Many customers now use products that realize some kind of a virtual storage function, mainly in the server and storage layers. However, operating such a virtual storage function poses the problems described below. VSC is intended to solve these problems and facilitate storage operation for customers.
Extensive storage resources management
The server layer can only be used to manage disks (connected to a transaction server) that represent only a small percentage of all storage resources. The storage layer can also be used to manage only its own internal enclosure. Conversely, a Fibre Channel switch can be used for a larger scope of management than the server and storage layers because the entire storage system (fabric) can be placed under control.
Figure 1.2 Comparison of scopes of storage resources management
Reducing the burden of storage operation
To use the virtual storage function of the server layer, a special software product must be installed on the transaction server, followed by various settings being made. Naturally, this procedure must be repeated for every transaction server, thus requiring considerable total work time. Moreover, the procedure for allocating a volume to a transaction server takes a workload to manipulate the relationship between the storage and multiple transaction servers, because the storage accepts requests initiated by transaction servers.
With VSC, the logical units allocated from a disk unit may be uniform in terms of size. Since VSC manages all such units, you only need to set all the destinations to the Fibre Channel switch.
