Server X

Part of a new crop of networked-storage appliances, Apple’snew Xserve gets you up and running a NAS-based network with a few mouseclicks.

You may think networked storage isn't for you. “It's toocomplicated and expensive, something only a facility can handle,”you might say. Yet you might need it sooner than you think.

If you're working collaboratively, for example, buying another JBODjust doesn't cut it anymore. It's now cheaper to buy centralizedstorage. Here we look at three vendors that offer solutions to theconundrum of delivering advanced storage solutions that are easier todeploy — and often cheaper than ever before.

Apple's sleek Xserve server, released in May, builds on OS X'sUnix-based networking capabilities. But, in true Apple style, thesoftware greatly simplifies setting up and managing a network, enoughso that you're up and running a NAS-based network in just one or twomouse clicks. That's right — no lengthy initializations,quandaries about port selection, or the other tiresome aspects ofstandard server setups.

(Network Attached Storage devices are self-contained, specializedfile servers that support only I/O requests. Attaching directly to aLAN, NAS devices use traditional protocols such as Ethernet andTCP/IP.)

The specs are good on Apple's slick-looking 1 RU box. Single or dual1GHz PowerPC G4s, up to 2GB of DDR SDRAM (some of the fastest memoryaround), two 64-bit 66MHz PCI slots (the speediest card slots thatApple has ever used), dual Gigabit Ethernet, FireWire, USB, and fourUltra ATA/100 (yes, not SCSI) drives, and tool-less access to everypart.

The price is right, too, with a nearly half-terabyte system said tobe half as costly as similar entry-level 1 RUs from PC competitors.While server innards aren't usually considered works of art, all of theabove fit together to form one of the best industrial designs of anyserver around, which again helps take some of the mystery out ofnetworked storage.

There's out-of-the-box support for Mac, Windows, Unix, and Linuxclients. The popular Apache web server is included, along with a copyof the Quick Time streaming server. But look for the real difference injust how simple Apple has made the software. The Aqua interface of theweb-based Server Monitor takes an intuitive approach to formerly arcaneoperations.

This allows just about anyone to administer one or hundreds ofservers on a point-and-click basis. The IP nature of the interfacemeans control over the whole works, no matter whether the servers arein the next room or across the globe. Here's a Unix tool for themasses.

“We've integrated all the management tools within one area,and made them work in a similar manner,” says Brian Croll, seniordirector of worldwide software product marketing for Apple. The Xserveis a huge strategic move for Apple, Croll says. That hits home when youlearn that it's Apple, not resellers, that offers 24/7 servicecontracts on the box. Apple hasn't yet proven itself in the criticalservice and support market — where four-hour response times arethe max. But to handle some of that, the service package includes abackup kit of spare parts — power supply, drive, etc. —that you can install yourself in minutes.

So Apple's total package delivers a simple-to-use NAS system. At thesame time, SAN systems certainly aren't going away. They still fit thebill when users need flat-out throughput — for facilities thatemploy a collaborative editing and compositing workflow, for example.So why choose one or the other?

SAN systems, which employ fiber-optic cabling, use a networkprotocol optimized for transmitting large file “blocks” ofdata. NAS systems use TCP/IP, a protocol that is fine for the Internetbut not for large files. NAS devices inherently work in heterogeneousnetwork environments (so they blend easily into a LAN), whileworkstations on a SAN create a “data island” — theymust run on a network separate from any other you may have.

Now, vendors are on a march to merge the two capabilities in ahybrid, best-of-both-worlds scenario. Such hybrid systems can't cometoo soon for some.

“We spoke to a lot of people who said they worked with SANs,got burned by SANs, and what they really wanted was a shared storagesystem that actually worked,” says Mike Anderson, chief engineerat Marina del Rey, Calif.-based storage supplier Huge Systems. “Ithink we're right at the cusp [of new hybrid SAN/NAS designs] with allthe investments taking place in the industry.”

Though Huge Systems' new Huge MediaLibrary product doesn'tspecifically combine NAS and SAN networking, it provides an impressivesolution to one of the fundamental attractions of a NAS/SAN marriage.It delivers shared media access over traditional TCP/IP networks— including Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, and Gigabit Ethernet —at video rates that include HDTV.

That's impressive, since TCP/IP (the Internet protocol) is known forits sluggish response. Its “protocol stacks” causeconsiderable overhead, which chews up CPU processor cycles, drasticallyslowing transmission.

Mike Anderson joined up with San Jose, Calif.-based Alacritech Inc.,which designs accelerator cards to handle that very TCP/IP problem. The1000×1 cards supply the network interface of the HugeMediaLibraryrealtime SCSI storage back end. The cards, which offload the protocolstacks from the network, greatly speed transmission because theyinclude silicon specifically designed to handle the time-consumingtransmission protocol.

“We're after a cost-effective, take-it-out-of-the-box,plug-it-in-and-it-works experience [for our users],” saysAnderson. “I think that's a trend. Storage systems in the pasttended towards lots of serviceability, lots of extra software, lots oftools. But now people don't want to know how it works. They just wantto turn it on and use it.”

Another approach to plug-and-play simplicity comes from Chatsworth,Calif.-based DataDirect Networks.

Its new answer? A storage and networking utility, a plug-and-playappliance that incorporates more and more functionality into anever-shrinking footprint. Networking specialists, we learned, need notapply, because you're going to do this yourself.

DataDirect's solution — and it does call itself the“silicon storage appliance company” — functionssomewhat like a Fibre Channel (FC) switch on steroids, but one youdon't have to be a network nerd to operate. Storage is simple: Yousupply any type you like — a JBOD, SCSI, FC, or IDE array —saving money with every good deal you can make.

DataDirect's two current products, S2A 3000 and S2A 6000,incorporate a pipelined, parallel processing architecture aided byhigh-speed ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits) andsoftware. DataDirect says the zero-bottleneck architecture it developedfor the appliance removes the complexity, congestion, latency, andcontention of switched-fabric SANs.

The S2A 3000, introduced at this year's NAB, is a 1 RU box that doesaway with RAID controllers, FC switches, and separate pieces ofsoftware. It controls up to 10TB of data, with only one person neededto manage it, says Bob Woolery, vice president of corporate developmentand strategic planning for DataDirect.

“Users don't have to get into the nitty-gritty of how to putit all together, don't have to worry about learning all thefunctionality. It just does it all automatically and lets you easilyshare files.”

Today, each setup (SAN and NAS) does some things well that the othersystem doesn't. Some companies, listening to user complaints, decidedthat a market exists for the best of both worlds. Apple, Huge Systems,and DataDirect Networks are just a few of the leaders. Don't forget tocheck out solutions from Avid (Unity LANshare, MediaNet) and Ciprico(DiMeda 2400), among others.

To comment on this article, email the Video Systems editorialstaff at vsfeedback@primediabusiness.com.