Maintaining active-only storage pools

• US 20070043788A1
• Filed: 09/12/2005
• Published: 02/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Martin, Howard, Cannon, David
• Granted Patent: US 7,657,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1873 Versioning file systems, temporal file systems, e.g. file system supporting different historic versions of files
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99954 Version management

Abstract

Provided are a method, system, and program for maintaining active-only storage pools. A first storage pool includes at least a first aggregate including a plurality of active and inactive files. A second aggregate is generated in a second storage pool. A determination is made of active versions of files in the first aggregate that satisfy at least one criterion. The determined active versions of files are copied from the first aggregate to the second aggregate in the second storage pool, wherein the second aggregate does not include inactive versions of files in the first storage pool.

Claims

1. An article of manufacture including code to perform operations with respect to a first storage pool and a second storage pool, wherein the operations comprise:

providing in the first storage pool at least a first aggregate including a plurality of active and inactive files;

generating a second aggregate in the second storage pool;

determining active versions of files in the first aggregate that satisfy at least one criterion; and

copying the determined active versions of files from the first aggregate to the second aggregate in the second storage pool, wherein the second aggregate does not include inactive versions of files in the first storage pool.

2. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein the criteria include at least one of a file age, a file size, and a client that generated the file, wherein the operations further comprise:

copying active versions of files that satisfy the criteria and are not included in one aggregate in the first storage pool to the second storage pool; and

copying active versions of files that satisfy the criteria from additional aggregates in the first storage pool to new aggregates in the second storage pool, wherein the indication to apply updates to the second storage pool occurs in response to copying all active versions of files within aggregates and not within aggregates in the first storage pool to the second storage pool.

3. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein copying the active versions of files from the first aggregate to the second aggregate comprises copying the active versions of files in a sequence in which they are stored in the first aggregate, and wherein following the copying the first aggregate is capable of including both active and inactive versions of files and wherein the second aggregate includes only active versions of files.

4. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

indicating a change to cause updates to files to be applied to the second storage pool before being applied to the first storage pool;

applying updates to files in the second storage pool in response to indicating the change; and

copying updates to files applied to the second storage pool to the first storage pool, wherein the first storage pool maintains inactive and active versions of files.

5. The article of manufacture of claim 4, wherein the operations further comprise:

removing inactive versions of files from the second storage pool that are within aggregates and not included in aggregates in response to copying updates to files applied to the second storage pool to the first storage pool.

6. The article of manufacture of claim 5, wherein removing inactive versions of files from aggregates in the second storage pool comprises performing for each source aggregate in the second storage pool:

generating a replacement aggregate in the second storage pool for the source aggregate;

copying active files from the source aggregate to the replacement aggregate; and

removing indication of the source aggregate in the second storage pool.

7. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein the first aggregate has a first identifier and the second aggregate has a second identifier, further comprising:

providing a data structure having information indicating the first aggregate as included in the first storage pool and having the first identifier; and

adding information to the data structure indicating the second aggregate as included in the second storage pool and having the second identifier in response to copying active versions of files from the first aggregate to the second aggregate.

8. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

providing a data structure having information on files included in the first aggregate including, for each file in the first aggregate, a file identifier of the file and a first aggregate identifier; and

adding information to the data structure on files in the second aggregate including, for each file in the first aggregate, a file identifier of the file, a second aggregate identifier, and indication whether the file is active or inactive, wherein inactive files in the first aggregate indicated in the information on files in the second aggregate are not included in the second aggregate.

9. The article of manufacture of claim 1, further comprising:

restoring active files from the second storage pool to a client in response to a data recovery event; and

restoring inactive files from the first storage pool to the client in response to the data recovery event.

10. A method, comprising:

providing a first storage pool including at least a first aggregate including a plurality of active and inactive files;

generating a second aggregate in a second storage pool;

determining active versions of files in the first aggregate that satisfy at least one criterion; and

copying the determined active versions of files from the first aggregate to the second aggregate in the second storage pool, wherein the second aggregate does not include inactive versions of files in the first storage pool.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the criteria include at least one of a file age, a file size, and a client that generated the file, wherein the operations further comprise:

copying active versions of files that satisfy the criteria and are not included in one aggregate in the first storage pool to the second storage pool; and

copying active versions of files that satisfy the criteria from additional aggregates in the first storage pool to new aggregates in the second storage pool, wherein the indication to apply updates to the second storage pool occurs in response to copying all active versions of files within aggregates and not within aggregates in the first storage pool to the second storage pool.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

indicating a change to cause updates to files to be applied to the second storage pool before being applied to the first storage pool;

applying updates to files in the second storage pool in response to indicating the change; and

copying updates to files applied to the second storage pool to the first storage pool, wherein the first storage pool maintains inactive and active versions of files.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

removing inactive versions of files from the second storage pool that are within aggregates and not included in aggregates in response to copying updates to files applied to the second storage pool to the first storage pool.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein removing inactive versions of files from aggregates in the second storage pool comprises performing for each source aggregate in the second storage pool:

generating a replacement aggregate in the second storage pool for the source aggregate;

copying active files from the source aggregate to the replacement aggregate; and

removing indication of the source aggregate in the second storage pool.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

restoring active files from the second storage pool to a client in response to a data recovery event; and

restoring inactive files from the first storage pool to the client in response to the data recovery event.

16. A system in communication with a first storage pool and a second storage pool, comprising:

a processor;

a computer readable medium in communication with the processor including code to cause operations, the operations comprising;

providing a first storage pool including at least a first aggregate including a plurality of active and inactive files;

generating a second aggregate in a second storage pool;

determining active versions of files in the first aggregate that satisfy at least one criterion; and

copying the determined active versions of files from the first aggregate to the second aggregate in the second storage pool, wherein the second aggregate does not include inactive versions of files in the first storage pool.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the criteria include at least one of a file age, a file size, and a client that generated the file, wherein the operations further comprise:

copying active versions of files that satisfy the criteria and are not included in one aggregate in the first storage pool to the second storage pool; and

copying active versions of files that satisfy the criteria from additional aggregates in the first storage pool to new aggregates in the second storage pool, wherein the indication to apply updates to the second storage pool occurs in response to copying all active versions of files within aggregates and not within aggregates in the first storage pool to the second storage pool.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise:

indicating a change to cause updates to files to be applied to the second storage pool before being applied to the first storage pool;

applying updates to files in the second storage pool in response to indicating the change; and

copying updates to files applied to the second storage pool to the first storage pool, wherein the first storage pool maintains inactive and active versions of files.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

removing inactive versions of files from the second storage pool that are within aggregates and not included in aggregates in response to copying updates to files applied to the second storage pool to the first storage pool.

20. The system of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise:

restoring active files from the second storage pool to a client in response to a data recovery event; and

restoring inactive files from the first storage pool to the client in response to the data recovery event.