Storage sub-system and management program

• US 20040215673A1
• Filed: 08/28/2003
• Published: 10/28/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kitamura, Manabu, Furukawa, Hiroshi, Akagawa, Etsutaro
• Granted Patent: US 7,085,954 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3674 involving authentication

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to permit, with account movement, increase of the speed of data transfer of an exclusive storage area of a targeted account (a home directory of a user) and reduction of the load of a controller of a host computer.

A storage system according to an embodiment of the present invention has a storage and a controller. The storage has an interface for connecting it to a storage of another storage system via a communication line, and a remote copy module transferring predetermined data to the another storage system, not via the controller, based on a data transfer command from the controller. The controller has a remote copy control module transmitting, to the remote copy module, at reception of a notification of account attribute movement from an account monitor module monitoring the account attribute movement, a data transfer command for transferring predetermined data to the another storage system, not via the controller.

Claims

1. A storage system having a storage and a controller, wherein

said storage has an interface connecting said storage to a storage of another storage system via a communication line, and a remote copy module transferring predetermined data to the storage of said another storage system via said communication line, not via said controller, based on a data transfer command from said controller,

said controller has a remote copy control module transmitting, to said remote copy module, at reception of a notification of account movement from an account monitor module monitoring the change of an account attribute with said account movement, a data transfer command for transferring predetermined data stored-into said storage via said communication line to said another storage system.

2. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said remote copy control module transmits, to said remote copy module, at reception of said account movement notification from said account monitor module, a data transfer command for transferring data corresponding to a moved account to said another storage system,

said remote copy module transfers the data corresponding to said account to said another storage system based on said data transfer command.

3. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said remote copy control module transmits, to said remote copy module, at reception of said account movement notification from said account monitor module and an ID indicating a storage system storing data corresponding to a moved account, a data transfer command for transferring the data corresponding to the moved account to the storage system corresponding to the ID indicated by said storage system,

said remote copy module transfers the data corresponding to said account to the storage system corresponding to the ID indicated by said storage system based on said data transfer command.

4. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said remote copy control module specifies, at reception of said account movement notification from said account monitor module, a storage system storing data corresponding to a moved account to transmit, to said remote copy module, a data transfer command for transferring, to said specified storage system, the data corresponding to the moved account,

said remote copy module transfers the data corresponding to said account to said specified storage system based on said data transfer command.

5. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said remote copy control module creates pseudo difference information in which the data corresponding to said account is erased only from the storage on the transferring side to command said remote copy module to data transfer said difference information.

6. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said account is a user ID, and an attribute of said account is information related to belonging to said user.

7. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said account is an application ID, and an attribute of said account is information related to an application environment.

8. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said remote copy control module issues, to said management computer, at reception of an account movement notification from said account monitor module, an inquiry whether predetermined data stored into said storage may be data transferred via said communication line to said another storage system to decide whether said data transfer command is transmitted to said remote copy module based on a response to said inquiry from said management computer.

9. The storage system according to claim 8, wherein said controller further has a performance monitor module monitoring a performance value for each component in said storage system to transmit the monitored performance value to a management computer.

10. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein said account monitor module is provided in said controller.

11. A management program for allowing a management computer managing a plurality of storage systems having a storage and a controller to execute:

a policy of receiving a notification of account movement from an account monitor module monitoring the change of an account attribute with said account movement; and

a policy of transmitting, to a storage system related as the account moving side, at reception of said account movement notification, a data transfer command for transferring, to a storage system related as the account moved side, predetermined data stored into said storage via a communication line connecting the storages of said plurality of storage systems, not via said controller.

12. The management program according to claim 11, which allows said management computer to further execute a step of deciding whether a data transfer command of said command module is transmitted based on a condition about data transfer.

13. The management program according to claim 12, which allows said management computer to further execute a policy of receiving said condition about data transfer from a manager.

14. The management program according to claim 12, which allows said management computer to further execute:

a policy of acquiring a performance value for each component in said storage system; and

a policy of deciding whether a data transfer command of said command module is transmitted based on the performance value for each component in said storage system and said condition about data transfer in place of said decision policy.

15. The management program according to claim 12, wherein said condition about data transfer includes a condition for deciding data transfer or data untransfer based on information indicating the locations of the said storage systems on the moving and moved sides of an attribute of said account.