Storage network switch

• US 20020156887A1
• Filed: 07/19/2001
• Published: 10/24/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Hashimoto, Akiyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,356,581 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2206/1012 Load balancing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0613 in relation to throughput
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10015 Access to distributed or replicated servers, e.g. using brokers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1008 based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload monitoring of computer activity G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1012 based on compliance of requirements or conditions with available server resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

The present invention provides a storage network switch suitable for effective load balancing of a plurality of disk storage systems along with the mitigated burden of the host computer. The storage network switch for connecting a plurality of host computers to a plurality of disk storage systems has a load measuring means, and a data movement facility if required.

Claims

1. A storage network switch, comprising:

a routing control block for controlling connections between a plurality of disk storage systems and a plurality of host computers; and

a load measuring unit for measuring loads of said plurality of disk storage systems by means of information passing through said routing control block from said plurality of host computers.

2. The storage network switch according to claim 1, further comprising:

a data movement control block for moving data among said plurality of storage systems upon reception of a data movement command issued by a specific one of said plurality of host computers,

wherein said load measuring block notifies a load information resulted from the load measuring to said specific host computer in order for said specific host computer to issue the data movement command.

3. The storage network switch according to claim 1, further comprising:

a data movement control block for moving data among said plurality of disk storage systems upon reception of a data movement command issued by a specific one of said plurality of host computers; and

a data movement decision block for determining overload condition of disk storage systems requiring data movement on the basis of predetermined criteria,

wherein when said data movement decision block determines the overloaded condition, said load measuring block notifies a load information resulted from the load measuring to said specific host computer in order for said specific host computer to issue the data movement command.

4. The storage network switch according to claim 2,

wherein at the time of moving data, said data movement controller block issues a read out command of data to be moved to a source one of said plurality of disk storage systems, issues a write command to a destination one of said plurality of disk storage systems when transfer of the data from said source disk storage system to said storage network switch is completed, and then transfers the data to the destination disk storage system.

5. The storage network switch according to claim 1,

wherein an amount of the load to be measured by said load measuring block is an issued number of input/output commands per a given unit time for each of said plurality of disk storage systems.

6. The storage network switch according to claim 1,

wherein an amount of the load to be measured by said load measuring block is an amount of data transfer per a given unit time for one of said plurality of disk storage systems.

7. The storage network switch according to claim 1,

wherein said load measuring block measures the load for each logical volume when one of said plurality of disk storage systems contains a plurality of logical volumes.

8. The storage network switch according to claim 7,

wherein an amount of the load to be measured by said load measuring block is an issued number of input/output commands per a given unit time for one of said plurality of logical volumes.

9. The storage network switch according to claim 7,

wherein an amount of the load to be measured by said load measuring block is an amount of data transfer per a given unit time for one of said plurality of logical volumes.

13. The storage network switch according to claim 1,

wherein said load measuring block notifies a load information resulted from the load measuring to said plurality of host computers in order for said plurality of host computers to be able to select a disk storage system having less load.

15. A disk storage system management program making a specific host computer connected to the storage network switch of claim 2 execute a method comprising the steps of:

reading out a load information notified from a load measuring block in said storage network; and

issuing a data movement command on the basis of the load information.

17. A disk storage system management program making a specific host computer connected to the storage network switch of claim 3 execute a method comprising the steps of:

reading out a requirement of data movement notified from a load measuring block which said storage network switch has;

displaying the requirement of data movement for a user; and

issuing a data movement command on the basis of the requirement of data movement.

10. A storage network switch, comprising:

a routing control block for controlling connections between a plurality of disk storage systems and a plurality of host computers; and

a load measuring block for measuring loads of said plurality of disk storage systems by means of information passing through said routing control block from said plurality of host computers,

wherein said routing control block also controls the connections by adding other storage network switches connected so that at least two storage network switches may be connected each other,

further comprising a communication control block for communicating to and from said other storage network switches, wherein said communication control block exchanges load information of said plurality of disk storage systems which are connected to said own storage network switch and other plurality of disk storage systems which are connected to said other storage network switches.

11. The storage network switch according to claim 10, further comprising:

a data movement control block for moving data among said plurality of disk storage systems upon reception of a data movement command issued by a specific one of said plurality of host computers,

wherein when other data movement is aborted in one of said other storage network switches due to a malfunction of other data movement control block in said other storage network switch, said data movement control block supersedes the troubled other data movement control block to resume the other data movement suspended.

12. The storage network switch according to claim 10, further comprising:

a data movement control block for moving data among said plurality of disk storage systems upon reception of a data movement command issued by a specific one of said plurality of host computers,

wherein said communication control block notifies a load information obtained from the load measuring by said load measuring block together with other load information of other storage network switches obtained by the data exchange with said other storage network switches to said specific host computer in order for said specific host computer to issue the data movement command.

16. The disk storage system management program according to claim 15, further comprising the step of:

displaying the load information for a user when said load information is notified.

14. A storage network switch, comprising:

a routing control block for controlling connections between a plurality of disk storage systems and a plurality of host computers;

a load measuring block for measuring loads of said plurality of disk storage systems by means of information passing through said routing control block from said plurality of host computers; and

a data movement control block for moving among data said plurality of disk storage systems on the basis of a load information obtained from the load measuring by said load measuring block.