iSCSI Software Solutions

SAN/iQ® Software Features

LeftHand SAN/iQ® software provides the intelligence for managing a clustered iSCSI SAN based on industry-standard hardware platforms. Data residing on SANs powered by SAN/iQ is always available, scalable, and simple to maintain. As the amount of data and the number of applications increase, administrators can easily grow individual volumes, add entire storage modules to an existing SAN/iQ Cluster, or create a new cluster, depending on their needs. It's all managed through an intuitive centralized management console, whether the physical storage assets are in the main data center, across a campus, or spread out in remote locations.

All LeftHand SAN cluster configurations offer the following features:

SAN/iQ

LeftHand’s SAN operating system that manages all SAN functions

SAN/iQ Cluster

  Industry-standard storage modules combined together by SAN/iQ and managed as a single entity
  Data is distributed and protected across all modules within a cluster
  Scales "just-in-time" and non-disruptively through plug-and-play node discovery and drag-and-drop cluster expansion
  Addition of nodes to a cluster scales capacity, performance, and redundancy
  No constraints on the physical locations of storage modules

SAN/iQ Volume

   A virtual volume created across all the storage modules in a SAN/iQ Cluster
   Scales non-disruptively with simple menu picks
   Protected using SAN/iQ Network RAID and SAN/iQ Remote Copy

SAN/iQ Network RAID

   Patented technology that creates two or three copies of data across all storage modules in a SAN/iQ Cluster
   Data protection level set at the volume level so redundancy requirements can be matched to different applications
   Eliminates any single point of failure — provides continuous data availability in the event of network, switch, disk, controller, or entire node failure

SAN/iQ Remote Copy

  Ensures quick recoveries from broad-based, geographic concerns such as natural disasters or power grid failures
  Provides for centralized backup to a main facility
  Allows you to select volumes to remote copy to minimize capacity requirements at the remote site
  Allows you to select the appropriate hardware platform for the remote site
  Includes SAN/iQ PrimeSync which greatly simplifies the creation of the initial sync between the main SAN cluster and the remote cluster by allowing you to create a temporary storage system to complete the initial sync locally over Gigabit Ethernet, ship the SAN to the remote site, and then sync to the target system over Gigabit Ethernet.

SAN/iQ Snap

  Point-in-time copy of a volume
  Simplifies large-scale restores or granular restores such as a single Exchange mailbox
  Snaps created manually, scheduled, scripted or via VSS
  No pool of storage reserved for snaps

SAN/iQ Advanced Provisioning

   Use thin provisioning to specify volume sizes that exceed total physical capacity eliminating legacy file system or database expansion headaches
   Select auto-grow capability to enable automatic expansion of volumes based on policy