A guide to planning, implementing, managing, and using storage area networks to increase the efficiency of your network infrastructure

• Gain in-depth coverage of SAN fundamentals, topologies, implementation and management techniques, and products
• Build and sharpen your troubleshooting skills for data-mining, online transaction processing, imaging, data warehousing, and other highly data-intensive applications
• Understand how to implement the Fibre Channel and iSCSI protocols, which are key to any SAN solution
• Learn current industry implementation and application standards, as well as future advances

During the last decade, a multitude of changes in computing technology and the globalization of business through the Internet have resulted in a tremendous growth in storage requirements. This has forced many organizations around the world to reassess the way they view their storage environment. Many applications, such as e-commerce, imaging, data warehousing, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Customer Relationship Management (CRM), fill storage media quickly. Data accessibility and availability for these applications has to be fast and efficient. Clearly, the ever-increasing information access requirements have had a profound effect on most data centers. As a result, many organizations are searching for cost-effective ways to ensure high data availability and reliability.

Storage Area Network Fundamentals presents the benefits of storage area networks (SANs) to corporate users and enables them to deploy SAN technology effectively. Designed as an introduction to SANs, Storage Area Network Fundamentals develops an understanding of SAN basics and shows how to plan, implement, and manage a SAN. This book covers the topologies, protocols, and products required to implement and manage efficient SANs.

After reading it I feel that not all the criticism is true. The book aims to lay the basics of SAN as the name suggests "SAN Fundamnetals". The book is pretty easy to read and understand and I'm sure that many newbies to SAN will find the book pretty useful as an introduction to SAN technology. And I personally know of person who cleared the 1st level of SNIA using this book.

I really dont understand why everyone is harping about how is it written as long as it makes me understand the SAN technology:-)


An Introduction to SAN with Too Many Loose Ends   November 30, 2003
 0 out of 1 found this review helpful

I bought the book simply because it was a Cisco Press title, but was very disappointed with the wasted money and effort. I am surprised how such a content could be approved by the editorial board of Cisco Press, which is renowned for approving for such quality content as found in the "Interconnecting Cisco Networking Devices" by Steve Mc. Querry, which had set my expectations before bying the current title under review.

There are absolutely no conventions used in the figures. For example, the diagrammatic representation for a Server and a NAS device is the same across the book. The ICND title seen by me contained one full chapter containing the diagrammatic representation that will be used for routers, switches and other network devices. Quite obviously, the diagrams were enough for explaining the underlying concept. Whereas in Meeta's book, I was left groping most of the time I looked at the diagrams.

Another possible addition that would have made the book attractive may have been a chapter on RAID Technology explaining the path leading to SANs. WE hear of JBODs on a mere cursory manner.

Quite obviously, it is very clear that the book is written by a educationist with very good written communication skills, but almost non-existent professional experience in SAN Technology.

Prospective buyers...this title does not warrant either time, money or effort


Needs more meat, Meeta   March 14, 2003
 4 out of 5 found this review helpful

This is a good looking, well designed book. Perhaps this is due to it being a Cisco Press product that follows their standard format. But I was surprised at the lack of content.

It reads as if it was written by a professional author, not someone who knows Storage Area Networks from hands-on knowledge. The technical editorial staff should pick up the slack, but it appears they dropped the ball with this book.

Some parts just don't make sense, and the book doesn't explain why, for example, all "loops" depicted are in a "star" configuration. The reader is left guessing: is the drawing in error? Can I trust any other drawings in the book? Does Ms. Gupta think that "loop" in a fibre-channel context means something different than loop means in English? Is there something about the hub that makes the physical star configuration into a virtual loop?

Here is a typical paragraph that should have been meatier:
"Fiber-optic cabling is definitely more expensive than copper-based cabling systems. However, because all the advantages they offer, the implementation of fiber-optic cables amply justifies the slightly higher cost of implementation."

Yet later in the same chapter: "Fiber-optic cables are extremely expensive in comparison to copper cables and require special skills to handle."

Are the cables "slightly higher cost" or "extremely expensive"? There is no meat to back up either assertion. This is not an isolated example.

I get the feeling that the author was getting paid by the word and used a lot of adjectives and adverbs (plus a bushel of "therefore"s) just to stretch the subject. This hurts the credibility of the author, in my eyes.

The book is reasonably readable, in part because of all the fluffy language, but also because the author is organized and articulate. But it is more like digesting fast food than a fulfilling meal. Needs more meat, Meeta.


WoW!!   April 27, 2002
I am highly impressed by the book. Very easy to read and understand. Explains the concepts really well. Its evident that the author understands what he(she?) wrote.