DAS is a method of data storage in which the storage device is connected to a single host directly, rather than through a network. It can be a separate disk, an external drive or a DAS server with its own BJ, cooling and controllers.
DAS usage scenarios:
- In home environments, where simplicity, low price and reliable storage are important. Personal PCs and laptops can be easily connected to DAS - a convenient archive of personal files and data is obtained. But keep your home DAS in a safe place so you don't repeat my success: I kept a home DAS (USB connection) with all the pictures of my favorite cats, connected it to my laptop and accidentally dropped it on the floor while it was on. Press F to respect, as they say. Make backups, friends. How I do after this story.
- In offices, especially in small companies. DAS provides high performance, control and increases storage security. With DAS, you can process large volumes of data - work with them without copying them to a workstation or PC.
- By professionals when creating content. For example, videographers and sound engineers use DAS to store and edit large multimedia files. Fast access to data, high performance and redundancy make DAS a great option to work with.
- DAS can be adapted to back up data from other devices. A good option for backups (one of the links) according to the 3-2-1 rule.
Advantages of DAS:
- High performance: Data access speed is limited only by the interfaces of the DAS device and the host. Plus there are no network connection delays.
- Simplicity: DAS deployment can be handled by a novice sysadmin or a user with instructions. But if your DAS is a flash drive for a computer, then even children 2+ will cope here
- Reliability: No risk of network failures, switches, etc., as data is stored locally. Therefore, there are fewer points of failure and higher reliability.
- Security: Complete control over data as it never leaves the host device.
Limitations of DAS:
- Access: Data is available only to the host to which the DAS device is connected. A disadvantage when access is required by several employees in the office, and a serious disadvantage when remote access to data is required (for example, in branches). It will be necessary to convert the computer + DAS connection to a NAS server.
- Scalability: The maximum amount of data in a DAS device is limited by the disk drive and supported drives. Compartments will end, scaling will also end. In simple DAS - from one to several disks; advanced ones have a high density of storage with a large number of drives.
- Physical Vulnerability: In order not to lose data from a DAS device, backup measures and redundancy of critical nodes are required.
- Management and monitoring: Surpasses network storage and storage networks in flexibility and speed of service. Requires more manual work.
- Virtualization: DAS in virtualized environments limits the management, sharing, and movement of virtual machines between hosts.
DAS connection options: table with speeds
Modern versions of USB with good bandwidth.
- USB 3.0 (3.2 Gen 1) - up to 5 Gbit/s.
- USB 3.1 (3.2 Gen 2) - up to 10 Gbit/s.
- USB 3.2 (3.2 Gen 3) - up to 20 Gbit/s.
Fiber Channel Widely used in data centers due to high bandwidth.
- Fiber Channel 16G (16 Gigabit) - up to 16 Gbit/s.
- Fiber Channel 32G (32 Gigabit) - up to 32 Gbit/s.
- Fiber Channel 128G (128 Gigabit) - up to 128 Gbit/s.
Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) is a reliable and productive interface, widely used in servers and SSDs. Suitable for connecting DAS devices.
- SAS-2 - 6.0 Gbit/s.
- SAS-3 - 12.0 Gbit/s.
- SAS-4 - 22.5 Gbit/s, called "24G".
How can we help?
For more detailed information about the DELL PowerEdge R760 server with DDR5 4800 or the DELL PowerEdge R750 server with DDR4 3200, you can visit our website SERVER SOLUTIONS , to find out the price of the server, go to the DELL Server Configurator link .