iSCSI
iSCSI (Internet Small Computer System Interface) is a network protocol that allows block-level storage data to be transmitted over IP networks, enabling remote storage devices to appear as locally attached disks to servers and clients. It encapsulates SCSI commands within TCP/IP packets, facilitating storage area networks (SANs) over standard Ethernet infrastructure without requiring specialized Fibre Channel hardware. This protocol is widely used for centralized storage management, data backup, and virtualization in enterprise environments.
Developers and system administrators should learn iSCSI when implementing scalable storage solutions, such as in virtualized data centers, cloud environments, or for disaster recovery setups, as it reduces costs by leveraging existing Ethernet networks instead of expensive Fibre Channel. It is particularly useful for scenarios requiring high-performance block storage access over LANs or WANs, such as database hosting, virtual machine storage, or media streaming applications, where low latency and reliability are critical.