Extended failure analysis in RAID environments

• US 20070028041A1
• Filed: 07/26/2005
• Published: 02/01/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: LSI Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: LSI Logic Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hallyal, Basavaraj, Mishra, Ragendra, Thangaraj, Senthil
• Application Number:
  US11/190,782
• Publication Number:
  US 20070028041A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/114
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1092 Rebuilding, e.g. when physically replacing a failing disk
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2221 to test input/output devices or peripheral units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2211/1009 Cache, i.e. caches used in RAID system with parity

Abstract

Systems, apparatuses, and methods are described for performing diagnostic testing in a RAID environment in response to a failed memory access request to determine if a hard drive within the RAID failed.

Claims

1. A method for determining whether a hard drive in a Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) has failed, comprising:

issuing a memory access request to the hard drive; and

responsive to the hard drive failing to respond to the command within a predetermined time, issuing at least one diagnostic test to determine why the hard drive failed to respond.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining from the at least one diagnostic test that the hard drive is operating correctly; and

performing a rebuild of the hard drive.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a RAID controller changes the status of the hard drive to inactive for failing to respond to the memory access request within the predetermined time.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

maintaining a log of memory access requests that write data to the RAID while the status of the hard drive is inactive; and

rebuilding the hard drive using the memory access requests stored in the log responsive to the RAID controller determining from the at least one diagnostic test that the hard drive is operating correctly.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the memory access request is a request to read data from the hard drive.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the memory access request is a request to write data to the hard drive.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one diagnostic test involves a RAID controller requesting a SCSI enclosure services (SES) device to issue an SES command.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one diagnostic test involves a RAID requesting the hard drive to perform a drive self-test (DST).

9. A computer program product embodied on a computer readable medium for determining whether a hard drive in a Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) has failed, the computer program product comprising computer instructions for:

issuing a memory access request to the hard drive; and

responsive to the hard drive failing to respond to the command within a predetermined time, issuing at least one diagnostic test to determine why the hard drive failed to respond.

10. The computer program product of claim 9 further comprising computer instructions for:

determining from the at least one diagnostic test that the hard drive is operating correctly; and

performing a rebuild of the hard drive.

11. The computer program product of claim 9 further comprising computer instructions for changing the status of the hard drive to inactive responsive to a failure of the hard drive to respond to the memory access request within the predetermined time.

12. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising computer instructions for:

maintaining a log of memory access requests that write data to the RAID while the status of the hard drive is inactive; and

rebuilding the hard drive using the memory access requests stored in the log responsive to the RAID controller determining from the at least one diagnostic test that the hard drive is operating correctly.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the memory access request is a request to read data from the hard drive.

14. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the memory access request is a request to write data to the hard drive.

15. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the at least one diagnostic test involves a RAID controller requesting a SCSI enclosure services (SES) device to issue an SES command.

16. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the at least one diagnostic test involves a RAID requesting the hard drive to perform a drive self-test (DST).