INFO 2004 Chap.11 Storage: Local, Network and Cloud Options
Storage: Local, Network and Cloud Options
Storage is built from the physical distinction upward. Memory is volatile while storage is non-volatile; file systems organise named data, and partitioning and formatting prepare storage for that organisation. Network storage then separates Direct Attach Storage, Storage Area Network and Network Attached Storage.
DAS is attached directly to a computer, SAN provides storage through a dedicated storage network, and NAS provides file-oriented access over a network. SMB and NFS are named protocols in that discussion. Cloud storage introduces block, file and object forms. Because the source's comparison tables and diagrams are licensed, the chapter does not redraw them.
It instead asks original decision questions: what is being addressed, who organises the data, how clients access it, and which application assumption must remain true. S3, EBS and EFS are grounded as delivered seminar names, while storage classes, lifecycle timing, durability claims, volume types and performance numbers are not.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Volatile memory and non-volatile storage
- 02
Files, file systems, partitioning and formatting
- 03
Direct Attach Storage
- 04
Storage Area Networks
- 05
Network Attached Storage, SMB and NFS
- 06
Block, file and object storage
- 07
Cloud service names and the evidence boundary
Choose a storage form from the access contract
- 1The virtual-machine disk needs addressable blocks presented to a machine, so block storage fits.
- 1The shared directory needs named files and folders with shared file access, so file storage fits.
- 1The media application treats each item as an object with metadata rather than a mounted file system, so object storage fits.
Key terms
- Volatile memory
- Working memory whose contents do not persist without power.
- Non-volatile storage
- Storage whose contents persist beyond the active processing session.
- File system
- The structure used to organise and access files on prepared storage.
- DAS
- Direct Attach Storage, connected directly to the computer using it.
- SAN
- Storage Area Network, providing storage through a dedicated storage network.
- NAS
- Network Attached Storage, providing file-oriented storage access over a network.
- Block storage
- Storage exposed as addressable blocks to a consumer that supplies the higher-level organisation.
- File storage
- Storage exposed through named files and a file-system hierarchy.
- Object storage
- Storage organised as self-contained objects with associated metadata.
Storage: Local, Network and Cloud Options FAQ
What is the difference between memory and storage?
The course begins with volatility: memory is volatile and storage is non-volatile.
How do DAS, SAN and NAS differ?
DAS attaches directly, SAN provides storage through a dedicated storage network, and NAS provides file access over a network.
What are the three cloud storage forms?
Block, file and object storage.
Which AWS storage services are named?
The delivered seminar names S3, EBS and EFS, but the captured prose does not ground the usual numeric or storage-class details.
Is the source comparison table reproduced?
No. Licensed tables and diagrams are replaced with an original access-contract method.
Assessment move
Revise storage as two consecutive decisions. First choose local or network topology using the consumer and connection pattern. Then choose block, file or object using the access contract. Rehearse both three-way distinctions in complete paired sentences, since swapped labels undermine later recommendations. Keep provider-specific specifications outside the answer unless the course materials state them.
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