2-day Technology Overview Course
Course Description
This course is designed to introduce Business Professionals to
the fundamentals of Storage Area Networking technology, product
components, terminology, marketplace, capabilities, challenges,
applications alternative technologies and futures. This course introduces
storage networking fundamentals from a vendor neutral perspective
and assists the decision maker in understanding the capabilities
and limitations of the current state of solutions without being
product or manufacturer specific.
Course Objectives
- Define basic SAN terms and acronyms along with alternative Direct
Attached Storage (DAS) and Network Attached Storage (NAS) technology
choices. For example: Fibre Channel host bus adapters, SCSI to
FC bridges, Directors and fabric switches, RAID and JBOD storage
arrays, SAN gateways.
- Explain both hardware and software component products and how
they relate to SAN solutions.
- Provide an overview of Fibre Channel and understand the strengths
and weaknesses of different topology approaches. For example:
Point to Point, Loop, Director and Switch Fabric with real world
applications of each.
- Develop a working knowledge of the issues and challenges involved
with SAN technology. For example: industry standards, performance/load
balancing, interoperability, quality of service and integrated
management.
- Provide an industry perspective of current capabilities and future
directions of storage networking. Explaining the capabilities,
strengths, limitations, and opportunities for various SAN techniques:
Fibre Channel, iSCSI, and InfiniBand technology.
- Apply acquired knowledge of SAN technology toward understanding
its application to the needs of the marketplace and be able to
appreciate the benefits of SAN solutions in addressing various
customer environments.
Intended Audience
This course is for anyone wanting an introduction to Storage Area
Networks. Intended audience Job Roles might be but are not excluded to:
- Management and Corporate -Technology decision makers
- Information Systems - MIS/IT manager - responsible for technology
implementations and need to manage support personnel directly responsible
for SANs
- Administration and Office Support - Personnel that need to understand
Fibre Channel and SAN terminology
- Call Center Personnel - Ability to define problems and escalate
them to relevant support
Prerequisites
A basic understanding of networking and storage concepts and terminology.
Course Outline
1. Overview of the Storage Market
- Overview of the storage marketplace
- Information strategies and their impact on business
- IT strategies to address scalability, performance, availability
and management
- Applications that are driving the need for a storage strategy
- Value propositions of network storage strategies to achieve
TCO and ROI goals and objectives
2. Introduction to Storage Area Networking
(SAN)
- Strengths and weaknesses of Direct Attached Storage (DAS)
- Alternatives for storage architectures - SAN and NAS technologies
- Components that make up SAN customer solutions
- Companies that shape the network storage marketplace
3. Fibre Channel for Network Storage
Architectures
- Overview of Fibre Channel technology (features, benefits and
value propositions)
- Addressing the relationship of Fibre Channel to network storage
(SAN and NAS)
- Historical prespective and current market requirements for various
Fibre Channel topologies (Pt to Pt, Loop, Switch)
- Fibre Channel topology choices addressing strength and limitation
of each approach
- Mapping customer objectives to different Fibre Channel architectures
- Configuration alternatives with various network storage components
(cable plants, connector types, HBAs, hubs, switches, bridges,
gateways, management)
- SAN component purchase criteria
- Alternatives for SAN today and the future (FC, iSCSI, InfiniBand)
4. SAN Applications & Enterprise
Strategies
- The key SAN 'Killer Applications' and their value propositions
- Specific SAN Applications for various line of business segments
- Economic value [TCO, ROI techniques] of SAN solutions
- Understanding how to exploit new opportunities in the global
marketplace
- Marketplace success stories - through network storage implementations
- Overview of how SANs integrate with LAN/MAN/WAN network models
- Case Studies of customer environments
5. Consulting and Best Practices Techniques
- Best Practices considerations for success with SAN
- Life cycle management of SAN success (assessment, design, test,
deployment, maintenance)
- Criteria to evaluate SAN products from various competitors
6. Planning for SAN and Future Directions
- The state of the SAN industry today
- Industry organizations for Fibre Channel and SAN standards,
support and promotion
- The state SAN interoperability and other issues with SAN environments
- The future directions and roadmap for Fibre Channel and SAN
technologies
|
