IP TELEPHONY STORAGE

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INTRODUCTION

Storage is already a vital part of enterprise IT infrastructure and IP Telephony Storage is a leading technology for cost-effective and easily-deployable network storage. With the increased adoption of open standards-based architecture by the enterprise telephony market as well as the Central Office telecom industry, IP Telephony Storage (using Network Attached Storage) will gain acceptance as an entry-level storage tool and a viable low-cost alternative to expensive Fibre Channel SANs.

NETWORK ATTACHED STORAGE:

Network-attached storage (NAS) is file-level computer data storage connected to a computer network providing data access to heterogeneous clients. As of 2010[update] NAS devices are gaining popularity, as a convenient method of sharing files among multiple computers. Potential benefits of network-attached storage, compared to file servers, include faster data access, easier administration, and simple configuration.


NAS ARCHITECTURE
IP Telephony Storage uses an IP interface management layer on top of a set of physical disks; a computer with one or more network interfaces; a Redundant Array of Independent Discs (RAID) controller; and software that allows remote access,maintenance and administration of all components, and the data volume for a classic network fileserver application. (See Figure A: IP Telephony Storage Architecture) The physical disks can be ATA, SATA, SCSI or iSCSI (FC drives are usually confined to a Storage Area Network or SAN devices). Embedded within the IP Telephony Storage platform is a RAID Host Bus Adapter(HBA) that can initialize and maintain once or more RAID volumes using the physical disks.


MANAGEMENT, USABILITY, AND SECURITY

The key management and usability features of an IP Telephony Storage device are essential to successful integration into the enterprise telephony application network:-

• Self-contained and PISUOS: Pre-installed special use operating system ready to use out of the box. Most IP Telephony Storage products require a few simple steps to attach to most networks and provide user access to the IP Telephony Storage volume.
• Pre-configured remote management interface supported by multiple web browsers and/or proprietary Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs).


APPLICATIONS FOR TELECOM

IP Telephony Storage storage requirements for open telecommunications enterprise applications have steadily increased over the past few years. With Unified Messaging, Call Recording, Communications Server Backup, Disaster Recovery and Logging, combined with classic fileserver storage the need for cost effective, easy-to-use and flexible network storage is at a
premium.

There are a variety of telephony applications that could utilize an IP Telephony Storage device. Some of the more prominent are: