File management device, file management method, file management program and recording medium

• US 20060074922A1
• Filed: 11/25/2003
• Published: 04/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Nishimura, Kozo
• Application Number:
  US10/531,337
• Publication Number:
  US 20060074922A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0622 in relation to access
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0637 Permissions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0643 Management of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0683 Plurality of storage devices

Abstract

A file management device that manages a file that is divided into portions and stored across a plurality of storage devices including a removable storage device that stores information in a removable recording medium thereof, the file management device comprising: an access request receiving unit operable to receive a request for accessing the file; a location identifying unit operable to identify, with reference to the information stored in the removal recording medium, locations of the file; and a file access unit operable to access the locations in response to the request.

Claims

1. A file management device that manages a file that is divided into portions and stored across a plurality of storage devices including a removable storage device that stores information in a removable recording medium thereof, the file management device comprising:

an access request receiving unit operable to receive a request for accessing the file;

a location identifying unit operable to identify, with reference to the information stored in the removal recording medium, locations of the file; and

a file access unit operable to access the locations in response to the request.

2. The file management device of claim 1, wherein

the file is constituted of data blocks,

the file management device further comprises an identifier receiving unit operable to receive an identifier of the file and identifiers of the data blocks,

the identifier of the file that is stored across the storage devices except for the removal storage device, identifiers of the storage devices, and locations of the data blocks within the storage devices are recorded on the removable recording medium in association with each other, and

the file access unit accesses the locations of the file by specifying the locations of the data blocks and the identifiers of the storage devices with use of the identifiers of the data blocks.

3. The file management device of claim 2, wherein

the removal recording medium has recorded thereon address information used for accessing the storage devices via a network, and

the file access unit accesses the locations of the file with use of the address information.

4. A file management method used for managing a file that is divided into portions and stored across a plurality of storage devices including a removable storage device that stores information in a removable recording medium thereof, the file management method comprising steps of:

receiving a request for accessing the file;

identifying, with reference to the information stored in the removable recording medium, locations of the file; and

accessing the locations in response to the request.

5. A file management program used for managing a file that is divided into portions and stored across a plurality of storage devices, which include a removable storage device that stores information in a removable recording medium thereof, the file management program enabling a computer to perform steps of:

receiving a request for accessing the file;

identifying, with reference to the information stored in the recording medium, locations of the file; and

accessing the locations in response to the request.

6. A file management device that controls access to a file stored in a storage device that has two or more storage units, the file management device comprising:

an access request receiving unit operable to receive a request for accessing the file;

a management information acquiring unit operable to access the storage units and acquire management information relating to the file from one of the storage units; and

an access unit operable to access the file according to the management information.

7. The file management device of claim 6, wherein

the management information includes:

identification information used for identifying, from the storage units, file storage units across which the file is stored; and

location information that indicates locations of the file.

8. The file management device of claim 7, wherein

the location information is indirect information, with which the file access unit can not access the file directly,

the file management device further comprises a location information acquiring unit operable to access the file storage units with reference to the indirect information, and acquire, from one of the storage units, direct location information, with which the file access unit can access the file directly, and

the access unit accesses the file according to the direct location information.

9. The file management device of claim 7, wherein

the file storage units identified by the identification information are different from the one of the storage units which stores the management information.

10. A recording medium having recorded thereon management information, the management information comprising:

identification information used for identifying a recording medium that stores a file; and

location information that indicates a location of the file.