Storage Fundamentals - Self-Study Course

The Storage Fundamentals course provides students with a broad survey of the current state of network storage. By focusing on concepts, terms, and technologies and avoiding product-specific features, this course provides foundation knowledge that is applicable to the further study of storage products.

Students who can benefit from this course:

• Entry-level Storage Administrators

Audience
Course Topics Storage Overview

• State the significance of the storage industry today
• State Sun's vision of storage
• Identify the features of Sun's vision of storage

Data Transfer Technologies and Physical Connectors

• Define the Sbus and PCI Bus
• Define integrated development environment (IDE) devices
• Define SCSI technology and circumstances under which it is an appropriate data transfer technology to utilize based on performance, availability, and cost
• Correlate the SCSI standard to images of SCSI connectors
• Define the Fibre Channel Bus and list its advantages and limitations
• Define the types of Fibre Channel, including Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL), and list the advantages and limitations of each
• Correlate the Fibre Channel standard to images of Fibre Channel connectors

Network Devices

• Define Host Bus Adaptors (HBA) and versions (including PCI and SBus) and determine which of the versions is more appropriate in a given circumstance
• Define gigabit interface converters (GBICs)
• Identify advances in GBIC technology embodied in the small form factor GBIC compared to the standard
• Define a Hub and its use with storage
• Define the purpose of switches and identify the circumstances under which the use of a switch is more appropriate than a hub
• Define the types of cabling and distinguish their advantages and limitations

Arrays

• Identify the definition of an array storage system and a JBOD
• Identify standard array components
• Consider array selection criteria based on capacity, speed, availability, cost, multipathing, and scalability

RAID

• Describe redundant array of independent disks (RAID) and define the features that make up a RAID configuration
• Describe RAID levels and specific applications and performance characteristics
• Define and differentiate between software and hardware implementation of RAID with respect to performance

Tape Library Storage Backup Systems

• Identify two types of tape technologies, digital linear tape (DLT) and linear tape open (LTO), and state the purpose of each
• Identify standard tape library components, including tape, tape drives, robotics, controllers, and I/O subsystems
• Define the criteria associated with tape libraries and how they are implemented, including speed and capacity

Storage Configurations

• Describe the use and structure of NAS, especially in relation to its advantages and limitations
• Describe the use and structure of DAS, especially in relation to its advantages and limitations
• Describe the use and structure of SAN, especially in relation to its advantages and limitations

Storage Virtualization

• Define storage virtualization

Define Data Services

• Describe network data replication and its advantages and limitations
• Describe point-in-time copy and its advantages and limitations

Storage Management Software

• Describe the issues related to resource management and the types of software solutions available
• Describe the issues related to storage network management and types of the software solutions available
• Describe the issues related to component management and the types of software solutions available

Course Objectives

• Define and differentiate between types of network storage configurations and the types of logical storage configurations
• Apply a specific network storage configuration to an application by choosing the configuration that best meets the requirement
• Define data services and their application to storage
• Define storage management software and its application to storage
• Describe storage backup systems, such as tape libraries
• Discuss network storage in basic terms
• Define and differentiate between various storage technologies, including small computer system interface (SCSI), Fibre, peripheral component interconnect (PCI), and SBus
• Apply a specific technology to an application and provide rationale for that choice
• Identify and differentiate various storage components
• Describe storage systems, such as storage arrays, and define the specific technologies associated with arrays