Mirroring storage interface

• US 20050256972A1
• Filed: 05/11/2004
• Published: 11/17/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Robinson, David, Cochran, Robert, Algieri, Joseph
• Granted Patent: US 8,185,663 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/245
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2058 using more than 2 mirrored copies
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2071 using a plurality of controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A mirroring device includes an interface capable of coupling a primary storage array and a secondary storage array to a network. The interface further includes a logic that monitors traffic for a network packet destined for the primary storage array and selectively identifies a storage array write operation and associated data in the network packet, constructs a network packet targeted to the secondary storage array, and transmits the packet to the primary storage array and the secondary storage array.

Claims

1. A mirroring device comprising:

an interface capable of coupling a primary storage array and a secondary storage array to a network, the interface further comprising a logic that monitors traffic for a network packet destined for the primary storage array and selectively identifies a storage array write operation and associated data in the network packet, constructs a network packet targeted to the secondary storage array, and transmits the packet to the primary storage array and the secondary storage array.

2. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface further comprises a logic capable of receiving the network packet according to a first protocol and selectively converting to a second protocol for transmission.

3. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface further comprises a logic capable of transparently passing through network traffic and replicating specifically selected traffic based on destination address.

4. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface comprises a logic capable of simultaneously replicating traffic to multiple destinations.

5. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface comprises a logic capable of block-by-block replication between disparate array times and/or device types.

6. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface comprises a logic capable native encryption of replicated blocks.

7. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface comprises a logic that supports internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iSCSI) anycast functionality.

8. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface comprises a data stream replicator that replicates data without virtualization and regardless of storage array characteristics and addressing.

9. The mirroring device according to claim 1 wherein:

the interface comprises an interceptor for synchronous mirroring that controls traffic flow and a monitor for asynchronous mirroring that replicates and passes traffic transparently.

10. A method for mirroring network traffic from a primary storage array to a secondary storage array comprising:

monitoring the traffic for a network packet destined for the primary storage array;

identifying a storage array write operation and associated data in the network packet;

constructing a network packet targeted to the secondary storage array; and

selectively transmitting the packet to the primary storage array and the secondary storage array.

11. A mirroring device comprising:

a bridge that interfaces between first and second communication interfaces, the bridge being capable of simultaneous transmission to multiple storage devices including heterogeneous and disparate storage devices; and

a controller coupled to the bridge and capable of transparent, per write input/output, mirroring of information volumes to the multiple storage devices.

12. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable on the controller that monitors and passes through non-mirrored read/write requests according to storage device addressing techniques.

15. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a memory;

a cache coupled to the memory;

at least one processor coupled to the cache and memory; and

a state controller, coupled to the at least one processor and controlling the mirroring device to perform synchronous and asynchronous mirroring to a plurality of mirrors.

16. The mirroring device according to claim 11 wherein:

the bridge interfaces to an internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iSCSI) and supports Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) capabilities including unicast, multicast, anycast, Gig-E and 10Gig-E trunking, Internet Protocol Security (IPSec) encryption, Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) for device grouping and zoning, and frame prioritization.

17. The mirroring device according to claim 11 wherein:

the controller can manage the storage devices according to definitions of standard target and logical unit (LUN) disk volumes without virtualization.

18. The mirroring device according to claim 11 wherein:

the controller can mirror volumes among at least two storage sites and can support fan-in and fan-out to a plurality of storage sites.

19. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a memory coupled to the controller; and

a process executable in the controller that stores and forwards information and manages multiple-hop disaster recovery configurations.

20. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that authenticates a sender and data contents.

21. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that selectively sends data in encrypted form and non-encrypted form.

22. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that confines write operations to a predefined Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) group.

23. The mirroring device according to claim 11 wherein:

the controller is capable of controlling anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors wherein a controller operating at a primary node anycasts data to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked, and a controller operating at a mirror node receives the anycast data and sends an identical transmission to other mirror nodes in the predetermined list of nodes, a controller operating at a mirror node that receives multiple copies of the transmission disregarding the duplicate.

24. The mirroring device according to claim 11 wherein:

the controller is capable of controlling anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors wherein a controller operating at a primary node anycasts data to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked, and the controller operating at a mirror node receives the anycast data, tracks the received data by sequence number identification, detects missing data according to sequence number, and requests missing data from other nodes in the predetermined list of receiving nodes.

25. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that mirrors separate data sets asynchronously and synchronously using 1;

1 fan-out per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication to transparently create volume mirrors internally or remotely.

26. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that mirrors aggregated volume data sets asynchronously and synchronously to a plurality N of arrays using 1;

N volumes per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication, the volumes being aggregated at the mirror site.

27. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that mirrors aggregated volume data sets asynchronously and synchronously to a plurality N of arrays using 1;

N volumes per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication, the process determining when a remote write fails to complete and terminating mirroring to all remote mirror sites when one remote write fails.

28. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller operating at a primary site that sends data to a plurality N of mirror sites in a disaster recovery configuration so that one host is duplicated N times.

29. The mirroring device according to claim 28 wherein:

the process can send data by unicast synchronous or asynchronous communication with duplicate writes sequentially to mirroring device at N remote mirror sites;

the process can send data by multicast synchronous or asynchronous communication with one write to a plurality of mirroring devices at N remote mirror sites; and

the process can sends data by anycast communication to the N mirror sites without awaiting or tracking receipt acknowledgements.

30. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that sends data using a multiple-hop disaster recovery configuration, the process executable at a primary site sending updates to a mirroring device at one destination site, the process executable at a mirror site receiving updates and relaying the updates to a subsequent mirroring device at one destination site.

31. The mirroring device according to claim 11 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller operating at a primary site that synchronously or asynchronously sends identical data to a plurality N of mirror sites in a disaster recovery configuration using unicast or multicast communication so that the same volume is mirrored to N different sites, the process determining when a remote write fails to complete and terminating mirroring to all remote mirror sites when one remote write fails.

13. The mirroring device according to claim 111 further comprising:

a process executable on the controller that is programmed in-band to selectively mirror and pass-through writes directed to a first address to also transfer to a second address.

14. The mirroring device according to claim 13 wherein:

the mirror and pass-through writes create a mirror selected from among a group including an internal mirror and a remote mirror.

32. A storage system comprising:

a plurality of storage devices capable of intercommunication;

a mirroring device coupled to the plurality of storage devices by a storage array interface, the mirroring device further comprising;

a bridge that interfaces between first and second communication interfaces, the bridge being capable of simultaneous transmission to multiple storage devices including heterogeneous and disparate storage devices and including a plurality of storage devices local to a data center and storage devices remote from the data center; and

a controller coupled to the bridge and capable of transparent, per write input/output, mirroring of information volumes to the multiple storage devices and the storage devices remote from the data center.

33. The storage system according to claim 32 wherein:

the plurality of storage devices are selected from among a group of storage device configurations consisting of Just A Bunch of Disks (JBODs), Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (RAID), and disk arrays.

34. The storage system according to claim 33 wherein:

the mirroring device is embedded within the plurality of storage devices including similar or disparate storage devices.

35. A mirroring device comprising:

a bridge that translates protocol between first and second communication interfaces; and

a controller coupled to the bridge and capable of controlling anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors wherein;

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, anycasts data to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked;

the controller, when operating as a mirror node controller, receives the anycast data and sends an identical transmission to other mirror nodes in the predetermined list of nodes; and

the controller, when operating as a mirror node controller that receives multiple copies of the transmission, disregards the duplicates.

36. The mirroring device according to claim 35 wherein:

the controller, when operating as a mirror node controller, receives the anycast data, tracks the received data by sequence number identification, detects missing data according to sequence number, and requests missing data from other nodes in the predetermined list of receiving nodes.

37. The mirroring device according to claim 36 wherein:

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, is capable of responding to loss of a primary volume by sending an anycast message to the predetermined list of mirror nodes that requests a status report for information relating to the lost primary volume.

38. The mirroring device according to claim 37 wherein:

the controller, when operating as a mirror node controller of the predetermined list of mirror nodes, responds to the status report request by replying with an identifier of the mirror node, designation of whether the data contained in the mirror node is consistent and usage, and identification of the last sequence number received.

39. The mirroring device according to claim 38 wherein:

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, responds to the receipt of at least one status report by initiating a failover response that determines the mirror nodes containing usable information.

40. The mirroring device according to claim 39 wherein:

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, responds to the receipt of at least one status report by initiating a failover response that determines the geographically closest of the mirror nodes containing usable information.

41. The mirroring device according to claim 35 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that mirrors separate data sets asynchronously and synchronously using 1;

1 fan-out per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication to transparently create volume mirrors internally or remotely.

42. The mirroring device according to claim 35 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that mirrors aggregated volume data sets asynchronously and synchronously to a plurality N of arrays using 1;

N volumes per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication, the volumes being aggregated at the mirror site.

43. The mirroring device according to claim 35 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that mirrors aggregated volume data sets asynchronously and synchronously to a plurality N of arrays using 1;

N volumes per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication, the process determining when a remote write fails to complete and terminating mirroring to all remote mirror sites when one remote write fails.

44. The mirroring device according to claim 35 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller, when operating at a primary site, that sends data to a plurality N of mirror sites in a disaster recovery configuration so that one host is duplicated N times.

45. The mirroring device according to claim 44 wherein:

the process can send data by unicast synchronous or asynchronous communication with duplicate writes sequentially to mirroring device at N remote mirror sites;

the process can send data by multicast synchronous or asynchronous communication with one write to a plurality of mirroring devices at N remote mirror sites; and

the process can send data by anycast communication to the N mirror sites without awaiting or tracking receipt acknowledgements.

46. The mirroring device according to claim 35 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller that sends data using a multiple-hop disaster recovery configuration, the process executable at a primary site sending updates to a mirroring device at one destination site, the process executable at a mirror site receiving updates and relaying the updates to a subsequent mirroring device at one destination site.

47. The mirroring device according to claim 35 further comprising:

a process executable in the controller operating at a primary site that synchronously or asynchronously sends identical data to a plurality N of mirror sites in a disaster recovery configuration using unicast or multicast communication so that the same volume is mirrored to N different sites, the process determining when a remote write fails to complete and terminating mirroring to all remote mirror sites when one remote write fails.

48. A mirroring device comprising:

a bridge that translates protocol between a plurality of communication interfaces; and

a controller coupled to the bridge and capable of controlling anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors wherein;

a controller, when operating as a primary node controller, anycasts data to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked;

the controller, when operating as a mirror node controller, receives the anycast data, tracks the received data by sequence number identification, detects missing data according to sequence number, and requests missing data from other nodes in the predetermined list of receiving nodes.

49. The mirroring device according to claim 48 wherein:

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, is capable of responding to loss of a primary volume by sending an anycast message to the predetermined list of mirror nodes that requests a status report for information relating to the lost primary volume;

the controller, when operating as a mirror node controller of the predetermined list of mirror nodes, is capable of responding to the status report request by replying with an identifier of the mirror node, designation of whether the data contained in the mirror node is consistent and usage, and identification of the last sequence number received;

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, is capable of responding to the receipt of at least one status report by initiating a failover response that determines the mirror nodes containing usable information; and

the controller, when operating as a primary node controller, is capable of responding to the receipt of at least one status report by initiating a failover response that determines the geographically closest of the mirror nodes containing usable information.

50. A method of mirroring data comprising:

controlling a plurality of anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors;

anycasting data from a primary site to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked; and

receiving the anycast data at a mirror node and sending an identical transmission to other mirror nodes in the predetermined list of nodes, the receipt of any duplicate data being disregarded.

51. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

receiving the anycast data at a mirror node;

tracking the received data by sequence number identification;

detecting missing data according to sequence number; and

requesting missing data from other nodes in the predetermined list of receiving nodes.

52. The method according to claim 51 further comprising:

responding to loss of a primary volume at the primary site by sending an anycast message to the predetermined list of mirror nodes that requests a status report for information relating to the lost primary volume.

53. The method according to claim 52 further comprising:

responding to the status report request at a mirror site by replying with an identifier of the mirror node, designating whether the data contained in the mirror node is consistent and usage, and identifying the last sequence number received.

54. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

mirroring separate data sets asynchronously and synchronously using 1;

1 fan-out per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication to transparently create volume mirrors internally or remotely.

55. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

mirroring aggregated volume data sets asynchronously and synchronously to a plurality N of arrays using 1;

N volumes per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication, the volumes being aggregated at the mirror site.

56. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

mirroring aggregated volume data sets asynchronously and synchronously to a plurality N of arrays using 1;

N volumes per data set, 1;

N per array via unicast communication;

determining when a remote write fails to complete; and

terminating mirroring to all remote mirror sites when one remote write fails.

57. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

sending from a primary site data to a plurality N of mirror sites in a disaster recovery configuration so that one host is duplicated N times.

58. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

sending data using a multiple-hop disaster recovery configuration;

sending from the primary site updates to a mirroring device at one destination site;

receiving at a mirror site updates and relaying the updates to a subsequent mirroring device at one destination site.

59. The method according to claim 50 further comprising:

synchronously or asynchronously sending from the primary site identical data to a plurality N of mirror sites in a disaster recovery configuration using unicast or multicast communication so that the same volume is mirrored to N different sites.

60. A mirroring device comprising:

means for controlling a plurality of anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors;

means for anycasting data from a primary site to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked; and

means for receiving the anycast data at a mirror node and sending an identical transmission to other mirror nodes in the predetermined list of nodes, the receipt of any duplicate data being disregarded.

61. An article of manufacture comprising:

a controller usable medium having a computable readable program code embodied therein for mirroring data, the computable readable program code further comprising;

a code capable of causing the controller to control a plurality of anycast fuzzy data recovery mirrors;

a code capable of causing the controller to anycast data from a primary site to a predetermined list of nodes capable of receiving the anycast mirrored data with acknowledgement of the receiving nodes being untracked;

a code capable of causing the controller to receive the anycast data at a mirror node and send an identical transmission to other mirror nodes in the predetermined list of nodes, the receipt of any duplicate data being disregarded.