System and method for conserving resources in an optical storage area network
First Claim
1. A storage area network (SAN), comprising:
- one or more local nodes coupled to an optical network and configured to passively drop and pass-through optical signals received from the optical network;
one or more SAN servers, each SAN server coupled to a local node and operable to receive data from one or more clients, store the data at the SAN server, communicate the data to a data storage node via the associated local node for storage at the data storage node, and request that the data be recovered from the data storage node upon failure of the SAN server;
the data storage node coupled to the optical network and,operable to receive data for storage from the SAN servers via the local nodes and to send data requested by the SAN servers;
each local node comprising a transmitter configured to send data from the associated SAN server to the data storage node at an assigned transmitting wavelength, each local node having a different assigned transmitting wavelength, the transmitter further configured to send at the assigned transmitting wavelength a request for data stored at the data storage node upon a failure of the SAN server associated with the local node;
each local node further comprising a receiver configured to receive, at a receiving wavelength different than the transmitting wavelengths, acknowledgement messages from the data storage node indicating receipt of data sent by the local node, the same receiving wavelength being used by each local node, the receiver further configured to receive data from the data storage node at the receiving wavelength sent in response to a request for the data from the local node;
the data storage node comprising a plurality of receivers, each receiver configured to receive data and requests for data from the transmitter of one of the local nodes at the associated transmitting wavelength; and
the data storage node further comprising a transmitter configured to send acknowledgement messages and requested data to each local node at the receiving wavelength.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for providing a storage area network includes receiving, at a data storage node, data from a number of storage area network (SAN) servers via associated local nodes coupled to a optical network. The data is received at a plurality of transmitting wavelengths, where each local node is assigned a different transmitting wavelength. The method also includes storing the received data at the data storage node and sending acknowledgement messages to SAN servers to indicate receipt of the data. The acknowledgement messages are sent via the local nodes at a single receiving wavelength and each local node is configured to receive this receiving wavelength. The method may also include receiving, at the data storage node, a request for data stored at the data storage node from any of SAN servers via the associated local node at the assigned transmitting wavelength of the associated local node. Furthermore, the method may include sending the requested data from the data storage node to the requesting SAN sever via the associated local node at the receiving wavelength.
73 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A storage area network (SAN), comprising:
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one or more local nodes coupled to an optical network and configured to passively drop and pass-through optical signals received from the optical network;
one or more SAN servers, each SAN server coupled to a local node and operable to receive data from one or more clients, store the data at the SAN server, communicate the data to a data storage node via the associated local node for storage at the data storage node, and request that the data be recovered from the data storage node upon failure of the SAN server;
the data storage node coupled to the optical network and,operable to receive data for storage from the SAN servers via the local nodes and to send data requested by the SAN servers;
each local node comprising a transmitter configured to send data from the associated SAN server to the data storage node at an assigned transmitting wavelength, each local node having a different assigned transmitting wavelength, the transmitter further configured to send at the assigned transmitting wavelength a request for data stored at the data storage node upon a failure of the SAN server associated with the local node;
each local node further comprising a receiver configured to receive, at a receiving wavelength different than the transmitting wavelengths, acknowledgement messages from the data storage node indicating receipt of data sent by the local node, the same receiving wavelength being used by each local node, the receiver further configured to receive data from the data storage node at the receiving wavelength sent in response to a request for the data from the local node;
the data storage node comprising a plurality of receivers, each receiver configured to receive data and requests for data from the transmitter of one of the local nodes at the associated transmitting wavelength; and
the data storage node further comprising a transmitter configured to send acknowledgement messages and requested data to each local node at the receiving wavelength. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A data storage node coupled to an optical network, comprising:
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a plurality of receivers configured to receive data from a plurality of storage area network (SAN) servers via a plurality of associated local nodes coupled to the optical network, the data received at a plurality of transmitting wavelengths, wherein each local node is assigned a different transmitting wavelength;
a storage bank operable to receive the data from the receivers and to store the data, the storage bank further operable to generate acknowledgement messages to the SAN servers indicating receipt of the data; and
a transmitter configured to send the acknowledgement messages to all of the SAN servers via the associated local nodes at a single receiving wavelength, wherein each local node is configured to receive the receiving wavelength. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for providing a storage area network, comprising:
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at a data storage node coupled to an optical network, receiving data from a plurality of storage area network (SAN) servers via a plurality of associated local nodes coupled to the optical network, the data received at a plurality of transmitting wavelengths, wherein each local node is assigned a different transmitting wavelength;
storing the received data at the data storage node; and
sending, from the data storage node, acknowledgement messages to SAN servers via the associated local nodes to indicate receipt of the data, the acknowledgement messages sent to all of the local nodes at a single receiving wavelength, wherein each local node is configured to receive the receiving wavelength. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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Specification