A VAST cluster is an instantiation of the VAST AI OS installed on a network of storage and server infrastructure comprising a management domain and namespace.
A VAST cluster is managed using the VAST Management Service (VMS). VMS utilizes the following terminology:
VAST Cluster Terminology
- Application User
A VMS user with access to VAST DataEngine on a VAST Cluster tenant. Application users can be provisioned by cluster admin users and tenant admin users. An application user has no permissions to manage a cluster or tenant.
- Cluster Admin User
A VMS manager user with access to the cluster's VMS for managing the VAST cluster.
- CNode
A VAST server appliance or customer-provided equipment running a container(s) that runs the VAST AI OS software.
- Element Store
The cluster's data store that unifies object, file, block, table, and vector data with built-in similarity reduction, erasure coding, and real-time access. The Element Store can simultaneously present data as objects in a flat hierarchy and as files in a hierarchy of directories.
- Protocols
If not otherwise specified, this term primarily refers to the file sharing, object, block storage and other protocols used by clients of the VAST Cluster to transfer data to and from the cluster.
- Providers/Auth providers
Identity providers such as Active Directory, Open LDAP servers, NIS, that store user and group attributes. They are used by the cluster when authorizing permission for users to access files and directories. They may also be used for authenticating users via Kerberos or NTLM.
- Tenant
A subdomain of a VAST cluster's resources with a data path isolated from any other tenants on the cluster.
- Tenant Admin User
A VMS manager user with access to a specific tenant. A tenant admin user can access a tenant-specific VMS web UI and can send tenant-specific requests to the VMS web UI.
- View
A configuration that defines and exposes a path in the Element Store to selected access protocols. A view can have specific security settings for hosts and protocols.