Method and system for differential distributed data file storage, management and access

• US 20020161860A1
• Filed: 10/31/2001
• Published: 10/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Disksites Research and Development Limited
• Original Assignee: Disksites Research and Development Limited
• Inventors: Godlin, Benjamin, Lan, Divon, Hager, Yuval
• Application Number:
  US09/999,241
• Publication Number:
  US 20020161860A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1767 Concurrency control, e.g. optimistic or pessimistic approaches
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/178 Techniques for file synchronisation in file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/184 implemented as replicated file system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1873 Versioning file systems, temporal file systems, e.g. file system supporting different historic versions of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method and system providing a distributed filesystem and distributed filesystem protocol utilizing a version-controlled filesystem with two-way differential transfer across a network is disclosed. A remote client interacts with a distributed file server across a network. Files having more than one version are maintained as version-controlled files having a literal base and at least one delta section. The client maintains a local cache of files from the distributed server that are utilized. If a later version of a file is transferred across a network, the transfer may include only the required delta sections.

Claims

1. A method for providing access to a file across a network using a differential file server comprising:

receiving a differential file request for a file having a primary copy on a server connected to the differential file server;

storing, a differential file server local copy of at least one version of the file, wherein at least one version includes a base version associated with a literal base section;

updating the differential file server local copy using a delta section if required;

determining if a file transmission is necessary; and

transmitting the required differential portions of the file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the primary copy of the file is not version controlled.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the differential file request was received from a differential file cache server after the differential file cache server received a file request from a local network client connected to the differential file cache server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the differential file request was received from a differential file system client.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the local network client utilizes a non-differential network file system.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving an indication that the primary copy has been changed;

determining that an update to the file is required by determining if an indication that the primary copy has been changed was received since the differential file server last updated the primary copy.

7. A method for utilizing files across a network using a client comprising:

receiving a differential file request for a file;

storing, a client local copy of at least one version of the file, wherein at least one version includes a base version associated with a literal base section;

determining if a file update is required; and

if required, receiving a file update.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein:

the client comprises a differential file cache server; and

a local network client issued a file request to the differential file cache server.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein:

the primary copy of the file is stored on a differential file storage server.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein:

the primary copy of the file is stored on a server connected to a differential file server.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

wherein the file update comprises at least one delta section.

reconstructing a literal file using the at least one delta section and the at least one local version.

12. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining if the file is locked and if it is locked determining that a file update request is not necessary and using the client local copy if the file is locked.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the differential file client comprises a differential file cache server connected to the network and connected to at least one local network client.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the local network client utilizes a non-differential network file system.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein:

the client comprises a differential file cache server; and

a local network client is capable of issuing a file request to the differential file cache server.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein:

the data processor is further operative with the logic program to perform;

determining if the file is locked and if it is locked determining that a file update request is not necessary and using the client local copy if the file is locked.

13. A system for providing access to a file across a network using a differential file server comprising:

a differential file server having a data processor connected to a differential file client using a network;

a storage device connected to the data processor;

the storage device storing a logic program; and

the data processor operative with the logic program to perform;

receiving a differential file request for a file having a primary copy on a server connected to the differential file server;

storing, a differential file server local copy of at least one version of the file, wherein at least one version includes a base version associated with a literal base section;

updating the differential file server local copy using a delta section if required;

determining if a file transmission is necessary; and

transmitting the required differential portions of the file.

16. A system for utilizing files across a network using a client comprising:

a client having a data processor connected to a network;

a storage device connected to the data processor;

the storage device storing a logic program; and

the data processor operative with the logic program to perform;

receiving a differential file request for a file;

storing, a client local copy of at least one version of the file, wherein at least one version includes a base version associated with a literal base section;

determining if a file update is required; and

if required, receiving a file update

19. An article of manufacture comprising:

a computer readable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein, the computer readable program code means including;

means for receiving a differential file request for a file having a primary copy on a server connected to the differential file server;

means for storing, a differential file server local copy of at least one version of the file, wherein at least one version includes a base version associated with a literal base section;

means for updating the differential file server local copy using a delta section if required;

means for determining if a file transmission is necessary; and

means for transmitting the required differential portions of the file.

20. An article of manufacture comprising:

a computer readable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein, the computer readable program code means including;

means for receiving a differential file request for a file;

means for storing, a client local copy of at least one version of the file, wherein at least one version includes a base version associated with a literal base section;

means for determining if a file update is required; and

means for receiving a file update if required.

21. A system for efficiently servicing a client-originated file system request, the system comprising:

a client computer operating under an operating system adapted to utilize one or more network file-system clients, the client computer being operably connected to a first local network;

a server computer operating network file-system server, the server computer being operably connected to a second local network;

a cache server having a cache and being operably connected to the first local network and a wide area network;

a gateway server operably connected to the second local network and the wide area network;

at least one of the one or more network file-system clients being adapted to make a client-originated file system requests;

the network file-system server being adapted to service file system requests;

the cache server being adapted to receive the client-originated file system request from the at least one of the one or more network file-system clients, and in response thereto, servicing the request by

first determining what information, if any, is not current and present in the cache but would be required to service the client-originated file system request,

then, if any information is determined to be required, update the information by tunneling one or more wide area requests over the wide area network to the gateway server; and

then responding to the client-originated file system request; and

the gateway server being adapted to receive and process the one or more wide area requests tunneled over the wide area network from the cache server, and in response thereto,

generating one or more gateway-originated file system requests corresponding to the one or more wide area requests on the second local network, thereby updating the information; and

tunneling the updated information to the cache server over the wide area network.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the network file-system server comprises at least one of the group:

CIFS, NFS and DAV, and the at least one of the one or more network file-system clients comprises at least one of the group;

CIFS, NFS and DAV.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the client-originated file system request is serviced in a manner such that the performance of the at least one of the one or more network file-system clients is better than what would be expected to result from the distance between the client computer and a server absent the cache server.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the network file-system server comprises at least one of the group:

CIFS, NFS and DAV.

26. The system of claim 24, wherein the file system request is serviced in a manner such that the performance of the at least one of the one or more network file-system clients is better than what would be expected to result from the distance between the client computer and a server absent the software cache server.

24. A system for efficiently servicing a file system request, the system comprising:

a client computer operating under an operating system adapted to utilize one or more network file-system clients, the client computer being operably connected to a wide area network;

a server computer operating network file-system server, the server computer being operably connected to a local network;

a gateway server operably connected to the local network and the wide area network;

the network file-system server being adapted to service gateway-originated file system requests;

a software cache server operating on the client computer, the software cache server having a cache and being adapted to act as one of the one or more network file-system clients, the software cache server being further adapted to receive a file system request from the operating system, and in response thereto, servicing the file system request by

first determining what information, if any, is not current and present in the cache but would be required to service the file system request,

then, if any information is determined to be required, updating the information by tunneling one or more wide area requests over the wide area network to the gateway server; and

then responding to the file system request; and

the gateway server being adapted to receive and process the one or more wide area requests tunneled over the wide area network from the cache server, and in response thereto,

generating one or more gateway-originated file system requests corresponding to the one or more wide area requests on the second local network, thereby updating the information; and

tunneling the information to the cache server over the wide area network.