Storage system

• US 20050278398A1
• Filed: 08/17/2004
• Published: 12/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Nakamura, Takaki, Tokuda, Seisuke
• Granted Patent: US 7,620,670 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99956 File allocation

Abstract

At least two devices having different characteristics are provided as one file system, and the file system stores a file in a device according to the file purpose. In file system operation, a device characteristic acquiring unit acquires characteristic information of the respective devices by using a device characteristic database, a device characteristic acquiring interface, and stores the information in the device characteristic holding. In file operation for preparing file management information in file storing process, a file purpose interpreting unit interprets the purpose and attribute of the file and registers a characteristic flag representing the characteristic of the file in the file management information. In file operation for actually writing a file, a storage device decision unit decides a file storage location device on the characteristic flag in the file management information and information of the device characteristic holding unit to perform a device free region securing process.

Claims

1. A storage system comprising a plurality of devices having different characteristics;

a device driver which operates the plurality of devices; and

one file system or a plurality of file systems constituted by at least two devices of the plurality of devices, wherein

the file system includes;

a device characteristic acquiring unit which acquires the characteristics of the respective devices in a file system operation such as formation, extension, and mounting of the file system; and

a device characteristic holding unit which stores the characteristics of the respective devices obtained by the device characteristic acquiring unit.

2. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

the file system includes:

a file purpose interpreting unit which interprets the purpose and attribute of a file to register the characteristic as a characteristic flag in the file management information in a file operation for preparing file management information of a file storing process; and

a storage device decision unit which decides and determines a device for storing the file on the basis of the characteristic flag of the file management information and the information of the device characteristic holding unit in a file operation for actually writing a file in the file storing process.

3. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein, when the device characteristic information is registered in a region of the device which can be referred to, the device driver has means which acquires the pieces of characteristic information of the devices and has a device characteristic acquiring interface which receives characteristic information acquiring requests of the respective devices.

4. The storage system according to claim 3, wherein the device characteristic acquiring unit requests the device driver to acquire the pieces of characteristic information of the respective devices by using the device characteristic acquiring interface to obtain the pieces of characteristic information of the devices.

5. The storage system according to claim 1, further comprising a device characteristic database in which the pieces of characteristic information of general-purpose devices are registered, wherein the device characteristic acquiring unit inquires at the device characteristic database by using information for identifying a device such as a vender or a model to acquire a device characteristic.

6. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein, when the devices are logical devices in a RAID apparatus recognized by an operating system and when control of RAID caches or the like can be changed in units of logical devices, the device characteristic acquiring unit has means which instructs the RAID apparatus to change the control of the RAID caches for the respective devices.

7. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the device characteristic acquiring unit has means which issues a plurality of access patterns to the device driver and evaluates the characteristics of the respective devices by measuring response times for the access patterns.

8. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein when the devices are logical devices in a RAID apparatus recognized by an operating system, the RAID apparatus has means which registers the characteristics of the logical devices in a region which can be referred by the device driver when the logical devices are formed by real devices in the RAID apparatus.

9. The storage system according to claim 2, wherein the file system has means which, in a file operation for preparing the file management information of the file storing process, causes a user to designate a flag representing the characteristic of the file as an argument of the file operation, and

when the flag representing the characteristic of the file is additionally written, the file purpose interpreting unit registers the flag representing the characteristic of the file as a characteristic flag in the file management information without interpreting the purpose and attribute of the file.

10. The storage system according to claim 2, wherein the file system has means which locks the file when the characteristic flag in the file management information is changed and migrates the file to a device according to the contents of change of the characteristic flag and has an interface which refers to and changes the characteristic flag in the file management information.

11. The storage system according to claim 1, comprising an interface which can refer to, change, and additionally write the contents of a table in the kernel which stores a value used in the file system.

12. A storage system comprising a plurality of devices having different characteristics;

a device driver which operates the plurality of devices;

logical device management means in an operating system which integrates the plurality of devices to manage the device as a logical device; and

one file system or a plurality of file system constituted by the logical device formed by the logical device management means, wherein

the logical device management means has a device characteristic acquiring unit which acquires the characteristics of the respective devices in a logical device operation such as formation of the logical device to store the characteristics in a management region of the logical device; and

the file system has means which reads the pieces of characteristic information of the devices from the management region of the logical device in a file system operation such as formation, extension, mounting, or the like of a file system; and

a device characteristic holding unit which stores the characteristics of the respective read devices.

13. The storage system according to claim 12, wherein the file system has:

a file purpose interpreting unit which interprets the purpose and attribute of the file to register the characteristic as a characteristic flag in the file management information in a file operation for preparing file management information of a file storing process; and

a storage device decision unit which decides and determines a device for storing the file on the basis of the characteristic flag of the file management information and the information of the device characteristic holding unit in a file operation for actually writing a file in the file storing process.

14. The storage system according to claim 12, wherein, when the device characteristic information is registered in a region of the device which can be referred to, the device driver has means which acquires the pieces of characteristic information of the devices and has a device characteristic acquiring interface which receives characteristic information acquiring requests of the respective devices.

15. The storage system according to claim 14, wherein the device characteristic acquiring unit requests the device driver to acquire the pieces of characteristic information of the respective devices by using the device characteristic acquiring interface to obtain the pieces of characteristic information of the devices.

16. The storage system according to claim 12, comprising a device characteristic database in which the pieces of characteristic information of general-purpose devices are registered, wherein the device characteristic acquiring unit inquires at the device characteristic database by using information for identifying a device such as a vender or a model to acquire a device characteristic.

17. The storage system according to claim 12, wherein, when the devices are logical devices in a RAID apparatus recognized by an operating system and when control of RAID caches or the like can be changed in units of logical devices, the device characteristic acquiring unit has means which instructs the RAID apparatus to change the control of the RAID caches for the respective devices.

18. The storage system according to claim 12, wherein the device characteristic acquiring unit has means which issues a plurality of access patterns to the device driver and evaluates the characteristics of the respective devices by measuring response times for the access patterns.

19. The storage system according to claim 12, wherein when the devices are logical devices in a RAID apparatus recognized by an operating system, the RAID apparatus has means which registers the characteristics of the logical devices in a region which can be referred by the device driver when the logical devices are formed by real devices in the RAID apparatus.

20. The storage system according to claim 13, wherein the file system has means which, in a file operation for preparing the file management information of the file storing process, causes a user to designate a flag representing the characteristic of the file as an argument of the file operation, and

when the flag representing the characteristic of the file is additionally written, the file purpose interpreting unit registers the flag representing the characteristic of the file as a characteristic flag in the file management information without interpreting the purpose and attribute of the file.