There seem to be very few technological pitfalls to a storage area network. The main pitfalls are based around cost. Not because the storage is expensive, but because installing it can be expensive.
It is fair to state that a SAN really only has a place within larger organisations or perhaps in exceptional circumstances within a small company.
That said, technology and development and improvements are constantly being made and prices decrease so you should discuss your requirements with a number of well regarded suppliers.
- If your organisation has only a few servers then a SAN will probably not be relevant. Organisations with tens of servers or even hundreds are best suited to a storage area network.
- Your potential SAN supplier should give you a very clear indication of the return on investment, again highlighting that you may not need what could be a very costly decision.
- If your disaster recovery requirements are relatively simple, then it may be worth looking at other systems.
If your organisation has only one or perhaps a few offices, installing a wide area network (WAN) connection can be expensive and may not be the right system.