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Glossary 237
Glossary
Array—A grouping of hard disk drives combines the storage space on the
hard drives into a single segment of contiguous storage space. The RAID
controller can group hard drives on one or more channels into an array. A
hot spare drive does not participate in an array.
Array Management Software—Software that provides common control and
management for a disk array. Array Management Software most often
executes in a disk controller or intelligent host bus adapter, but it can also
execute in a host computer. When it executes in a disk controller or adapter,
Array Management Software is often called firmware.
Array Spanning—Array spanning by a logical drive combines storage space
in two arrays of hard drives into a single, contiguous storage space in a
logical drive. The logical drive can span consecutively numbered arrays,
each having the same number of hard drives. Array spanning promotes
RAID level 1 to RAID level 10. See also Disk Spanning, and Spanning.
Asynchronous Operations—Operations that are not related to each other in
time and can overlap. The concept of asynchronous I/O operations is central
to independent access arrays in throughput-intensive applications.
ATA —(Advanced Technology Attachment) Also known at IDE (Integrated
Device Electronics), this is a type of hard disk drive interface in which the
controller electronics are integrated onto the drive itself. A separate adapter
card is no longer needed, which reduces interface costs and makes it easier
to implement firmware.