SAN



SAN, called Storage Area Network or Network behind servers, is specialized, high speed network attaching servers and storage devices. A SAN allows "any to any" connection across the network, using interconnect elements such as routers, gateways, hubs and switches. It eliminates the traditional dedicated connection between a server and storage, and concept that the server effectively "owns and manages" the storage devices. It also eliminates any restriction to amount of data that a server can access, currently limited by the number of storage devices, which can be attached to the individual server. Instead, a SAN introduces the flexibility of networking to enable one server or many heterogeneous servers to share a common storage "utility", which may comprise many storage devices, including disk, tape, and optical storage. And, the storage utility may be located far from the servers which use it.

Data Recovery Tip #21: Schedule and run full virus scan regularly, or nightly whenever possible.