My glossary of storage terms

Direct Attached Storage (DAS) - term used to describe a storage device that is directly attached to a host.

Network Attached Storage (NAS) - is a data storage mechanism that uses special devices connected directly to the network media. Facilitates clients to access stored data through a server or in a direct way. Connection achieved using either a storage device interface such as Integrated Drive Electronics, or more commonly through the Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI).

Storage Attached Network (SAN) - is a discrete network of servers and storage devices (RAID, tapes) attached together through a high-speed interconnect like the Fibre Channel.

SSD - Short for solid state disk, a high-performance plug-and-play storage device that is a lot faster than conventional rotating hard disks.

Virtualization - Virtualization is a proven software technology that makes it possible to run multiple operating systems and multiple applications on the same computer at the same time.

ILM - ILM or Information Lifecycle Management is Short the creation and management of infrastructure that maintains data stored.

Ethernet – Ethernet is a standard for local area networks) that allows multiple computers to connect on the same network using IP as the communication protocol between server - server, server - workstation, workstation - workstation, server - data storage, workstation - data storage.

SCSI – Small Computer Systems Interface is a way for all data storage devices to communicate over a common protocol standard.

iSCSI – An IP-based standard for linking storage devices over a network and transferring data by carrying SCSI commands over IP networks. iSCSI supports a Gigabit Ethernet interface at the physical layer.


RAID – Short for Redundant Array of Independent (or Inexpensive) Disks, a group of disk drives that employ multiple drives in combination for fault tolerance and performance.