An architect is designing a vSAN storage solution for a remote site.

vSAN File Share SMB services are required because the storage must be consumed by Windows workstations and the application requires native NTFS permissions. SMB is the Windows-native file sharing protocol and integrates with Active Directory authentication. vSAN File Service supports SMB file shares, and Windows clients joined to the Active Directory domain configured with vSAN File Service can access those shares by using the SMB path. vSAN File Service also supports Microsoft Management Console for SMB shares, including Access Control List management, open file viewing, active sessions, and client connection management. These capabilities align directly with NTFS-style permission expectations for Windows-based graphic design workstations. vSAN File Service also supports two-node vSAN configurations, which matches the remote-site rack-space constraint of two hosts with a witness deployed remotely or in a shared location. NFSv3 does not provide native NTFS permissions for Windows clients. vSAN Storage Cluster and vSAN HCI Mesh address remote datastore capacity sharing, not SMB file access for Windows users. Reference topics: vSAN File Service, SMB File Shares, Active Directory Integration, Two-Node vSAN Support.