SAN vs NAS-Secure Data Storage for Small Businesses? 4
DeePCedure asks: "I'm the network administrator for a small e-commerce solution provider that is growing very quickly. We need a host independant means to centralize our data storage, but we have multiple platforms including Linux, Win32, two generations of Mac's, BeOS, and even OS/2. A Storage Area Network(SAN) seems like the best solution, but most of the information I've found on SANs is geared toward large enterprises. Also, Fiber Channel technology being as expensive as it is, a SAN seems out of reach. Network Attached Storage(NAS) is probably the next best thing but NAS has it's own problems. Most of the devices I've found don't support all of our platforms, and the ones that do don't have very good security. How can I centralize ~100GB of data on a multiple platform network within budget? Also, how can I do it securely, with controlled access all the way down to the bottom level of the data structure? "
Roll Your Own, but You Lose Alot (Score:1)
This may end up being the solution to stay under budget, but you do lose alot going this way. One thing is well integrated automated backups. Some of the NAS and SAN products have very good backup abillities built in. Even on an hour by hour basis. Great for those absent minded users who delete critical reports just before they are due.
If you decide to roll your own a few things to remember:
I hope this helps some. In the long run I feel you will likely be happier with a NAS or SAN system.
A possible trick (Score:1)
NAS more mature... (Score:1)
NAS is more mature than SAN, also SAN products aren't and won't become available for some of the platforms mentioned, of that I'm confident.
My suggestion would be to use a low-end NetApp if it's in the price-range or a Solaris x86 box coupled with a RAID system like the Arena boxes you can get from Zero-D.
NetApp gives you the gamut of NAS facilities, including snapshots, RAID, Integrated Unix and NT permissions, and your choice of access protocols.
The x86 option lets you build your own, exactly as you would with Linux or Freebeard, but also nets you a working lockd, and a comprehendable, consistent, and on-line tunable system, including the network stack.
Obviously someone is going to flame me for this, but I'm wearing asbestos undies. 8)