Logical volume management method and logical volume management program

• US 20080065815A1
• Filed: 10/24/2006
• Published: 03/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Masayuki, Taguchi, Yuichi, Nasu, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,984,230 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/103
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/061 Improving I/O performance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0616 in relation to life time, e.g. increasing Mean Time Between Failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/064 Management of blocks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0665 at area level, e.g. provisioning of virtual or logical volumes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0679 Non-volatile semiconductor memory device, e.g. flash memory, one time programmable memory [OTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0688 Non-volatile semiconductor memory arrays

Abstract

There is provided a logical volume management method for storage system. When a logical volume is created on a flash memory drive, a management computer allocates logical volume while flash memory chip border of flash memory drive is taken into account. Specifically, a table for managing a correlation between each parity group and the flash memory chip of the flash memory drive is obtained and the logical volume is allocated in such a manner that a flash memory chip is not shared by a plurality of logical volumes. When complete erasing of logical volume data is performed, the management computer specifies a flash memory chip on which complete data erasing is to be performed, and the storage system completely erases data exclusively on the chip of interest with a use of a function of completely erasing data at a time by chip unit of the flash memory chip (chip erasing).

Claims

1. A logical volume management method for a computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system having at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function and providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

the method comprising steps of;

allowing the host computer;

to allocate a logical volume requested in a logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the logical volume creation request, and if a storage capacity of the logical volume requested in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip; and

to send the storage system a logical volume erasing request if the host computer receives the logical volume erasing request, and

allowing the storage system;

to perform complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which the logical volume to be erased included in the logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function, if a logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is complete data erasing; and

to cancel a correlation between the logical volume to be erased included in the logical volume erasing request and the physical storage device-chip if the logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is not complete data erasing, by deleting an entry of the logical volume to be erased on a logical volume management table for managing the correlation therebetween.

2. A logical volume management method for a computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system having at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function and providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

the method comprising steps of;

allowing the host computer;

to allocate an erasing group requested in an erasing group formation request with a retention period for forming an erasing group that can be erased at a time on an expiration of the data retention period to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the erasing group formation request with a retention period, and if a storage capacity of the erasing group requested in the erasing group formation request with a retention period is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip; and

to allocate a logical volume requested in a logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the logical volume creation request with a predetermined data retention period, and if a creation capacity of the logical volume included in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a logical-volume-unallocated capacity of the physical storage device-chip having a retention period of data stored in the erasing group that matches the retention period included in the logical volume creation request; and

to send the storage system a logical volume erasing request if the host computer receives the logical volume erasing request, and

allowing the storage system;

to perform complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which the logical volume included in the logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function, if the data retention period of logical volume included in the logical volume erasing request is expired.

3. A logical volume management method for a computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system having at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function, and providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

the method comprising steps of;

allowing the host computer;

to allocate a logical volume requested in a logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the logical volume creation request, and if a storage capacity of the logical volume requested in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising a step of:

allowing the storage system;

to perform complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which the logical volume to be erased included in a logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function if the storage system receives the logical volume erasing request, and if a logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is complete data erasing.

5. The method according to claim 3, further comprising a step of:

allowing the storage system;

to cancel a correlation between the logical volume to be erased included in a logical volume erasing request and the physical storage device-chip if the storage system receives the logical volume erasing request, and if a logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is not complete data erasing, by deleting an entry of the logical volume to be erased on a logical volume management table for managing the correlation therebetween.

6. A logical volume management method for a computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system having at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function, and providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

the method comprising steps of;

allowing the host computer;

to allocate an erasing group requested in an erasing group formation request with a retention period for forming an erasing group that can be erased at a time on an expiration of the data retention period to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the erasing group formation request with a retention period, and if a storage capacity of the erasing group requested in the erasing group formation request with a retention period is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising a step of:

allowing the host computer;

to allocate a logical volume requested in a logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the logical volume creation request with a predetermined data retention period, and if a creation capacity of the logical volume included in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a logical-volume-unallocated capacity of the physical storage device-chip having a retention period of data stored in the erasing group that matches the retention period included in the logical volume creation request.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising a step of:

allowing the storage system;

to perform complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which a logical volume included in a logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function, if the storage system receives the logical volume erasing request, and if a data retention period of logical volume included in the logical volume erasing request is expired.

9. A logical volume management computer-readable media for a computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system having at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function and providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

the computer-readable media having instructions executable by the host computer or a computer of the storage system for performing steps of;

receiving a logical volume creation request; and

allocating a logical volume requested in the logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if a storage capacity of the logical volume requested in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip.

10. The computer-readable media according to claim 9 wherein the steps further comprise:

receiving a logical volume erasing request; and

performing complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which the logical volume to be erased included in the logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function, if a logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is complete data erasing.

11. The computer-readable media according to claim 9 wherein the steps further comprise:

receiving a logical volume erasing request; and

canceling a correlation between the logical volume to be erased included in the logical volume erasing request and the physical storage device-chip if the logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is not complete data erasing, by deleting an entry of the logical volume to be erased on a logical volume management table for managing the correlation therebetween.

12. A logical volume management computer-readable media for a computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system having at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function and providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

the computer-readable media having instructions executable by the host computer or a computer of the storage system for performing steps of;

receiving an erasing group formation request with a retention period for forming an erasing group that can be erased at a time on an expiration of the data retention period; and

allocating the erasing group requested in the erasing group formation request with a retention period to unallocated physical storage device-chip if a storage capacity of the erasing group requested in the erasing group formation request with a retention period is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip.

13. The computer-readable media according to claim 12 wherein the steps further comprise:

receiving a logical volume creation request with a predetermined data retention period; and

allocating a logical volume requested in the logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if a creation capacity of the logical volume included in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a logical-volume-unallocated capacity of the physical storage device-chip having a retention period of data stored in the erasing group that matches the retention period included in the logical volume creation request.

14. The computer-readable media according to claim 13 wherein the steps further comprise:

receiving a logical volume erasing request; and

performing complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which the logical volume included in the logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function, if the data retention period of logical volume included in the logical volume erasing request is expired.

15. A computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

wherein

the storage system has at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function, and

the host computer allocates a logical volume requested in a logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the logical volume creation request, and if a storage capacity of the logical volume requested in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip.

16. The computer system according to claim 15, wherein

the storage system performs complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which the logical volume to be erased included in a logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function if the storage system receives the logical volume erasing request, and if a logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is complete data erasing.

17. The computer system according to claim 15, wherein

the storage system cancels a correlation between the logical volume to be erased included in a logical volume erasing request and the physical storage device-chip if the storage system receives the logical volume erasing request, and if a logical volume erasing-mode selection included in the logical volume erasing request is not complete data erasing, by deleting an entry of the logical volume to be erased on a logical volume management table for managing the correlation therebetween.

18. A computer system comprising:

at least one host computer; and

at least one storage system providing at least one logical volume to the host computer,

the host computer and the storage system being connected with each other through a network,

wherein

the storage system has at least one physical storage device-chip as storage medium with a complete data erasing function, and

the host computer allocates an erasing group requested in an erasing group formation request with a retention period for forming an erasing group that can be erased at a time on an expiration of the data retention period to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the erasing group formation request with a retention period, and if a storage capacity of the erasing group requested in the erasing group formation request with a retention period is equal to or smaller than a total storage capacity of the unallocated physical storage device-chip.

19. The computer system according to claim 18, wherein

the host computer allocates a logical volume requested in a logical volume creation request to unallocated physical storage device-chip if the host computer receives the logical volume creation request with a predetermined data retention period, and if a creation capacity of the logical volume included in the logical volume creation request is equal to or smaller than a logical-volume-unallocated capacity of the physical storage device-chip having a retention period of data stored in the erasing group that matches the retention period included in the logical volume creation request.

20. The computer system according to claim 19, wherein,

the storage system performs complete data erasing on the physical storage device-chip to which a logical volume included in a logical volume erasing request is allocated, by using the complete data erasing function, if the storage system receives the logical volume erasing request, and if a data retention period of logical volume included in the logical volume erasing request is expired.