSI allows any size business to develop scalable and secure remote data storage
at a fraction of the cost and difficulty of other technologies. Local and wide-area networks
are rapidly increasing in speed, and standardized equipment is readily available. The
almost universal deployment of networks utilizing Ethernet and Internet technologies has
produced economies of scale and increasingly higher performance. As a network storage
solution, iSCSI
• Enables cost-effective, scalable, secure, and highly-available SANs.
• Makes consolidated storage possible for a wide range of businesses.
• Leverages existing management skills and Ethernet network infrastructure.
• Delivers performance comparable to Fibre Channel for much lower cost.
• Provides interoperability using industry standards.

iSCSI: Affordable SAN for Everyone 4

iSCSI and Data Protection
iSCSI makes remote data replication more available and affordable. Remote replication
involves creating block-level snapshots (point-in-time copies) of your data and sending
them over a network to be stored on disk at a remote location. This strategy is very
helpful for business continuity:
• Data is physically protected because copies are not collocated with original data.
• Faster restore time, since data is already in a useable (not backup) format and readily
accessible.
• Frequent replication causes almost no disruption to your company’s regular work flow.
Because there is no limit on the distance
between your production and replication
sites, your data is quickly accessible in case
of physical disaster. If a virus hits, or you
experience data corruption or an accidental
deletion you can restore a good copy from a
previous point in time. This method is simple
and affordable, and offers protection from all
kinds of disasters.
iSCSI adds real business benefits to periodic
replication. First, you can connect your
primary and remote sites using standard IP-
based technology. With your standard network
connectivity you can define a the relationship
between sites, select volumes, and schedule
automatic replication.
With iSCSI, businesses can get a handle
on storage administration expenses and
business continuity without retrofitting their
existing network infrastructure or investing
in hardware that quickly becomes obsolete.
With its low cost and high performance, iSCSI
allows businesses to leverage existing network
infrastructure to create IP-based SANs that deliver the performance of Fibre Channel, but
at a fraction of the cost.

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iSCSI: Affordable SAN for Everyone 5