NAS vs SAN Devices: What are the Main Differences

Cloud storage is very important to many users’ day-to-day lives. We have at our disposal multiple services and devices that allow us to host content and make it always available on the network. In this article we are going to talk about the differences between NAS and SAN , since they are two terms that can sometimes raise doubts, although they are not the same as we will see.

What is a NAS device

First of all we are going to explain what a NAS device consists of. It is basically a computer that is connected to the network and its mission is to store data and information in a centralized server. In this way, an organization, for example, could make use of this type of equipment so that all devices can access files and save them there.

NAS vs SAN Devices

They are usually connected over a TCP / IP Ethernet network . It is a solution widely used especially by small businesses and also by private users. It is an affordable type of device that is easy to configure and use.

NAS servers are widely used for creating backups. In this way, in addition to saving the content there and avoiding loss if we suffer a cyber attack or physical deterioration of the equipment, we can also keep them available anywhere simply by having an Internet connection.

It is often compared to the cloud storage that we can get with many services on the Internet, both free and paid. However, there is a very important difference: the physical hard disk is owned by the user.

In short, we incorporate a NAS device into a network and it offers us the capacity to store files and be able to access them from any device. In addition, sometimes they have additional USB ports, so we can physically connect other equipment and expand the memory or create backup copies in this way.

Servidores NAS y SAN

What is a SAN device

On the other hand, we will also have the option of SAN devices . They are different, as we will see. In this case they are more sophisticated equipment, more advanced and also expensive, logically. They are more oriented for companies.

A SAN device is made up of a high-speed network that usually consists of fiber optics or iSCSI (it is a standard that allows the SCSI protocol over TCP / IP networks. It also requires equipment that acts to achieve the interconnection, such as bridges or switches. It also requires storage equipment, such as hard drives.

It should be noted that the traffic that passes through a SAN network is very similar to that of SCSI, ATA or SATA disks. Of course, in most cases it uses the first one.

We can say that a SAN device is more suitable for large companies. It is very useful for those organizations that have many servers and require maximum performance.

Main differences between NAS and SAN

We are going to explain what are the main differences that we can find between NAS and SAN devices. As we can see, in both cases they are used for network storage. However, there are differential points between both cases.

Wiring used

There are differences in the cabling used by a NAS device and a SAN. The former uses LAN cable, while the latter is based on fiber cabling.

Protocols

NAS devices connect directly to an Ethernet network and use protocols such as NFS, SMB / CIFS or also HTTP. Instead SAN devices make use of the SCSI protocol to communicate with disk drive devices.

Structure

A NAS device uses TCP / IP networks such as Ethernet, which is the main one. A SAN, on the other hand, usually runs on high-speed networks, since they are more complex, although we can also find more basic options.

Cost

Here we can also find notable differences . NAS devices are generally cheaper and more accessible for home users and small businesses. In contrast, SAN devices, being more complex, are more expensive and are more oriented to large organizations.

Management and ease of use

NAS are easier to use, with faster configuration and management. On the contrary, SANs require more administration time and even physical changes in certain computers.

In short, these are the main differences that we can find between NAS and SAN devices. In both cases we are going to find teams oriented towards network storage, something that is very present today and that we can increasingly see in more organizations and also among private users.