The N1 Grid is Sun's vision, strategy, and architecture--and a set of products--that redefine the nature of data center computing. The N1 Grid architecture uses the network, physically and logically, as its fundamental organizing principle.

This book enables the reader to implement service-centric data center solutions through the use of N1 Grid-based principles and architectures, which are more efficient and flexible. It opens with an overview of how this approach evolved and then takes the reader through the process of preparing, architecting, and implementing N1 Grid-based solutions.

N1 is Sun's architecture for the next generation data center. It simplifies datacenter operations by helping to reduce the complexity associated with runningIT infrastructures. Sun's N1 products and services enable organizations to treatthe data center as a single, unified system for cost-effective management, greater utilization, and faster responsiveness. The focus of the book is how tosolve strategic problems, namely "What problem does the customer have, andhow can N1 solve it?" The book starts by articulating the problems that areprevalent in the IT world today. After a brief overview of the N1 Vision, itprobes deeper into the nature of an N1 system in terms of its properties andthe value it delivers, and in terms of the goals for N1. It then covers the N1Architecture, explaining what it means to build a system. Also covers N1Products and what N1 means to Sun's product portfolio and that of othervendors.