Iscsi Cake 18 Install May 2026

iSCSI Cake (also known as CCDisk) is a Windows-based iSCSI target software that allows you to export server storage resources—such as hard disks, partitions, or VMDK files—to client computers over a network. These clients then see the remote storage as a local hard drive.

While "iSCSI Cake 1.8" is often mentioned in legacy tech circles, the most recently documented stable version is 1.70. Key Features of iSCSI Cake

Virtualization Support: It is one of the first iSCSI targets to support exporting VMware (.vmdk) files as local disks.

Copy-on-Write: Protects server data by redirecting client write requests to a temporary working directory.

Performance: Supports advanced caching options, including server-side memory cache and client-side disk or memory cache.

Application Compatibility: Unlike standard SMB shares, iSCSI Cake supports databases and games that require block-level access. Installation & Configuration Guide 1. Server Installation (The Target) To set up your server to share storage:

Download & Run: Download the installer from the official developer's site or a trusted mirror. iscsi cake 18 install

Run as Service: The software typically installs as a Windows Service with a GUI for management.

Add iSCSI Disks: Open the iSCSI Cake management console and add the disk or file you wish to share.

Set Cache: Configure the Server Cache (under "Target setup") to allocate system memory for faster client reading. 2. Client Installation (The Initiator) Clients need to connect to the server to use the storage:

Install Microsoft iSCSI Initiator: This is built into modern Windows (accessible via iscsicpl from the command prompt).

Install iSCSI Cake Client: For optimal performance and to enable client-side caching, install the specialized iSCSI Cake Client on the workstations.

Discovery: In the iSCSI Initiator, go to the Discovery tab and enter the IP address of the iSCSI Cake server. iSCSI Cake (also known as CCDisk ) is

Connect: Select the discovered target and click Connect. The disk will now appear in your local Windows Disk Management. Usage Limitations

Trial Period: The standard free trial supports up to 10 users and is valid for 15 days.

Compatibility: While primarily for legacy Windows systems (XP, 2000, 2003), it is also used in Internet Cafes for diskless booting and high-speed game storage. Cheapest iSCSI SAN for Windows 2008/SQL Server clustering?

sudo targetcli ls

Expected output shows backstore, target, LUN, and ACL.

For most CakeOS 18 variants:

sudo apt install targetcli-fb -y     # Debian-based
sudo dnf install targetcli -y        # RHEL-based

The installation process for this software is straightforward, but it requires specific permissions because it involves kernel-level drivers for disk emulation. sudo targetcli ls

Prerequisites:

Steps:

Cake OS (based on FreeBSD) handles iSCSI via ctld (the Common Target Layer daemon). Unlike Linux’s targetcli which feels like a penalty box, Cake’s web UI actually gives you a fighting chance. With ZFS under the hood, you get snapshots, clones, and ARC caching for your LUNs.

Version 18 brought improved ZFS performance and a more responsive middleware layer. Perfect time to jump in.

Allow iSCSI traffic (port 3260 TCP):

sudo firewall-cmd --add-port=3260/tcp --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

The iscsi cake 18 install is incomplete without a working initiator. Let’s set up a client machine.