Rajan -
CIFS and NFS are NAS (Network Attached Storage).
The NetApp is presenting a file system to the hosts.
SAN is Storage Area Networking.
The NetApp is presenting a LUN, which looks like a new hard disk over the network, to a host or set of hosts.
We'd love to see you in one of our fundamentals classes.
I hope this response has been helpful to you.
At your service, Eugene E. Kashpureff, Sr.
Independent NetApp Consultant http://www.linkedin.com/in/eugenekashpureff
Senior NetApp Instructor, IT Learning Solutions http://sg.itls.asia/netapp
(P.S. I appreciate 'kudos' on any helpful posts.)