How does the Data Storage System differ from the Server?

If you create a serious IT architecture - in an adult way, then for you servers and SZD are a duo, not an "or" choice. They do not compete, but work together, complementing each other.

Basic functions of servers and data storage systems

• Data storage: Servers and SZD can store large amounts of information: files, databases, web content and other types.
• Access control: Servers and C ZD provide data access control. They define user access rights and regulate access levels to protect information privacy and security.
• Data Processing: Servers and CZs perform data processing tasks, including calculations and analytics, updating information , generating reports and performing other operations.
• Data distribution: Servers and SZD are used to distribute data between different devices or system components. This allows for quick access to data and more efficient use of hardware resources.
• Data backup and recovery: Servers and SDRs provide the means to back up data and restore it in the event of failure or loss of information. This is an important feature for security and data protection.
• Data Sharing: Servers and SDRs enable data sharing and modification between different users and devices. This enables employees to work more efficiently on the same data without losing consistency.
• Scalability: Servers and SZD can be scaled. This allows you to add/replace new components or devices, improve features and performance without replacing the device.
• Remote monitoring and management: Servers and SZD provide opportunities for monitoring and managing equipment resources. They allow administrators to monitor resource usage, performance, and system status, and provide tools (such as IPMI) for remote system configuration and management.

Differences between the server and the SZD

Physical architecture:

• A server is a complex general-purpose device; many components can be replaced and/or upgraded: processors (CPU), memory (RAM), power supplies (PSU), drives, RAID controllers and expansion cards.
• SZD is also built on these components, but with an emphasis on disk controllers and drives, and the CPU or RAM is usually not touched, the default ones are enough, besides, they are smaller and have lower performance. But the disk subsystem is significantly superior to many general-purpose servers.

Data storage:

• Servers can store information, but do not specialize only in this. They are usually used for operating systems, virtual machines, applications, calculations, database storage, etc., as well as for network access to this functionality by users and other devices.
• First of all, SZD is a capacious and fault-tolerant data storage. SSDs usually have more drives and high-performance disk controllers with memory. They are great for working with large volumes of data, have high performance and fault tolerance.

Access control:

• Servers can fully configure and control different levels of access to data - depends on security settings and access rights.
• DPAs can also manage access, for example: data encryption, access control and authentication functions. But most often everything is limited to different levels of data storage.

Data processing:

• Servers are great for data processing and complex (and not so) computing operations. Many models support several CPUs and graphics accelerators (GPUs) in one compact case.
• SZDs do not specialize in calculations (although there are models for analytics). The built-in CPU manages, transfers and distributes data. The main task of SZD is to ensure effective storage and access to information. Many models support a huge number of drives.

Data distribution:

• Servers can be configured to distribute data between multiple devices or nodes on a network. Servers can perform data processing operations based on distributed computing, whereby data can be divided and processed on different servers.
• SSDs can distribute data between their drives or different storage devices to ensure high performance and availability, but their primary task is data storage and access, not computation or active distribution across the infrastructure.

Data backup and recovery:

• Servers can back up data and restore it in case of failure or data loss. But storing backups on the server itself is like hanging curtains next to a gas stove. It seems to protect the wall from grease, but if it catches fire, everything will burn. Therefore, a separate server in another location is required.
• CD-ROMs are better suited for creating backup copies and recovery, as they provide greater productivity when working with data, and also make the IT system more reliable (the server burned down, and the CD-ROM with a backup copy in another rack did not). At the same time, it is less likely that you will run out of memory for redundancy, since the SZD is both more capacious and easier to scale, plus the potential is higher.

Scalability:

• Servers can be perfectly scaled vertically (ie within a single node aka nodes) and horizontally by adding additional servers to distribute the load or increase performance.
• SZD can also be vertically scaled, but mainly only by the number of drives. For example, a regular server can have 8 SFF drives, and a SHD - 24 SFF. But the horizontal scaling is excellent, the SGS can serve additional disk shelves (cheaper storage systems without a built-in CPU).

Connection and integration:

• Servers typically operate in a network of tens/hundreds/thousands of devices where they provide services and resources to other users and devices. For fast data exchange in the network, the servers have several high-speed network interfaces (1 Gbit/c Ethernet ports, for example).
• SZD is often connected to servers or other devices directly, as if it were an internal drive of the server/s - this functionality is supported by either a RAID controller or a special HBA (Host Bus Adapter). Or they create a separate data storage network (yes, also SGS, more on that below), build this network using high-speed and reliable interfaces, such as SAS (rarely), Fiber Channel, InfiniBand or Ethernet (10-40-100G).

Data storage system for high availability

SZD plays an important role in the high availability of IT infrastructure and applications. An important parameter is data redundancy. Essentially - duplication of important (or all) information. Such a solution makes it possible to prevent the loss of data or an idle system in the event of equipment failures or failures.

There are many ways to achieve high availability and data redundancy, most often they are combined:

• Raid technologies: Data stores almost always use RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) technologies. Roughly speaking, this is the distribution of information between several disks. If one fails, the second one recovers the missing data without downtime. Productivity will drop for some time, but then it will recover - just remember to replace the faulty drive. There are many types of RAID (RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6, etc.). It is always a balance between reliability, useful space and speed of operation. Admin comes out with budget, equipment and tasks to be solved.
• Data replication: SZD can automatically replicate data, that is, create additional copies of data and place them on separate drives, devices or in remote storage. This provides redundancy and increased data availability, because if one instance of data fails, it remains available on other devices.
• Clustering: Clusters can be made from SZD, where several physical nodes (nodes) are combined into a single storage. Clustering provides high availability, because in case of failure of one node in the cluster, data can be available on other nodes. It also allows you to distribute the load and ensure higher performance.
• Backup and recovery: SDRs support data backup, allowing you to create regular backups and store them on separate devices or in remote locations. In the event of data loss or corruption, they can be restored from backups, ensuring data protection and availability.
• Monitoring and management: The health of the SDF can be monitored in real-time to detect and prevent drive failures, as well as manage resources and settings for continuous operation and high data availability.

Optimizing productivity due to efficient coordination of server and storage

• Load balancing: For example, distributing data across different disks or storage arrays, as well as application or operating system-level load balancing techniques to evenly distribute requests to storage. Balancing allows you to distribute the load evenly between hardware resources, eliminating bottlenecks and overloads.
• Network configuration: Configuring the network interfaces of the server and SZD is important for optimizing performance. Proper setting of network parameters: buffer size, data transfer rate and delay. Everything to give the optimal speed and bandwidth of data transfer between the server and the storage.
• Monitoring and optimization: Continuous monitoring of server performance and SZD allows you to identify bottlenecks and performance issues. Based on this data, optimization, configuration changes, and upgrade planning can be performed to improve overall system performance. Now and in the future.
• Data caching: Using data caching on the server or in the SZD will allow you to speed up access to frequently used data and reduce the load on physical drives. Caching data at the operating system level, in the RAID controller cache, or in network devices can significantly increase performance.
• Selection and configuration of protocols: Selection and configuration of communication protocols between the server and SZD is not the least important matter. The choice is large: iSCSI, Fiber Channel, SMB and NFS (for NAS or SAN) and many others. Optimum selection and configuration of the protocol will allow you to get excellent performance and low data transmission delay.

In the end.

In order to achieve maximum performance and reliability of the IT system, it is necessary to coordinate and integrate well the servers and SZD. This includes properly configuring the network, choosing the best communication protocols, and balancing the load between them.

How can we help?

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