Storage system and data replication method

• US 20080005288A1
• Filed: 08/28/2006
• Published: 01/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kodama, Shoji, Ogawa, Junji
• Granted Patent: US 8,285,824 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2069 Management of state, configuration or failover

Abstract

A first storage apparatus includes an identification unit that identifies one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information from among one or more requests sent from the host system a first changing unit that changes a data storage area logical configuration information for the first storage apparatus based on each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information identified by the identification unit and a transmission unit that sends each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information to the second storage apparatus; and a second storage apparatus includes a second change unit that changes data storage area logical configuration information for the second storage apparatus to be the same as that for the first storage apparatus based on each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information sent from the transmission unit.

Claims

1. A storage system comprising:

a first storage apparatus connected to a host system, that stores data transmitted from the host system; and

a second storage apparatus connected to the first storage apparatus, that stores backup data for the first storage apparatus,

wherein the first storage apparatus includes;

an identification unit that identifies one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information from among one or more requests sent from the host system,

a first changing unit that changes data storage area logical configuration information for the first storage apparatus based on each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information identified by the identification unit, and

a transmission unit that sends each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information to the second storage apparatus;

and the second storage apparatus includes;

a second change unit that changes data storage area logical configuration information for the second storage apparatus to be the same as that for the first storage apparatus, based on each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information sent from the transmission unit.

2. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the data storage area logical configuration information includes logical volume configuration information.

3. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission unit transmits one or more data update requests from among the one or more requests sent from the host system and the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information, in the order of transmission of those requests from the host system.

4. The storage system according to claim 3, further comprising a management unit that manages the one or more data update requests and the one or more requests for changing data storage area configuration information in the same queue,

wherein the transmission unit sends the one or more data update requests and the one or more requests for changing data storage area configuration information that are managed by the management unit to the second storage apparatus.

5. The storage system according to claim 2, wherein the first change unit and the second change unit, triggered by creation of a new logical volume in each of the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus, change the logical volume configuration information for each of the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus so that the logical volumes form a pair.

6. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein:

the transmission unit, when a new relationship is formed between the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus, sets the data storage area logical configuration information for the first storage apparatus as one file, and sends the file to the second storage apparatus; and

based on the file sent from the transmission unit, the second change unit replaces the data storage area logical configuration information for the second storage apparatus with that for first storage apparatus to change the data storage area logical configuration information for the second storage apparatus to be the same as that for the first storage apparatus.

7. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein:

the transmission unit sends configuration information for a RAID group in the first storage system to the second storage apparatus, the configuration information including the number of disk drives and RAID level; and

based on the configuration information for the RAID group sent from the transmission unit, the second change unit changes configuration information for a RAID group in the second storage apparatus to be the same as that for the first storage apparatus.

8. A data replication method for a storage system having a first storage apparatus connected to a host system, that stores data sent from the host system, and a second storage apparatus connected to the first storage apparatus, that stores backup data for the first storage apparatus, the method comprising:

a first step of identifying one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information from among one or more requests sent from the host system;

a second step of, based on each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information identified in the first step, changing data storage area logical configuration information for the first storage apparatus;

a third step of sending each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information to the second storage apparatus; and

a fourth step of changing data storage area logical configuration information for the second storage area to be the same as that for the first storage apparatus, based on each of the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information sent in the third step.

9. The data replication method according to claim 8, wherein the data storage area logical storage information includes logical volume configuration information.

10. The data replication method according to claim 8, wherein the third step includes sending one or more data update requests from among the one or more requests sent from the host system and the one or more requests for changing data storage area logical configuration information to the second storage apparatus, in the order of transmission of those requests from the host system.

11. The data replication method according to claim 10, wherein the third step includes sending the one or more data update requests and the one or more requests for changing data storage area configuration information that are managed in the same queue to the second storage apparatus.

12. The data replication method according to claim 9, wherein each of the second step and the fourth step includes changing, triggered by creation of a new logical volume in each of the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus, the logical volume configuration information for each of the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus so that the logical volumes form a pair.

13. The data replication method according to claim 8, wherein:

the third step includes, when forming a new relationship between the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus, setting the data storage area configuration information for the first storage apparatus as one file and sending the file to the second storage apparatus; and

the fourth step includes replacing, based on the file sent in the third step, the storage area logical configuration information for the second storage apparatus with that for the first storage apparatus, to change the storage area logical configuration information for the second storage apparatus to be the same as that for the first storage apparatus.

14. The data replication method according to claim 8, wherein:

the third step includes sending configuration information for a RAID group in the first storage apparatus, the configuration information including the number of disk drives and RAID level; and

the fourth step includes changing, based on the configuration information sent in the third step, the configuration information for a RAID group in the second storage apparatus to be the same as that for the RAID group in the first storage apparatus.