Systems and methods for electronic data storage management
First Claim
1. A programmed computer system for creating and maintaining one or more backup copies of electronic data, comprising:
- means to determine whether a mirror copy exists of particular source electronic data, including operating system software, files, directories, and/or physical storage volumes;
means to create a mirror copy of said particular electronic data, if such a mirror copy does not already exist, on a volume and/or storage device other than the volume and/or storage device on which the said particular source electronic data is stored;
means to duplicate all file operations directed to said particular source electronic data on the mirror copy of the electronic data.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Systems and methods for improved electronic data storage management that allow the file system to physically adapt and optimize to a variety of add-on hardware components (such as hard disks, removable drives, CD ROM drives, etc.) while virtually maintaining a stable system configuration from an application software point of view. The Redirector presents a virtual view of the file system by providing a virtual view of logical volumes. Through the use of a Redirector component, all application program file API'"'"'s to the operating system are filtered; if the file, or directory is redirected, then the call is sent in a modified form to the operating system to its redirected physical location. The physical movement of files is accomplished through the use of a Migrator component. The Migrator makes a copy of the file, verifies the correctness of the copy, updates the redirector table, and then removes the physical file from its original location.
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Citations
8 Claims
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1. A programmed computer system for creating and maintaining one or more backup copies of electronic data, comprising:
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means to determine whether a mirror copy exists of particular source electronic data, including operating system software, files, directories, and/or physical storage volumes;
means to create a mirror copy of said particular electronic data, if such a mirror copy does not already exist, on a volume and/or storage device other than the volume and/or storage device on which the said particular source electronic data is stored;
means to duplicate all file operations directed to said particular source electronic data on the mirror copy of the electronic data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A programmed computer system for creating and maintaining a single virtual logical volume of electronic data space with electronic data storage space located on a plurality of physical storage volumes, comprising:
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means for identifying the physical location of available free electronic data storage space on a plurality of physical storage volumes;
means for communicating said available free electronic data storage space locations to a computer operating system;
means for said operating system to access said available free electronic data storage space physically located on a plurality of storage volumes as if the space appeared on a single volume.
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5. A programmed computer system for creating and maintaining a single virtual logical file of electronic data from electronic data located on a plurality of physical storage volumes, comprising:
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means for identifying the physical storage locations of a particular logical file of electronic data stored on a plurality of physical storage volumes;
means for communicating said electronic data storage locations to a computer operating system;
means for said operating system to access said electronic data physically located on a plurality of storage volumes as if the data appeared on a single volume.
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6. A method for creating and maintaining one or more backup copies of electronic data, comprising the steps:
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determining whether a mirror copy exists of particular source electronic data, including operating system software, files, directories, and/or physical storage volumes;
creating a mirror copy of said particular electronic data, if such a mirror copy does not already exist, on a volume and/or storage device other than the volume and/or storage device on which the said particular source electronic data is stored;
duplicating all file operations directed to said particular source electronic data on the mirror copy of the electronic data.
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7. A method for creating and maintaining a single virtual logical volume of electronic data space with electronic data storage space located on a plurality of physical storage volumes, comprising the steps:
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identifying the physical location of available free electronic data storage space on a plurality of physical storage volumes;
communicating said available free electronic data storage space locations to a computer operating system;
accessing said available free electronic data storage space physically located on a plurality of storage volumes by said operating system as if the space appeared on a single volume.
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8. A method for creating and maintaining a single virtual logical file of electronic data from electronic data located on a plurality of physical storage volumes, comprising the steps:
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identifying the physical storage locations of a particular logical file of electronic data stored on a plurality of physical storage volumes;
communicating said electronic data storage locations to a computer operating system;
accessing said electronic data physically located on a plurality of storage volumes by said operating system as if the data appeared on a single volume.
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Specification