Adaptec 5325301638 Administration Guide - Page 56
Isolate iSCSI Disks from Other Resources for Backup Purposes, iSCSI Multi-Initiator Support
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Page 56 highlights
iSCSI Disk Management and Usage Isolate iSCSI Disks from Other Resources for Backup Purposes It is important to isolate iSCSI Disks from other resources on the Snap Server for two reasons: (1) the file system of an iSCSI Disk differs fundamentally from the Snap Server's native file system; and (2) iSCSI Disks are managed from client software rather than the Snap Server's Administration Tool. For ease of management and particularly for data integrity and backup purposes, either dedicate the entire Snap Server to iSCSI Disks, or if the server is to be used with other shared resources, place the iSCSI Disk and the other shared resources on separate volumes. • Backup an iSCSI Disk from the Client, not the Snap Server - An iSCSI Disk is not accessible from a share and thus cannot be backed up from the Snap Server. The disk can, however, be backed up from the client machine from which the iSCSI Disk is managed. Tip While some third-party, agent-based backup packages could technically back up an iSCSI Disk on the Snap Server, the result would be inconsistent or corrupted backup data if any clients are connected during the operation. Only the client can maintain the file system embedded on the iSCSI disk in the consistent state that is required for data integrity. • Do not use snapshots on a volume containing an iSCSI Disk - Running a snapshot on a volume containing an iSCSI Disk will abruptly disconnect any clients attempting to write to the server's iSCSI Disk and the resulting snapshot may contain inconsistent data. iSCSI Multi-Initiator Support The Support Multi-Initiator checkbox allows two or more initiators to simultaneously access a single iSCSI target. Multi-Initiator Support is designed for use with applications or environments in which clients coordinate with one another to properly write and store data on the target disk. An environment such as clustering avoids potential data integrity issues. Data corruption becomes possible when multiple initiators write to the same disk in an uncontrolled fashion. The warning message "Uncontrolled simultaneous access of multiple initiators to the same iSCSI target can result in data corruption. Only enable multi-initiator support if your environment or application supports it." occurs when the checkbox for Support Muli-Initiator is selected. It functions as a reminder that data corruption is possible if this option is used when creating an iSCSI disk. Write-Cache Options with iSCSI Disks To ensure the fastest possible write performance, Snap Servers can buffer up to 1GB of data to efficiently handle data being transmitted to a Snap Server. As every administrator knows, this widely accepted method of improving performance is not 42 Snap Server Administrator Guide
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