Basic Concepts of SAN and its Benefits

Week 1
The article talks about the basic idea or concept of SAN or Storage Area Network.
SANs compile the storage devices such as SSDs, HDDs, tape libraries, disk arrays etc. into
one virtual storage unit, which is managed centrally. SAN operates alongside LAN (Local
Area Network).
The article describes the basic system architecture of the SANs. The fundamentals
required to set up the SAN server includes fiver channel fabric, storage elements such as disk
arrays, multiple SSDs or hard disk drives (HDDs) for mass storage purposes. Apart from that,
SANs require specifically configured servers for controlling data access in an optimal
manner. The LAN connects with the terminal devices and storage networks. On the other
hand, the host bus adapters (HBAs) and the other special hardware interfaces are connected
to the fiber channel switch.
Thereafter, the article encompasses the basic mechanisms of setting up a storage area
network for ensuring high availability. The redundant storage cycles are related to RAID
implementations where the RAID system is mirrored in two separate physical storage
devices. Apart from that, the paper presents a brief and concise overview of the major
benefits and advantages of storage area networks (SANs). According to the study, cross
connections and multipathing done based on fiber channel fabric significantly help in the
prevention of overloading in order to ensure a constant and consistent availability of the
stored data in the SANs.
Thereby, the article introduces NTFS (New Technology File System) and investigates
to see if a particular hard drive is formatted as NTFS. In other words, the article demonstrates
the different ways that can be followed in order to check if a hard drive is formatted with
NTFS. Firstly, user disk management is a comparatively easy way to see the status of

multiple disk drives. Apart from that, Windows Explorer can be used for directly checking
whether a hard drive is formatted with NTFS file system. Command prompt is another way to
check if the details and status of file systems through the command line interface. Lastly, the
paper also includes a brief description of the NTFS features including the file attributes, EFS
(Encrypting File System) as well as the potential alternatives of NTFS such as the FAT file
system or the exFAT file system.

Week 3
The week 3 article is based on the FTTN (Fiber to the Node) NBN (National
Broadband Network). The paper starts off with a thorough definition of FTTN NBN,
focusing on the main features and characteristics of Fiber to the Node NBN. The FTTN
typically use old copper lines for establishing the main connections and thus, it is less
expensive if compared to the other types of NBN connections. However, the FFTN
connections essentially involves certain downsides or drawbacks in terms of the provided
speed and the degree of reliability of the established connections. More so, because, the old
copper lines are comparatively weaker than the modern types of connections and at the same
time, these old copper wires are responsible for making up a significant portion of the entire
cabling infrastructure of the Fiber to the Node NBN connections.
In accordance with the study, with respect to the basic speed tier on the FTTN
connection, unlimited data may potentially cost around 40 dollars in a month. In this context,
it is said that multiple service providers usually offer the same connection around 60 dollars
mark. However, when looking for a cheaper broadband alternative, the data capped plans
may be viable. On the other hand, the article agrees that the fiber to the node customers can
be considered as potential alternative connections in terms of the price that they pay. The
FFTN can be thought of the most common type of connection and as a result, many providers
are there to choose from. The article then goes on to show the need or importance of FTTN
NBN.
In addition to that, it ensures that there is no need for special installations or
configurations required from the NBN Co., which is the wholesaler that rolls out the network
and the FTTN connection.

The paper says that the NBN may take up to 18 months for a successful transition
before the old broadband connection can be turned off completely. FTTN access has a
potential speed of 100 Mbps where customers are naturally reliant on the speed and capability
gained based on how far they live from their node. Apart from that, the paper also discusses
about the other types of NBN such as FTTP, FTTB, FTTC, HFC, fixed wireless and
SkyMuster Satellite. Furthermore, the article analyzes the pros and cons of Fiber to the Node
connection by comparing with the NBN alternatives.