A good book for beginners and something for everyone.

Okay, I won't do this too often, and you'll never see a "brand new" book here, but every once in a while I get my hands on a book that is worthy of recommending to you.Why won't I do it too often or on a "brand new" book? Because I actually read them before I recommend them - and I read them only when I have time.

With that said, if you're new to storage networking, or you've focused in on one area and want a good overview that actually has meaty bits, then I have to recommend "Storage Networking Fundamentals" by Marc Farley and published by Cisco Press.

In the past my experiences with Cisco Press were limited to Cisco certification guides, which while in-depth tend to be very focused on their topic - Cisco gear. This book is not in any way Cisco-specific, and it takes you from disk to networks to virtualization to replication, all done well.

If I had a single complaint about the book, it would be that backups - the thing that most readers can be expected to have a familiarity with - are pushed back into the second half of the book.

Otherwise, if you want to learn about storage and your storage environment, this is the book to get you going. When I recruit new freelancers that are familiar with the space but not in-depth storage gurus, this is where I will send them to get their feet wet.

I'm no slouch in the storage networking space, and there were a few things that I learned in the book. 'nough said.I don't have any other books laying around, but when something comes up that's worth your time I'll post it here.