I'm always cautious when I run into terminology like "SAN" and "LAN Free"
since there are many definitions depending on who you happen to be talking
to and in what context. For instance, I've seen the ability to create a
backup set (TSM 3.7) described as "LAN Free". I suppose that point could be
argued but that doesn't exactly describe the kind of functionality I would
like to see in a "LAN Free" storage management solution. I've also heard all
kinds of definitions for "SAN" which usually stem from different usability
requirements.

As far as *SM in a "SAN", it's important to understand how terminology is
being applied to functionality and what is viable today versus futures. I
don't think the creation of a backup set is intended as Tivoli's long term
solution to "LAN Free" backup or restore. I know Tivoli is working on both
"LAN Free" (not a backup set) and "Server Free" TSM enhancements but I don't
believe they've committed to any definite delivery dates. They have also
committed to tape pooling and dynamic allocation of Fibre attached drives
but I don't know the dates on that either. I suspect a lot of the promised
functionality may be based on their agreement with HighGround and the newly
acquired Mercury stuff, but that's just a guess.

If you're looking at using *SM in a "SAN" environment today, and your "SAN"
interconnect technology of choice is Fibre, the most important thing to keep
in mind is compatibility of the parts and pieces (i.e. OS->device
driver->HBA->Hub/Switch->SCSI Router/Bridge...). We've learned this through
a lot of integration testing with a number of different vendors. Choose your
integration partner carefully.

Once you have the infrastructure for your dedicated storage network in
place, all you have to do is configure *SM to take advantage of it. For
instance you can configure *SM to move data directly from a database to tape
over Fibre without ever touching a disk pool or your LAN. We've done this
using multiple *SM severs sharing the same Fibre loop with a tape library.
In this configuration, all tape transports were available to all *SM servers
on demand (tape pooling and dynamic allocation).

Sorry, this took longer than I thought and it probably didn't give you any
of the answers you were looking for. If you would like to discuss this
further, you can contact me offline.

Regards,

Keith

> -----Original Message-----
> From: ADSM: Dist Stor Manager [mailto:ADSM-L AT VM.MARIST DOT EDU]On Behalf Of
> Phil Bone
> Sent: Tuesday, January 04, 2000 2:29 PM
> To: ADSM-L AT VM.MARIST DOT EDU
> Subject: SAN Integration
>
>
> Is anyone using *SM in a SAN environment?  If so, any information that you
> deem helpful or useful and willing to share will be appreciated.
>
> TSM 3.7 advertises "lan-free" backup.  Is this just a 3.7 feature?  We are
> on ADSM 3.1.2.40 on AIX.
>
> Thanks.
>
>
> Phil Bone
> Sr. Systems Consultant
> Network Services, Infrastructure Management
> Office: 706.596.5928
> Fax: 706.596.5950
> Email: pbone AT aflac DOT com
> Email: philbone AT mindspring DOT com
>