Software agent-based architecture for data relocation

• US 20070083725A1
• Filed: 10/06/2005
• Published: 04/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Kasiolas, Anastasios, Jones, Ronald
• Granted Patent: US 7,363,449 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/165
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• 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

Data is relocated among data storage nodes in a data center by using distributed agents. An agent at a first data storage node manages the relocation of associated data to a second data storage node, as well as the relocation of a mirror copy of the data at a third data storage node to a fourth data storage node, by receiving status information, such as via a publish-subscribe technique. The first agent may provide an identifier with a relocation request to the third data storage node which is relayed to the fourth data storage node, and used in status messages provided by the third and fourth data storage nodes. The received status information is then associated with the relocation request. Agents for each pair of sending and receiving data storage nodes can monitor their availability for servicing the relocation to negotiate an acceptable transmission rate.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for relocating data, comprising:

using a first agent at a first data storage node, initiating relocation of a first copy of data stored on the first data storage node to a second data storage node, and communicating, to an agent of a third data storage node on which a second copy of the data is stored, a request to initiate relocation of the second copy of the data to a fourth data storage node; and

receiving, at the first agent, status information provided by the agent of the third data storage node that indicates a status of the relocation of the second copy of the data to the fourth data storage node.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the first agent, status information provided by an agent of the fourth data storage node that indicates a status of the relocation of the second copy of the data to the fourth data storage node.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the request communicated to the agent of the third data storage node includes an identifier;

the agent of the third data storage node includes the identifier in the status information; and

the first agent uses the identifier in the status information to associate the status information with the request.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the request identifies a protocol to be used in communicating the status information to the first data storage node.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the request identifies the first data storage node as a machine to which the status information should be directed.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the request identifies a port of the first data storage node as a port of a machine to which the status information should be directed.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the first agent receives the status information via a publish-subscribe technique in which the agent of the third data storage node is a publisher and the first agent is a subscriber.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the first and third data storage nodes are co-located in a first cluster; and

the second and fourth data storage nodes are co-located in a second cluster.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the agent of the first data storage node communicates a network address of the fourth data storage node to the agent of the third data storage node for the initiating of the relocation of the second copy of data to the fourth data storage node.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the relocation of the first copy of the data to the second data storage node is performed in parallel, at least in part, with the relocation of the second copy of data to the fourth data storage node.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the status information indicates whether the relocation of the second copy of the data to the fourth data storage node has been successfully completed.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the agent at the first data storage node initiates the relocation of the first copy of the data in response to at least one of a manual request and an automatically generated request.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

communicating, to an agent of a fifth data storage node on which a third copy of the data is stored, a request to initiate relocation of the third copy of the data to a sixth data storage node; and

receiving, at the first agent, status information provided by the agent of the fifth data storage node that indicates a status of the relocation of the third copy of the data to the sixth data storage node.

14. A computer-implemented method for relocating data, comprising:

providing respective agents at respective data storage nodes, including first and second storage nodes, the respective agent of the first data storage node accessing topology information to obtain a network address of the second data storage node and establish a data transmission path between the first and second data storage nodes using the network address; and

relocating data at the first data storage node to the second data storage node via the established transmission path, the respective agent of the first data storage node managing the relocating.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein:

the respective agents of the first and second data storage nodes negotiate a data transfer rate of the relocating.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein:

the data comprises a plurality of data files associated with a user account that are relocated from the first data storage node to the second data storage node as a unit via a single connection there between.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein:

the first and second data storage nodes are in different clusters of a data center.

18. Computer readable media having computer readable code embodied thereon for programming at least one processor to perform a method for relocating data, the method comprising:

providing respective agents at respective data storage nodes, including a first data storage node, a second data storage node for receiving relocated data from the first data storage node, a third data storage node that stores mirror data of the first data storage node, and a fourth data storage node for receiving relocated data from the third data storage node, the respective agent of the first data storage node initiating transfer of the data thereat to the second data storage node, and communicating to a respective agent of the third data storage node, a request to initiate relocation of the mirror data to the fourth data storage node; and

monitoring, at the respective agent of the first data storage node, the relocating of the data from the first data storage node to the second data storage node, and the relocating of the mirror data from the third data storage node to the fourth data storage node.

19. The computer readable media of claim 18, wherein:

the monitoring comprises receiving, at the respective agent of the first data storage node, status information provided by the respective agents of the second, third and fourth data storage nodes.

20. The computer readable media of claim 19, wherein the method performed further comprises:

communicating an identifier to the second, third and fourth data storage nodes;

wherein the status information provided by the second, third and fourth data storage nodes includes the identifier; and

the first agent uses the identifier in the received status information to identify the received status information.