Using a SAN for a WebServer Cluster

[SteveJBoyle]

I have been tasked with installing a Dell (EMC) SAN for use by our web server cluster (uses NLBS among four Win2k3 servers). I am wondering the best way to go about this, as I understand that their can be difficulties with multiple systems attached to the same LUN. The goal is for all four webservers to be able to read (about 80% of all activity) and write (about 20% of the activity) to the same set of data. Any advice you could offer would be greatly appreciated.

-Steve

 

[Chacalinc]

Actually, you can use an EMC SAN, HP, IBM, HDS, whatever, the problem is exactly the same: Windows. The main poblem here is that you can not share the same LUN with multiples Windows servers in order to use this LUN with all concurrently. What you should do is to give to every windows server a LUN and have the same data in all of them.

Currently (as I know) you have only 2 ways in order to share the same LUN and use it concurrently: Oracle Real Application Cluster (RAC) and Global FileSystem (RedHat Linux), both in a cluster configuration.

Another way is to give the LUN to only one server and share the folder or put a NAS and use it with the 4 servers with CIFS.

Cheers.

 

[comtec17]

You can accomplish this in Windows by using DFS which will replicate the data between the systems in real time.