Network Defense Essentials (NDE) Practice Exam

Which feature of the RAID system enhances read/write performance by dividing data into small chunks across multiple disks?

1. Disk mirroring

2. Disk striping

3. Data redundancy

4. JBOD

The correct answer is: Disk striping

Disk striping is a technique used in RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) systems that enhances read and write performance by dividing data into small chunks, known as stripes, and spreading these chunks across multiple disks. This method allows for simultaneous reads and writes to multiple disks, significantly improving data access speed compared to a single disk. When data is striped, each disk in the array holds a portion of the overall data set, which means that when a read or write operation is initiated, several disks can work together to complete the operation more quickly. For instance, if a file is broken into parts and those parts are distributed across four disks, the system can read from all four disks at once, multiplying the speed of read operations. The same principle applies during write operations, enhancing overall performance and efficiency. Other features, such as disk mirroring, focus primarily on data redundancy and fault tolerance rather than performance enhancement. Data redundancy ensures that there are copies of data available in case of disk failure, and JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) does not provide improved performance or fault tolerance since it treats each disk independently without leveraging the benefits of striping or mirroring.