Patent ID: 8024440

Claim:
A method for storage area network (SAN) establishment, said method comprising: providing a predefined template via a computing system, said predefined template configured for inputting data associated with a SAN, the input data including: a user configuration, component information or desired characteristics defining one or more SAN components or one or more SAN configurations, the providing a predefined template configured for inputting data associated with a SAN further including: implementing a graphical user interface to aid in data input, permit parameters changes and allow for reconfiguration and the predefined template further including: a redundant array of independent disks (RAID) selection portion, a user input portion for identifying and storing resultant information, a SAN data input portion, a manipulation selection portion and a data entry portion; utilizing input component data to verify component interoperability and suitability for a selected RAID configuration included in the SAN prior to obtaining one or more components; utilizing the predefined template by a first tool to obtain a configuration for a SAN, including component data, and when a SAN configuration is input for validation, querying a database of SAN data, via the first tool, for validation of the SAN configuration; selecting a second tool from the manipulation selection portion of the predefined template; utilizing the predefined template by a second tool configured for generating a SAN configuration, and when component data is input to the predefined template, accessing the database via the second tool and comparing the input component data to a database query to generate the SAN configuration; and when the input component data matches a valid SAN configuration, generating an optimized animated configuration of the valid SAN configuration to the predefined template from the accessed database based on at least one of the SAN configuration input for validation or the input component data, the generating an animated configuration of a valid SAN configuration being automatically generated by the system if a throughput of the system would increase by a predetermined factor due to component replacement or component reconfiguration, the generating an animated configuration of a valid SAN configuration further including: outputting the animated configuration to a configuration sketch portion of the predefined template; and when no match is found in the database for an input component included in the input component data, providing an incompatibility warning based on the input component data, said warning identifying the non-matching input component, said warning including a suggestion to a user to update said database with updated information from a manufacturer-maintained database.