When a client interacts with a volume on a node different from its own, how is this access categorized?

When a client accesses a volume located on a different node, this access is categorized as indirect for both reads and writes. This occurs because the client's requests must be routed through the network to reach the other node containing the desired volume. This routing adds overhead and latency compared to direct access, which would take place if the client were interacting with a volume on its own node.

In a shared storage environment, such as those often managed by NetApp, the architecture utilizes various methods for communication between nodes. When interacting with a remote volume, the data must first travel over the network to reach the designated node, which encapsulates the concept of indirect access. This is essential for understanding how networking impacts performance and operations in clustered storage architectures.

Therefore, when a client performs both read and write operations on a volume that resides on a different node, it is classified as indirect because both types of operations rely on network communication and may also involve node coordination to ensure data integrity and consistency across the distributed system.