3.9. Summary

Network-attached storage (NAS) is an industry term applied to a class of storage devices that has storage disks, a network card interface, and a host CPU running a file server protocol. NAS devices are typically tuned for performance (thin operating system) and relatively easy to administer. The problem of storage administration is replaced by a better-understood problem: server administration.

NAS devices are typically accessed by clients. Note that client is a relative term here. A NAS device client may very well be a database server. Clients use either the CIFS/SMB protocol or the NFS protocol. Whereas Windows clients typically use the CIFS/SMB protocol, UNIX clients typically use the NFS protocol. Both Microsoft and SNIA have ...

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