STORAGE SYSTEM COMPRISING VOLATILE CACHE MEMORY AND NONVOLATILE MEMORY

• US 20080104344A1
• Filed: 12/13/2006
• Published: 05/01/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Shimozono, Norio, Fujibayashi, Akira
• Granted Patent: US 7,613,877 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/162
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1435 using file system or storage system metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1441 Resetting or repowering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2015 Redundant power supplies power supply failure G06F1/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0866 for peripheral storage systems, e.g. disk cache
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/225 Hybrid cache memory, e.g. having both volatile and non-volatile portions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/262 configured as RAID
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0601 Interfaces specially adapted for storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0673 Single storage device

Abstract

A storage system comprises a volatile cache memory, and a non-volatile memory, which is a type of memory that can continue to memorize data irrespective of whether or not power is supplied. The temporary storage address of data following access commands from the upper level device shall be the volatile cache memory. If power is not supplied from primary power source to the volatile cache memory, power supplied from a battery is used to copy data memorized in volatile cache memory to non-volatile memory.

Claims

1. A storage system that receives access commands from an upper level device, comprising:

a plurality of storage devices;

a volatile cache memory;

a non-volatile memory that is a type of memory that can continue to memorize data irrespective of whether or not power is supplied;

an access control unit that, when the access command is a write command, temporarily memorizes the data following the write command in the volatile cache memory, and reads from the volatile cache memory and stores the memorized data in at least one of the plurality of storage devices, and that, when the access command is a read command, reads the data following the read command from at least one of the plurality of storage devices, temporarily memorizes the data in the volatile cache memory, and then reads from the volatile cache memory and transmits the memorized data to the upper level device;

a battery that is a secondary power source; and

a cache data copy unit that, when power is no longer supplied to the volatile cache memory from the primary power source, copies the data memorized in the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory based on power supplied from the battery.

2. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

the cache data copy unit copies the data memorized in the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory when power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, in which case the number of times of updating the non-volatile memory is counted, and it is determined whether the number of update times has exceeded a specified threshold value;

if determined to have exceeded that number, the data memorized in the volatile cache memory is not copied to the non-volatile memory while power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory; and

if power is not supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, power supplied from the battery is used to copy the data memorized in the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory.

3. The storage system according to claim 2, wherein the cache data copy unit counts the number of update times separately for a plurality of non-volatile sub-areas that the non-volatile memory comprises, and if determined that the number of update times for a given non-volatile sub-area in the non-volatile memory exceeds the specified threshold value, the given non-volatile sub-area is made an address for backup area during failure, which is a data copy address used when no power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory.

4. The storage system according to claim 3, wherein

the non-volatile memory is NAND-type flash memory;

the non-volatile sub-area is a block;

the block is a region comprising a plurality of segments, which are the unit regions for writing in relation to the NAND-type flash memory; and

the number of update times is the number of deletion times.

5. The storage system according to claim 3, wherein

the cache data copy unit notifies the upper level device and/or other kinds of devices with information relating to the sub-areas used as the backup area address during failure.

6. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

when no power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit specifies, from among a plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory, volatile sub-areas where dirty data is stored, and uses power supplied from the battery to copy the data in the specified volatile sub-areas to the non-volatile memory.

7. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

when power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit.,specifies, from among a plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory, LRU volatile sub-areas, and copies the data in the specified volatile sub-areas to the non-volatile memory.

8. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

the non-volatile memory is NAND-type flash memory;

and

the cache data copy unit controls which of the plurality of blocks included in the NAND-type flash memory is the LRU, and if at least one of a plurality of segments that configure a given block of the plurality of blocks is accessed then the given block is not made the LRU, and by deleting data from the LRU block, it is possible to make the plurality of segments that configure the block the copy address of the data.

9. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

when the access command is a write command, and if the access control unit does not find a volatile sub-area corresponding to the write address following the write command among the plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory, but finds a non-volatile sub-region corresponding to the write address among the plurality of non-volatile sub-areas included in the non-volatile memory, data memorized in the found non-volatile sub-area is copied from the non-volatile sub-area to a volatile sub-area, and data following the write command is written to the volatile sub-area.

10. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

when the access command is a read command, and if the access control unit does not find a volatile sub-area corresponding to the read source following the read command among the plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory, but finds a non-volatile sub-area corresponding to the read source among the plurality of non-volatile sub-regions included in the non-volatile memory, data is read from the found non-volatile sub-area, and is sent to the upper level device.

11. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

if power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit specifies the volatile sub-area where clean data is stored among the plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory, and copies data in the specified volatile sub-area to the non-volatile memory.

12. The storage system according to claim 11, wherein

the cache data copy unit does not copy sequentially accessed data among the clean data to the non-volatile memory, and does copy randomly accessed data to the non-volatile memory.

13. The storage system according to claim 11, wherein

the cache data copy unit copies data from the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory if (1) or (2) below applies:

(1) if there is a difference between the time when the data has been memorized in a non-volatile sub-area that memorizes clean data, which is the MRU (Most Recently Used) non-volatile sub-area among the plurality of non-volatile sub-areas included in the non-volatile memory, and the time when the data has been memorized in the volatile sub-area that memorizes clean data, which is the LRU volatile sub-region among the plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory; and

(2) if there is a difference greater than a specified value between the time when the data has been memorized in a non-volatile sub-area that memorizes clean data, which is the LRU non-volatile sub-area among the plurality of non-volatile sub-areas included in the non-volatile memory, and the time when the data has been memorized in the volatile sub-region that memorizes clean data, which is the LRU volatile sub-region among the plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory.

14. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

the cache data copy unit conducts processing to periodically copy data from the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory, and every time the data copying is executed, the frequency of updating the non-volatile memory is counted, and if the update frequency exceeds a specified threshold value, the processing ends;

and if the update frequency is less than the specified threshold value, the processing is executed again.

15. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

the access system from the upper level device to the plurality of storage devices is multiplexed;

the volatile cache memory and the access control unit are included in each access system;

in addition to the volatile cache memory of the access system to which an access control unit is attributed, each access control unit temporarily stores data following the received access command in volatile cache memories attributed to the other access systems; and

if no power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memories, the cache data copy unit uses power supplied from the battery to copy the data on the volatile cache memories to the non-volatile memory.

16. The storage system according to claim 15, wherein

in a given access system among the multiplexed access systems, if no power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory or the volatile cache memory has failed, but power is supplied from the primary power source to volatile cache memories in other access systems, the access control unit of the given access system writes data following the received access command to at least one of the plurality of storage devices, or sends data read from at least one of the plurality of storage devices to the upper level device without temporarily storing the data in the volatile cache memory.

17. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

there is cache control information expressing where access address data is stored in various volatile sub-areas of the volatile cache memory, and the access control unit updates the cache control information in the processing of the access command;

and

if no power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, in addition to the data on the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit copies the cache control information to the non-volatile memory; and

if the power supply is restored from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the copied data and cache control information are read from the non-volatile memory, and the copied data is restored to the volatile cache memory.

18. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein

if power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit memorizes clean data among the plurality of volatile sub-areas included in the volatile cache memory and specifies the volatile sub-area that is the LRU, and copies the clean data from the specified volatile sub-area to the non-volatile memory;

and

if power is not supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit uses power supplied from the battery to specify a volatile sub-area where dirty data is memorized among the plurality of volatile sub-areas, and copies dirty data from the specified volatile sub-area to the non-volatile memory.

19. The storage system according to claim 18, wherein

if power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit counts the number of update times of the non-volatile memory, and determines whether the number of update times has exceeded a specified threshold value;

if determined to have exceeded that number, the clean data memorized in the volatile cache memory is not copied to the non-volatile memory while power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory; and

if power is not supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, power supplied from the battery is used to copy the dirty data memorized in the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory.

20. A controller provided in a storage system that receives access commands from an upper level device and executes input/output following the access commands, comprising:

a first I/F that is a communication interface device connected to the upper level device;

a second I/F that is a communication interface device connected to a plurality of storage devices;

a volatile cache memory;

a non-volatile memory that is a type of memory that can continue to memorize data irrespective of whether or not power is supplied;

an access control unit that, when the access command received by the first I/F is a write command, temporarily memorizes the data following the write command in the volatile cache memory, and reads the memorized data from the volatile cache memory and, through the second I/F, stores the data in at least one of the plurality of storage devices; and

if the received access command is a read command, reads the data following the read command from at least one of the plurality of storage devices through the second I/F, the read data is temporarily memorized in the volatile cache memory, and reads the memorized data from the volatile cache memory and sends the data to the upper level device; and

a cache data copy unit that copies data memorized in the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory, wherein

if no power is supplied from the primary power source to the volatile cache memory, the cache data copy unit uses power supplied from a battery, which is a secondary power source, and copies data memorized in the volatile cache memory to the non-volatile memory.