Network and Storage Protocols

MAC OS X server - Netapp integration

gourley10
20,490 Views

Does Netapp have any products or plans to integrate with MAC OS X server?

3 REPLIES 3

meyer
20,491 Views

There's a pretty simple paper on this at the StoreVault site:

http://storevault.com/downloads/Integrating_Apple.pdf

What kinds of advanced ideas did you have?

Drew

gourley10
20,491 Views

Thanks for the reply. I have seen this paper and it references OS X client. My customer has an Apple Array, XServe G5 runing OS X Server. I am looking for any insight into how I integrate the XServe array to a Netapp software or hardware solution. This is at a remote site and would like to acheive backup consolidation to a FAS3040 at HQ.

-Darren

meyer
20,491 Views

Darren -

OK, here is the theory - need more info on the customer problem to give deeper advice.

You want to get that data off of the Mac server and onto a NetApp platform so you can apply NetApp solutions. You can do this by file sharing (see the white paper) or SAN - or even both - depending on the data. For example, you could place a StoreVault at this remote site, connect it to the OSX server by mounting some NFS exports or mapping CIFS shares and moving all file sharing tasks over to the StoreVault. Then the StoreVault can replicate back to the FAS system as needed.

Application data in a Mac world is tougher because I do not know of a dependable iSCSI initiator for Mac. ATTO makes one that is qualified with NetApp but check with them to be sure all of the features work. There is also one that has been developed but is not supported by a firm called Studio Network Solutions - that one seems risky to me. I would not bother messing with Fibre Channel in a remote office for cost reasons.

HTH.

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