Storage apparatus

• US 20070233992A1
• Filed: 05/19/2006
• Published: 10/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Sato, Eiichi
• Application Number:
  US11/436,540
• Publication Number:
  US 20070233992A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0608 Saving storage space on storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0662 Virtualisation aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

Provided is a storage apparatus capable of realizing the effective utilization of a storage resource having an offline volume. This storage apparatus has a memory apparatus and a controller, and which controls the input and output of data to and from the memory apparatus according to a request from a host system connected via a communication path, and includes: a virtual volume to be accessed by the host system; and a real volume having a storage extent of the memory apparatus; wherein the host system is configured to access the storage extent of the real volume via the virtual volume by the real volume being allocated to the virtual volume; and wherein the capacity of the storage extent of the real volume to be allocated to the virtual volume is changeable.

Claims

1. A storage apparatus having a memory apparatus and a controller, and which controls the input and output of data to and from said memory apparatus according to a request from a host system connected via a communication path, including:

a virtual volume to be accessed by said host system; and

a real volume having a storage extent of said memory apparatus;

wherein said host system is configured to access the storage extent of said real volume via said virtual volume by said real volume being allocated to said virtual volume; and

wherein the capacity of the storage extent of said real volume to be allocated to said virtual volume is changeable.

2. The storage apparatus according to claim 1, wherein there are a plurality of virtual volumes, and said controller is configured to execute the processing of allocating said real volume to a first virtual volume and updating the storage extent of said real volume according to a write request from said host system, processing of releasing the allocation of the updated real volume to said first virtual volume, and processing of changing the storage capacity of said real volume upon allocating said real volume to a second virtual volume.

3. The storage apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of storage extents are accumulated in a pool, and said controller changes the storage capacity of said real volume by changing the quantity of said storage extent to be allocated to said real volume.

4. The storage apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a first host system accesses said first virtual volume and a second host system accesses said second virtual volume.

5. The storage apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said first host system updates said real volume allocated to said first virtual volume and said second host system refers to said real volume allocated to said second virtual volume.

6. The storage apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a maximum storage capacity recognizable by said first host system is configured as said real volume.

7. The storage apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the storage extent used by said first host system is configured in said real volume, and said real volume is allocated to said second virtual volume.

8. The storage apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage capacity of said real volume to be allocated to said virtual volume is determined based on the type of business to be executed by a server as said host system.

9. The storage apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said second host system is a backup server.

10. The storage controller according to claim 5, wherein said controller determines the storage capacity of said real volume based on a control table configuring the modes relating to the storage capacity of said real volume to be allocated to said virtual volume.

11. The storage apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a first mode of configuring to said real volume the maximum storage capacity recognizable by said host system to access said first virtual volume is configured in said first virtual volume, and a second mode of mapping to said real volume a storage extent among the storage extents of said real volume to which data has been written from said host system is configured in said second virtual volume.

12. The storage apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said second mode is configured in said virtual volume to be allocated to a backup server as said host system.

13. The storage apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said controller returns to said pool the storage extent not being used by said host system among the storage extents to be allocated to said first virtual volume, and allocates the used storage extents to said second virtual volume.

14. A storage control method of a storage apparatus having a memory apparatus, a controller for controlling the input and output of data to and from said memory apparatus according to a request from a host system connected via a communication path, a virtual volume to be accessed by said host system, and a real volume having a storage extent of said memory apparatus,

wherein said controller executes the steps of:

enabling said host system to access the storage extent of said real volume via said virtual volume by allocating said real volume to said virtual volume; and

changing the capacity of the storage extent of said real volume upon allocating said real volume to said virtual volume.