NetApp Volumes shares file systems, or volumes, to network-attached storage (NAS) clients. NAS clients are usually virtual machines (VMs) that run on Windows or Linux operating systems, using the industry-standard Network File System (NFS) and Server Message Block (SMB) protocols.
Both NFS and SMB use a client-server model, in which a client sends requests to a server to act on the file system. Such actions include operations like creating or deleting files or folders, modifying files, and browsing and reading files.
Volumes can be shared between many clients. Windows, Linux, and UNIX operating systems include built-in SMB and NFS client software.
All file system objects must have an owner, but you can grant other users and groups access permissions for objects.
For NFS, ownership is specified by user ID (UID) and group IDs (GIDs), which use standard UNIX-style user and group permissions. NFSv4 can use UID and GIDs or security principals. When you use NFSv4.1 with Kerberos, UID access gets replaced by the usage of Kerberos principals, which are authenticated user identities. In addition to standard UNIX permissions, NFSv4 also offers NFSv4 ACLs as an alternative method of managing access.
For SMB, ownership is specified by Windows security identifiers (SIDs). Access to objects is managed by NTFS-style access control lists (ACLs).