
Many of our readers started asking about their careers in networking & most of them had one motive, to become a NETWORK ADMIN. To be said SAN or Storage Area Network is a also a career in which you would be administering a part of a network setup. To be more precise Network admins would be responsible for handling, say they would handling only bytes of data. But as a SAN admin, you would be handling TERA Bytes of data. I think you better know the difference between those!
What is SAN?
A Simple definition – A storage area network (SAN) is an architecture to attach remote computer storage devices (such as disk arrays, tape libraries, and optical jukeboxes) to servers in such a way that the devices appear as locally attached to the operating system. Although the cost and complexity of SANs are dropping, they are uncommon outside larger enterprises. A SAN is a network of storage devices that are connected to each other and to a server. In some configurations a SAN is also connected to the network. It is forecast to become the data storage technology of choice in the coming years.
NAS – NETWORK ATTACHED STORAGE
Network attached storage (NAS), in contrast to SAN, uses file-based protocols such as NFS or SMB/CIFS where it is clear that the storage is remote, and computers request a portion of an abstract file rather than a disk block.
Careers
There are many careers in these starting from simple HBA RAID controllers to Bit complex NAS. Finally they end up with High complex SAN systems which are employed in huge enterprises. They may sound a bit complex, maybe I said that before, But One thing if you can master these SAN devices not only you would be earning a lot it is one of the better careers to grow with.
Some SAN Manufacturers: LSI , Promise Vtrak Systems, Adaptec
Some certification to start with –
Storage Networking Certification Program (SNCP)
The SNIA Storage Networking Certification Program (SNCP) provides a strong foundation of vendor-neutral, systems-level credentials that integrate with and complement individual vendor certifications. The structure of the SNCP has been enhanced to reflect the advancement and growth of storage networking technologies over the past few years, and to provide for expanded offerings in the future. Through evolving and enhancing the SNCP, the SNIA is establishing a uniform standard by which individual knowledge and skill sets can be judged.
* Validate your skills and knowledge
* Gain peer recognition
* Make yourself more valuable to your company
* Target and build upon the skills you have as an industry professional
For More information on how to do this certification, you can refer here
Future of SAN is Virtualization
Storage virtualization refers to the process of completely abstracting logical storage from physical storage. The physical storage resources are aggregated into storage pools, from which the logical storage is created. It presents to the user a logical space for data storage and transparently handles the process of mapping it to the actual physical location. This is currently implemented inside each modern disk array, using a vendor’s proprietary solution. However, the goal is to virtualize multiple disk arrays, made by different vendors, scattered over the network, into a single monolithic storage device, which can be managed uniformly.
For latest news in the SAN world
Any queries and comments are welcome…
Compiled by
Gobind V
Business Development Manager,
GSG




Thanks for giving such a great information about networking, myfriend is learning networking, he knows hardware problems. he wants some more information about networking please provide him yaar, his email is gunti.balaji@gmail.com.
And give me reference in apna circle.com and linkedin.com please……………
Hi Venkata Srinivas,
Please post all your queries here. We’ll be happy to answer.
thanks for posting the details it is very help full.
am ccna certifiend and i am planning to get certified in SNIA, coud you help me how to prepare / get trained.
praveen19n@gmail.com
INDIA-Bangalore
Hi Praveen,
Thank you for visiting GSG.
If you trying to get SNIA certification , please follow the below link & check in the details of that.
http://www.snia.org/education/certification/”
http://www.isanindia.com/index.php
The Curriculum is like this. The first test you have to take is SNIA Network foundations exam which could be cracked easily.
Link for the Certification : Path http://www.snia-india.org/index.php?q=content/certifications
Link for that Curriculum Chapters involved in the SNIA Foundation course : http://www.snia.org/education/certification/Exam%20Prep%20Guide%202008%20logo%2010-04-07.pdf
Regards,
Gobind Vijay,
BDM , GSG Team.