What Is NAS

Issue 01
Date 2019-07-31

HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

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What Is NAS Contents

Contents

1 Concepts.......................................................................................................................................... 1
2 NAS Storage Features................................................................................................................... 2
3 Access Protocols Supported by Huawei Storage Systems.....................................................4
4 Implementation of Huawei Storage...........................................................................................7
5 NAS vs. SAN.................................................................................................................................. 8

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What Is NAS 1 Concepts

1 Concepts

Network Attached Storage (NAS) is a mechanism that uses devices directly connected to
network media to implement data storage.
Generally, NAS supports the access to shared files using protocols such as Common Internet
File System (CIFS), Network File System (NFS), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), and Hypertext
Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

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What Is NAS 2 NAS Storage Features

2 NAS Storage Features

l Easy installation
The NAS storage has built-in simplified operating systems and network protocols
dedicated for data storage and can be directly mounted to the network.
l Cross-platform use
NAS is independent of the operating system platform and supports various operating
systems such as Windows, UNIX, and Linux.
l File sharing
File sharing is the most basic application of NAS. An administrator can access the shared
directory to store data.
l DR and backup
Many NAS storage systems support the snapshot technology in which snapshots are
taken periodically for file systems to support quick data recovery without occupying
large space. In addition, NAS supports the Network Data Management Protocol
(NDMP), making data backup and recovery faster and easier without occupying network
resources.
l User quota
Different space sizes and restrictions on file quantities can be configured for different
directories to achieve efficient storage resource utilization.

Figure 2-1 Quota setting

A storage system uses hard quotas (including hard quotas of capacity and files) to restrict
the maximum number of resources available to each user. The process is as follows:

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What Is NAS 2 NAS Storage Features

a. In each write I/O operation, check whether the accumulated quota (Quotas of the
used capacity and file quantity + Quotas of the increased capacity and file quantity
in this operation) exceeds the preset hard quota.
i. If the accumulated quota does not exceed the preset hard quota, the follow-up
operations can be performed.
ii. If the accumulated quota exceeds the preset hard quota, the write I/O operation
fails.
b. After the write I/O operation is allowed, the incremental capacity and file quantity
are added to the previously used capacity and file quantity. Update the quota (the
latest sum of the capacity and file quantity) and write the quota and I/O data to the
file system.
The I/O operation and quota update succeed or fail at the same time, ensuring that the
used capacity is correct in each I/O check.
If a directory quota, user quota, and group quota are concurrently configured in a shared
directory in which you are performing operations, each write I/O operation will be
restricted by the three quotas. All types of quota are checked. If the hard quota of one
type of quota does not pass the check, the I/O will be rejected.
l User permission control
You can assign different user permissions for the same directory. The directories that can
be accessed by different users can be different.

Figure 2-2 User permission control

Users with the full control permission can not only read and write directories but also
have permissions to modify directories and obtain all permissions of directories. Users
with the forbidden permission can view shared directories but cannot operate on any
directory.

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What Is NAS 3 Access Protocols Supported by Huawei Storage Systems

3 Access Protocols Supported by Huawei

Storage Systems

Huawei storage systems allow application servers to access shared files using different
protocols, such as Common Internet File System (CIFS), Network File System (NFS), File
Transfer Protocol (FTP), and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

Introduction to File Access Protocols

l NFS
A file system share protocol in Linux, UNIX, Mac OS, and VMware operating systems.
l CIFS
A file system share protocol primarily used in the Windows operating system.
l FTP
A member of the TCP/IP suite of protocols, used to copy files between two computers
on the Internet.
l HTTP
An application-layer protocol used for transporting hypertext from web servers to the
local browser on the Internet.

Protocol Comparison
Table 3-1 describes the protocol comparison.

Table 3-1 Protocol comparison

Type Application Scenario Protocol Operating Mode

NFS Linux and UNIX environments, Transmission Client/Server

including a non-domain Control Protocol architecture,
environment, Lightweight (TCP) or User requiring client
Directory Access Protocol Datagram Protocol software
(LDAP)a domain environment, (UDP)
and network information service
(NIS)b domain environment

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What Is NAS 3 Access Protocols Supported by Huawei Storage Systems

Type Application Scenario Protocol Operating Mode

CIFS Windows environments, TCP Client/Server

including a non-domain architecture, with
environment and active client software being
directory (AD)c domain integrated into
environment operating systems

FTP No restrictions on operating TCP Client/Server

systems architecture, with
client software being
integrated into
operating systems

HTTP No restrictions on operating TCP Browser/Server

systems architecture

a: LDAP is a domain environment in Linux and is used to construct a user authentication

system based on directories.
b: NIS is a domain environment in Linux and can centrally manage the directory service of
system databases.
c: AD is a domain environment in Windows and can centrally manage computers, servers,
and users.

Authentication Specifications for File Access

Table 3-2 describes the authentication specifications supported by a storage system.

Table 3-2 Authentication specifications

Authenticatio Kerberosa NTLMb User/User Network
n Mode Group Group
Management

Local Not supported Supported Supported Not supported

authentication

AD domain l Access Supported Not supported Not supported

server using node
authentication name.AD
domain
name:
supported
l Access by
using other
methods:
Not
supported

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What Is NAS 3 Access Protocols Supported by Huawei Storage Systems

Authenticatio Kerberosa NTLMb User/User Network

n Mode Group Group
Management

LDAP domain Not supported Not supported Not supported Supported

server
authentication

NIS domain Not supported Not supported Not supported Supported

server
authentication

a: Kerberos is a computer network authentication protocol. This protocol is used to

authenticate user identity in an open network environment and automate user authentication
every time a logged in user accesses resources on networks.
b: NT LAN Manager (NTLM) is a security protocol proposed in Microsoft Windows NT
and is used to protect user names and passwords during authentication.

NOTE

l You can add a storage system to an AD domain, LDAP domain, or NIS domain simultaneously.
However, you cannot add a storage system to multiple domains of the same type.
l NFS shares support LDAP/NIS domain authentication but do not support Kerberos authentication.
l For FTP and HTTP shares, the storage system uses User/User Group Management for local
authentication.

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What Is NAS 4 Implementation of Huawei Storage

4 Implementation of Huawei Storage

Huawei OceanStor series storage systems integrate both Server Area Network (SAN) and
NAS capabilities. Figure 4-1 shows how Huawei storage is used on an integrated SAN and
NAS network.

Figure 4-1 Use of the storage system on an integrated SAN and NAS network

NAS application SAN application

Domain controller Backup server
server server

Connected by GE/10GE SAN applications Connected by the Backup

networks. read and write block Ethernet for LDAP, AD, management
NFS, CIFS, FTP, or HTTP devices over an FC NIS, or DNS domain
is used for file access. SAN or IP SAN. management.

Storage
system
Connected by GE/10GE
Remote/Field networks. Local user
NFS, CIFS, FTP, or HTTP
Service maintenance
is used for file access.
engineer
Connected by GE/10GE networks.
Connected by the NFS or CIFS is used for file
Ethernet for O&M access in a domain environment. Domain user
on visualized
System management tools
administrator Remote disaster
Local/Remote backup recovery, file-level
remote replication, SAN
remote mirroring

Backup media
Remote storage
system

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What Is NAS 5 NAS vs. SAN

5 NAS vs. SAN

l NAS provides a file operation and management system, while SAN does not.
l NAS can control the permissions of different users to access different files, while SAN
cannot.
l NAS supports quota control, while SAN does not.
l SAN focuses on high-speed data storage, while NAS emphasizes on file sharing.
l SAN is an exclusive data storage pool, while NAS can be either a shared or an exclusive
data storage pool.
l SAN is efficient and scalable, while NAS is simple and flexible.

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