The D-Link® xStack Storage Area Network (SAN) Array DSN-3200 is designed to provide a reliable network data storage solution for customers in entry-level and SMB segments. Utilizing a 10Gbit iSCSI System-on-a-Chip (SoC) solution that can handle over 65,000 I/Os per second and capable of supporting over 11TB raw capacity using 750GB hard drives (and even higher capacity hard drives as they are introduced), the DSN-3200 Array can easily be implemented as nearline storage to supplement your primary IP network storage solution or be used as a basic backup and recovery device. This evolutionary advancement in performance is a testament to the tightly integrated xStack Storage architecture and is a sharp contrast to the discrete implementation of competing products.

iSCSI for IP Networks
SAN has been traditionally reserved for Fibre Channel networks until the recent introduction of iSCSI that extends this powerful yet simple centralized backend (behind server-based) storage system to IP networks. By utilizing existing Ethernet technology, the cost associated with separate host bus adapters and the per-Gigabyte cost for storage is significantly reduced.

High Performance iSCSI Interface
The DSN-3200 provides eight 1GbE ports and supports IEEE 802.3ad Link Aggregation Groups (LAG) for full offload capability so that all eight ports can be grouped together, totaling up to 850MBytes bandwidth, for increased throughput and redundancy.

System-on-a-Chip (SoC) Implementation
By utilizing a SoC design, the DSN-3200 SAN Array combines both networking and storage functions into a single specialized Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC). The SoC solution combines 10Gbps iSCSI, TCP & IP offload, embedded processors, and a storage virtualization firmware stack onto a single chip. The tight integration of these functions eliminate interoperability, timing, and support issues found in competitive products that offer “discrete implementation” wherein a chassis, a main motherboard, a RAID storage controller, iSCSI software or controller, network interface cards, and operating system software are picked separately and then assembled. The DSN-3200 Array outperforms these discrete implementations and does so at a lower price point. It also delivers mission critical data quickly with state-of-the-art reliability.

RAID for Efficiency
The DSN-3200 SAN Array platform features 15 hot swappable Serial ATA (SATA) disk drive bays supporting over 11TB raw capacity using 750GB hard drives (and even higher capacity hard drives as they are introduced) in RAID level 0, 1, 1+0 and 5 configurations. You can quickly deploy a SAN using inexpensive SATA disk drives and depending on your growing storage needs, you can simply add more drives as you go.

Embedded Centralized Storage Management
The embedded user-friendly IP-SAN Device Manager (IDM) provides comprehensive storage network management. Boasting a rich set of management features, this suite of utilities allows monitoring and control of your SAN via the SMI-S (Storage Management Initiative) command set. Combined with an embedded secure server, users will be able to remotely configure and monitor their SAN storage subsystems.

Advanced Management Features
The DSN-3200 SAN Array provides additional advanced features for efficient management of network storage and optimal performance.

Cache Management: Provides adaptive and persistent cache management. This provides write-back, write-through, write coalescing and multi-stream read-ahead on a volume basis. This optimizes cache utilization and performance in an application dependent manner.

VLAN Zoning: Supports IEEE 802.1q VLAN tagging to segregate traffic into isolated zones for secure access and jumbo frames to improve the network throughput and reduce CPU overhead.

QoS: Supports IEEE 802.1p Quality of Service (QoS) to efficiently handle time sensitive network packets.

Volume Virtualization: The DSN-3200 SAN Array has a storage management software stack that provides volume virtualization features by utilizing the concept of storage Extents. Extents are the fundamental building blocks used to enable features such as RAID, online capacity expansion and volume migration. Drives of disimilar size can be used to create volumes. Growth can occur without volume migration or reconstruction. Single drives can contain multiple and divergent RAID technologies. Volume structure can also provide infrastructure for Snapshot copies.

RAID Support: RAID Levels 0, 1, 1+0, 5 and JBOD (striped sets, mirrored sets, striped mirrored sets, parity sets and JBOD)

Micro Rebuilds: Provides protection against unresponsive SATA commands by forcing a response within a preset time limit.

Whether you are looking for a low-cost block-based solution for data backup and recovery, replacement of some of your inefficient Direct-Attached Storage (DAS) drives, or provide cost-effective centralized storage for your servers, the DSN-3200 SAN Array has a solution for you.