Storage control method and system

• US 20060218369A1
• Filed: 06/24/2005
• Published: 09/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Fujino, Shuji
• Granted Patent: US 7,457,925 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0644 Management of space entities, e.g. partitions, extents, pools
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0664 at device level, e.g. emulation of a storage device or system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

To enable favorable control of the storage of electronic information, a management device connected communicably to one or more storage control devices that are connected communicably to at least one of a plurality of storage devices refers to resource information relating to the usage condition of at least one hardware resource from among the one or more storage control devices, specifies an unused part of the hardware resource from the resource information, and sets a storage virtual computer, which serves as a virtual computer to which all or a part of the specified unused part is allocated, in at least one of the one or more storage control devices.

Claims

1. A storage control method comprising the steps of:

referring to resource information relating to the usage condition of at least one hardware resource from among one or more storage control devices connected communicably to at least one of a plurality of storage devices;

specifying an unused part of said hardware resource from said resource information; and

setting a storage virtual computer, which serves as a virtual computer to which all or a part of said specified unused part is allocated, in at least one of said one or more storage control devices.

2. The storage control method according to claim 1, comprising the steps of:

specifying combinations of each of said plurality of storage devices and each of a plurality of host devices for accessing at least one of said plurality of storage devices;

selecting a combination from one or more combinations comprising a certain host device, and allocating said selected combination to said certain host device; and

having a storage virtual computer capable of accessing the storage device included in said allocated combination receive an access request from said certain host device, and access said storage device included in said allocated combination in accordance with said received access request.

3. The storage control method according to claim 1, comprising the steps of:

referring to host information, which is information expressing a performance level of each host device of said plurality of host devices, and storage device information, which is information expressing a performance level of each storage device of said plurality of storage devices;

specifying a plurality of combinations of said host device and said storage device on the basis of said performance level of each host device and said performance level of each storage device, specified from said host information and said storage device information;

attaching an order of precedence to each of said plurality of combinations on the basis of said performance level of each host device and said performance level of each storage device;

selecting a combination from one or more combinations comprising a certain host device on the basis of said order of precedence of each of said one or more combinations, and allocating said selected combination to said certain host device; and

having a storage virtual computer capable of accessing the storage device included in said allocated combination receive an access request from said certain host device, and access said storage device included in said allocated combination in accordance with said received access request.

4. The storage control method according to claim 3, comprising the steps of:

gathering host information elements, comprising an ID and said performance level of each host device, from each host device, and generating said host information on the basis of said gathered host information elements; and

gathering storage device information elements, comprising an ID and said performance level of each storage device, from each storage control device, and generating said storage device information on the basis of said gathered storage device information elements.

5. The storage control method according to claim 3, comprising the steps of:

referring to communication path information expressing the length of a communication path between each of said plurality of host devices and each of said plurality of storage devices;

specifying, from said communication path information, a communication path length which corresponds to each of said plurality of combinations; and

attaching an order of precedence to each of said plurality of combinations on the basis of said performance level of each host device, said performance level of each storage device, and said specified communication path length of each combination.

6. The storage control method according to claim 5, comprising the steps of:

attaching a priority value to each of said plurality of combinations on the basis of said order of precedence of each of said plurality of combinations and a weighting value corresponding to said performance level; and

selecting a combination from said one or more combinations comprising said certain host device on the basis of said priority value of each of said one or more combinations, and allocating said selected combination to said certain host device.

7. The storage control method according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of storage control devices comprises a first storage control device and a second storage control device,

said plurality of storage devices comprises a first storage connected communicably to said first storage control device, and a second storage connected communicably to said second storage control device, and

when a first storage virtual computer set in said first storage control device is capable of accessing a first logical volume set in said first storage, said first storage virtual computer is moved or copied into said second storage control device, and said first logical volume is moved or copied into said second storage.

8. The storage control method according to claim 7, comprising a plurality of host devices for accessing at least one of said plurality of storage devices,

wherein said plurality of host devices comprises a first host device connected communicably to said first storage control device, and a second host device connected communicably to said second storage control device,

said first host device comprises an information processing portion having at least one of a virtual computer allocated all or a part of the hardware resources of said first host device, and a computer program executed by said virtual computer, and

when said information processing portion is capable of accessing said first logical volume prior to movement or copying via said first storage virtual computer prior to movement or copying, said information processing portion provided in said first host device is moved or copied into said second host device.

9. The storage control method according to claim 7, wherein, when a predetermined event occurs, said first storage virtual computer is moved or copied into said second storage control device and said first logical volume is moved or copied into said second storage, in accordance with predetermined policy information.

10. The storage control method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of a plurality of host devices for accessing at least one of said plurality of storage devices comprises an information processing portion having at least one of a virtual computer allocated all or a part of the hardware resources of said host device, and a computer program executed by said virtual computer,

said storage devices are constituted by storages, and

when said information processing portion is capable of accessing a logical volume set in a certain storage via a certain storage virtual computer of a certain storage control device, said logical volume and said certain storage virtual computer are neither moved nor copied, but said information processing portion is moved or copied from the host device thereof to another host device.

11. A device capable of communicating with one or more storage control devices connected communicably to at least one of a plurality of storage devices, said device comprising:

a storage area storing at least one computer program; and

at least one computer for reading at least one computer program from said storage area and executing said computer program,

wherein said at least one computer refers to resource information relating to the usage condition of at least one hardware resource from among said one or more storage control devices;

specifies an unused part of said hardware resource from said resource information; and

sets a storage virtual computer, which serves as a virtual computer to which all or a part of said specified unused part is allocated, in at least one of said one or more storage control devices.

12. A storage control system comprising:

one or more storage control devices connected communicably to at least one of a plurality of storage devices; and

a management device connected communicably to said one or more storage control devices, said management device comprising;

a storage area storing at least one computer program; and

at least one computer for reading at least one computer program from said storage area and executing said computer program,

wherein said at least one computer refers to resource information relating to the usage condition of at least one hardware resource from among said one or more storage control devices;

specifies an unused part of said hardware resource from said resource information; and

sets a storage virtual computer, which serves as a virtual computer to which all or a part of said specified unused part is allocated, in at least one of said one or more storage control devices.

13. A computer-readable computer program for causing a computer to execute the steps of:

referring to resource information relating to the usage condition of at least one hardware resource from among one or more storage control devices connected communicably to at least one of a plurality of storage devices;

specifying an unused part of said hardware resource from said resource information; and

setting a storage virtual computer, which serves as a virtual computer to which all or a part of said specified unused part is allocated, in at least one of said one or more storage control devices.