Method for creation and management of virtual volumes for DBMs

• US 20040054648A1
• Filed: 03/11/2003
• Published: 03/18/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Mogi, Kazuhiko, Nishikawa, Norifumi, Idei, Hideomi, Nomoto, Toyohiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,136,862 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/21 Design, administration or maintenance of databases
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability

Abstract

There is a strong demand for facilitation of management of storage region for DB data is required in a computer system combining an apparatus having the DBMS and virtualization function and software. In order to realize such requirement, the requirements for system management regarding a newly created DB and the information about the function to be set for the DB data are given to a system management server. The system management server detects a data structure of DB from such information and sends independently instructions to virtualization apparatuses to create virtual volumes or the like to which the data of each data structure is stored separately and set the function to the virtual volume as required. Thereafter, the system management server also issues an instruction to the DBMS to create a DB to store the data of data structure to the corresponding virtual volume.

Claims

1. A computer system characterized in comprising:

a computer to operate a database management system;

a storage unit to store a database;

a data transfer section which is connected between said computer and said storage unit to control data transfer between said computer and said storage unit and provides a virtual volume by utilizing a storage region provided by said storage unit; and

a system management sever which obtains the schema information when said database is created by management of system and issues an instruction to said database management system and said data transfer section to perform the storage region management process of said database based on said schema information.

2. A computer system according to claim 1, characterized in that said data transfer section is realized with a program executed by said computer.

3. A computer system according to claim 1, characterized in that said computer is identical to said system management server.

4. A computer system according to claim 1, characterized in that said system management server includes said data transfer section.

5. A system management server used in a computer system characterized in comprising:

a computer to operate a database management system;

a storage unit to store a database; and

a data transfer section connected between said computer and said storage unit to control transfer of data between said computer and said storage unit and dynamically create and provide a virtual volume using the storage region provided by said storage unit, whereby

said system management server obtains the schema information when said database is created by management of system and issues an instruction to said database management system and said data transfer section to perform the storage region management process of said database based on said schema information, and

moreover issues an instruction to said data transfer section to create said virtual volume as said storage region management process of database and also issues an instruction to said database management system to assign said virtual volume created for said database management system to data structure for storage region management of said database.

6. A system management server according to claim 5, characterized in issuing an instruction to assign, when said database is created, said virtual volume created for said data structure for storage region management of database to said database management system together with the schema information of said database.

7. A system management server according to claim 6, characterized in assigning the data of said database so that said virtual volume holds only a data structure of said database.

8. A system management server according to claim 6, characterized in assigning the data of said database so that said virtual volume holds only a data structure of said database.

9. A system management server according to claim 5, characterized in that

said data transfer section has a data mirroring function to create a mirror of data, and

said system management server obtains the mirroring function setting information to determine whether said data mirroring function should be used or not for data structure of said database and sets said data mirroring function to said virtual volume based on said mirroring function setting information after creation of said virtual volume is instructed to said data transfer section.

10. A system management server used for a computer system characterized in comprising;

a computer to operate a database management system;

a storage unit to store a database; and

a data transfer section connected between said computer and said storage unit, having the functions for controlling transfer of data between said computer and said storage unit, dynamically providing a virtual volume using the storage region provided by said storage unit and dynamically expanding the storage region assigned to said virtual volume,

whereby said system management server obtains the schema information when the database is created by management of system and issues an instruction to said database management system and said data transfer section to perform said storage region management process of database based on said schema information; and

moreover issues an instruction to said data transfer section to expand the storage region of said virtual volume as said storage region management process of database.

11. A computer system characterized in comprising:

a computer to operate a database management system;

a storage unit connected to said computer and provided with a hard disk drive to provide a logical storage unit to said computer and the convert storing location in said logical unit used at the time of access to a storing location of said hard disk drive; and

a system management server which obtains the schema information when a database is created by management of system and issues an instruction to said database management system and said storage unit to perform said storage region management process of database based on said schema information.

12. A computer system according to claim 11, characterized in that said storage unit dynamically creates said logical storage unit and said system management server issues an instruction to said storage unit to create said logical storage unit as said storage region management process of database and also issues an instruction to said database management system to assign said created logical storage unit to data structure for storage region management of said database.

13. A computer system according to claim 12, characterized in that said system management server issues, when said database is created, an instruction to said database management system to assign said logical storage unit created in said data structure for storage region management of database together with said schema information of database.

14. A method of creation and management of virtual volume in a computer system comprising a computer to operate a database management system, a storage unit, a data transfer section connected between said computer and said storage unit to control the transfer of data between said computer and said storage unit and a system management server for management of system, wherein said data transfer section provides a virtual volume using the storage region provided from said storage unit, characterized in that:

said system management server obtains, when a database is created, the schema information thereof and issues an instruction of creation and management process of said virtual volume used for the storage region of said database to said data transfer section based on said schema information.

15. A method of creation and management of virtual volume according to claim 14, characterized in that functions of said data transfer section are realized with programs to be executed by said computer.

16. A method of creation and management of virtual volume according to claim 14, characterized in that said data transfer section has the function to dynamically create said virtual volume and said system management server issues an instruction to said data transfer section to create said virtual volume and also issues an instruction to said data base management system to assign said created virtual volume to data structure of storage for region management of said database.

17. A method of creation and management of a logical storage unit in a computer system comprising a computer to operate a database management system, a storage unit connected to said computer and a system management server for management of system, wherein said storage unit includes a hard disk drive, provides a logical storage unit for said computer and converts the storing location of said logical storage unit used for access to a storing location of said hard disk drive, characterized in that;

said system management server obtains, when a database is created, the schema information thereof and issues an instruction to said storage unit to perform creation and management of said logical storage unit used for a storage region of said database based on said schema information.

18. A method of creation and management of logical storage unit according to claim 17, characterized in that said storage unit has a function to dynamically create said logical storage unit and said system management server issues an instruction to said storage unit to create said logical storage unit and also issues an instruction to said database management system to assign said created logical storage unit to data structure for storage region management of said database together with said schema information of database.

19. A method of creation and management of logical storage unit according to claim 17, characterized in that said storage unit has a data mirroring function to create a mirror of data and said system management server obtains the mirroring function setting information to determine whether the data mirroring function should be used or not for data structure of said database and sets, after issuing an instruction to said storage unit to create said logical storage unit, said data mirroring function to said logical storage unit based on said mirroring function setting information.

20. A method of creation and management of file in a computer system comprising a computer to operate a database management system, a storage unit connected to said computer and a system management server for management of system, wherein said storage unit includes hard disk drives, has a data mirroring function to create a mirror of data, provides a storage region to said computer as a file and converts the storing location in said file used for access to a storing location of said hard disk drives, characterized in that

said system management server obtains, when a database is created, the schema information thereof, obtains the mirroring function setting information to determine whether the data mirroring function should be used or not for data structure of said database, and issues an instruction to said storage unit to perform said creation and management of file used for said storage region of database based on said schema information and said mirroring function setting information.