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How Storage Gateway works
Hybrid cloud storage bridging on-prem apps to S3/EBS/Glacier through a local cache. Throughput is bounded by uplink bandwidth; latency depends on the local cache hit rate.
Not everything lives in the cloud yet. Plenty of apps still run in a data centre and expect local file shares, disks, or even tape. Storage Gateway is the bridge: an on-prem appliance that speaks those familiar protocols to your apps and quietly stores the data in AWS, with a local cache so the hot stuff stays fast.
What you will learn
- What hybrid problem does Storage Gateway solve?
- How can on-prem apps use AWS storage without being rewritten?
- What are the gateway types, and what does each bridge?
- Why is the local cache important?
Bridging on-prem and AWS
Many on-prem applications can only talk to local storage protocols (NFS, SMB, iSCSI, virtual tape). Storage Gateway runs as an appliance in your data centre, presents those protocols to your apps, and translates to AWS storage (S3, Glacier, EBS snapshots, FSx) behind the scenes.
The gateway types
S3 File Gateway: exposes NFS/SMB shares whose files land as objects in S3. FSx File Gateway: low-latency on-prem access to FSx for Windows shares. Volume Gateway: presents iSCSI block volumes backed by AWS, with EBS snapshots. Tape Gateway: a virtual tape library that backs up to S3/Glacier, so old tape-based backup software keeps working.
⚓ Cloud backups, data-centre file shares backed by S3, and migrating tape backups to the cloud.
The local cache
The gateway keeps a local cache of frequently-accessed data on-prem, so reads of hot data are fast (no round-trip to AWS), while the complete, durable dataset lives in the cloud. You get cloud durability and capacity with local-feeling performance for the data you actually use.
Flashcards
- What does Storage Gateway let on-prem apps do?
- Use AWS storage via familiar local protocols (NFS/SMB/iSCSI/tape) without rewriting them, the gateway translates to S3/Glacier/EBS/FSx.
- Which gateway exposes NFS/SMB shares whose files become S3 objects?
- S3 File Gateway, local file shares backed by objects in S3.
- How do you keep legacy tape-backup software while moving to the cloud?
- Tape Gateway, a virtual tape library that backs up to S3/Glacier so the old software is unchanged.
- Which gateway presents iSCSI block volumes backed by AWS?
- Volume Gateway, on-prem iSCSI block storage backed by AWS with EBS snapshots.
- What does the local cache buy you?
- Low-latency access to hot data on-prem while the full, durable dataset lives in AWS, cloud capacity with local-feeling speed.
Sources
Open the SysPad canvas · Official Storage Gateway documentation