IP Sans: A Guide to Iscsi, Ifcp, and Fcip Protocols for Storage Area Networks: An Introduction to ISCSI, IFCP, and FCIP Storage Area Networks

• Combining the power of advanced SAN architectures with the value and familiarity of mainstream IP networking.
• Emerging IP SAN standards: Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP), Internet Fibre Channel Protocol (iFCP), and Internet SCSI (iSCSI).
• Tomorrow's advances: Gigabit Ethernet-based solutions, Infiniband, and more.

Today's enterprises face unprecedented data storage and availability requirements. To meet these needs, they are increasingly turning to Storage Area Networks (SANs). Now, even more promising IP-based SANs are arriving, combining the advantages of SAN architecture with the familiarity and value of IP-based networking. Leading SAN expert Tom Clark surveys these emerging products, helping decision-makers understand the key issues, protocols, technologies, and applications. He begins with an overview of today's enterprise storage challenges and reviews existing approaches, including Fibre Channel, SCSI; and network-attached-storage solutions. He then introduces IP from the perspective of the storage professional. Clark reviews supporting technologies such as TCP offload engines; and presents in-depth coverage of security, including VLANs, encryption, and authentication. Case studies present IP SANs at work in server clustering, backup, storage consolidation, disaster recovery, and both metropolitan and wide-area IP storage networks. The book concludes with a developmental roadmap reflecting key advances such as 10 Gb Ethernet and Infiniband.

Tom Clark, Director of Technical Marketing at Nishan Systems, is a board member of the Storage Area Networking Industry Association (SNIA), and co-chairs the SNIA Interoperability Committee.