FANs and FAN-based applications are designed to help IT professionals eliminate or at least reduce the complexity of managing the ever growing amount of file data in their environments. They can make file location and movement automatic and transparent, centralize resources, consolidate management functions, reduce costs associated with backup and recovery, and automate regulatory compliance tasks.

Prior to undertaking a FAN implementation project, it is important to understand the key concepts of what a FAN is and the wide range of benefits it provides. The term FAN itself is a logical way to describe the holistic approach to architecting file-based data connectivity, storage, and management. FANs utilize a variety of file-related technologies to increase management flexibility for enterprise file resources, ensure user access and connectivity to data, and enhance business continuity. It is also important to understand how FANs fit into the overall IT infrastructure.

FANs are composed of a variety of hardware, software, and network resources. As such, organizations should understand how these support products fit into the overall FAN infrastructure and what roles they play in optimizing file management.

Just like other types of networks, FANs include unique technologies developed specifically for file-related IT operations. The technologies are often the enablers behind key FAN solutions.

Brocade has developed an industry-leading portfolio of FAN software products that solve specific requirements and also work together to provide a more holistic file management solution on an enterprise-wide basis.