Fail-Over In A Multi-Computer System
First Claim
1. A computer-based method, comprising:
- storing a copy of at least a portion of information stored on a storage medium of a first computer onto a storage medium of a second computer, wherein the first computer is coupled to at least one human interface device through a switch, and wherein the switch is configured to route signals between the at least one human interface device and the first computer;
monitoring the first computer for a fail-over condition;
detecting the fail-over condition for the first computer; and
in response to said detection, configuring the switch to switch the signal routing from the first computer to the second computer, thereby routing signals between the at least one human interface device and the second computer.
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Accused Products
Abstract
System and method for managing data fail-over for a computing system comprising a plurality of computers, e.g., computer blades, coupled through a network. A fail-over condition may indicate a component failure, an imminent failure, and/or a need to modify or replace some aspect of a computer. Computers in the system may back up their information to other computers in the system. If a fail-over condition is detected on a first computer, a replacement computer may be loaded with the information from the first computer, optionally from a backup copy stored on another computer (or distributed across multiple computers), and the first computer'"'"'s peripheral devices (human interface) switched over to the replacement computer. The method may be used to replace a single computer, swap two computers, and/or perform a cascade move among multiple computers, and may be performed automatically in response to the fail-over condition, or initiated by a system administrator.
141 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A computer-based method, comprising:
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storing a copy of at least a portion of information stored on a storage medium of a first computer onto a storage medium of a second computer, wherein the first computer is coupled to at least one human interface device through a switch, and wherein the switch is configured to route signals between the at least one human interface device and the first computer;
monitoring the first computer for a fail-over condition;
detecting the fail-over condition for the first computer; and
in response to said detection, configuring the switch to switch the signal routing from the first computer to the second computer, thereby routing signals between the at least one human interface device and the second computer. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A data fail-over system for a plurality of computer systems, the system comprising:
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a plurality of computers, wherein each computer comprises;
a processor; and
a storage medium coupled to the processor;
at least one human interface device; and
a switch coupled to at least two of the plurality of computers, and further coupled to the at least one human interface device, wherein the switch is configured to route signals between the at least one human interface device and a first computer of the plurality of computers;
wherein the storage medium of the first computer stores information;
wherein the storage medium of at least one computer of the plurality of computers stores program instructions which are executable by the processor of said at least one computer to;
store a copy of at least a portion of the information onto the storage medium of a second computer of the plurality of computers; and
wherein the program instructions are further executable to;
monitor the first computer for a fail-over condition;
detect the fail-over condition for the first computer; and
in response to said detection, configure the switch to switch said signal routing from the first computer to the second computer, thereby routing signals between the at least one human interface device and the second computer.
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24. A computer-based system, comprising:
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means for storing a copy of at least a portion of information stored on a storage medium of a first computer onto a storage medium of a second computer, wherein the first computer is coupled to at least one human interface device through a switch, and wherein the switch routes signals between the at least one human interface device and the first computer;
means for monitoring the first computer for a fail-over condition;
means for detecting the fail-over condition for the first computer; and
means for configuring the switch to switch the signal routing from the first computer to the second computer in response to said detection, thereby routing signals between the at least one human interface device and the second computer.
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25. A computer-accessible memory medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are computer executable to perform:
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storing a copy of at least a portion of information stored on a storage medium of a first computer onto a storage medium of a second computer, wherein the first computer is coupled to at least one human interface device through a switch, and wherein the switch routes signals between the at least one human interface device and the first computer;
monitoring the first computer for a fail-over condition;
detecting the fail-over condition for the first computer; and
in response to said detection, configuring the switch to switch the signal routing from the first computer to the second computer, thereby routing signals between the at least one human interface device and the second computer.
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Specification