SnapDrive software integrates with Windows Volume Manager so that storage systems can serve as virtual storage devices for application data in Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008 environments.
SnapDrive manages LUNs on a storage system, making these LUNs available as local disks on Windows hosts. This allows Windows hosts to interact with the LUNs just as if they belonged to a directly attached redundant array of independent disks (RAID).
SnapDrive provides the following additional features:
- It enables online storage configuration, LUN expansion, and streamlined management.
- It enables connection of up to 168 LUNs.
- It integrates Data ONTAP Snapshot technology, which creates point-in-time images of data stored on LUNs.
- It works in conjunction with SnapMirror software to facilitate disaster recovery from either asynchronously or synchronously mirrored destination volumes.
- It enables SnapVault updates of qtrees to a SnapVault destination.
- It enables management of SnapDrive on multiple hosts.
- It enables support on Microsoft cluster configurations.
- It enables iSCSI session management.
