SYSTEM AND PROGRAM FOR MAINTAINING A NAMESPACE OF FILESETS ACCESSIBLE TO CLIENTS OVER A NETWORK

• US 20080109450A1
• Filed: 01/10/2008
• Published: 05/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Young, Jason, Clark, Thomas, Correl, Stephen, Seeger, James
• Granted Patent: US 7,480,677 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/959 Network
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

Provided are a system and program maintaining information on a namespace comprised of filesets shared by clients over a network. Zone information is maintained on at least one zone, wherein each zone associates at least one client system, at least one fileset, and at least one storage pool. For one zone, the associated at least one fileset and at least one storage pool are accessible to the at least one client system. Clients are provided information on filesets included in a namespace, wherein each of a plurality of clients receive information on the at least one fileset associated with the client in the at least one zone including the client.

Claims

1. A system in communication with clients and storage pools over a network, comprising:

a computer readable medium;

zone information, implemented in the computer readable medium, on at least one zone, wherein each zone associates at least one client, at least one of a plurality of filesets in a namespace, and at least one storage pool, wherein for each zone, the associated at least one fileset and at least one storage pool are accessible to the at least one client associated in the zone;

a program executed to perform operations, the operations comprising;

receiving a request from one of the clients for filesets accessible to the client in the namespace;

determining from the zone information at least one zone associating the requesting client with at least one fileset and at least one storage pool;

providing the requesting client with the information on the at least one fileset indicated in the determined at least one zone associating the client;

receiving one rule identifying a condition and storage pools in which to store files if the condition is satisfied;

determining whether the storage pools identified in the received rule are included in multiple zones; and

rejecting the received rule in response to determining that a specified fileset in the condition is not included in one zone including the storage pools identified in the received rule.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein one client associated with multiple zones is enabled to access the filesets and storage pools in the associated zones.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein each client is restricted to performing operations with respect to file sets and storage pools in the at least one zone including the client.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the rule condition indicates at least one client, and wherein the operations further perform:

determine whether the at least one client indicated in the rule condition is included in the determined multiple zones; and

fail the received rule in response to determining that the at least one client is not included in one of the determined multiple zones.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the condition indicates at least one of a fileset, file class, or client, wherein the condition is satisfied if a request to create a file satisfies the condition.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein a service class associates a service level with storage pools and zones, wherein multiple storage pools and zones are capable of being associated with one service level.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the operations further perform:

receive a request to create a file from one client;

determine a rule specifying one service class that is applicable to the received request;

determine at least one storage pool included in the specified service class that is in a zone applicable to the client that initiated the request; and

create the requested file in an area of the determined at least one storage pool.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the zone information is maintained by a metadata server in communication with the clients and wherein the metadata server provides the clients information on the filesets included in the namespace that the clients are enabled to access, wherein the metadata server further performs:

receiving a request from one client to create a file;

determining whether one rule applies to the file create request indicating at least one storage pool in which to create the file; and

creating the file in a location in the at least one storage pool indicated in the rule in response to determining that one rule applies.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one storage pool comprises at least one storage device, wherein each storage device is restricted to being included in one storage pool.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the zone information is used to verify client connectivity to storage pools during client discovery, wherein the client is enabled to only access storage pools in zones including the client performing discovery.

11. An article of manufacture comprising a computer readable storage medium including code executed to communicate with clients and storage pools over a network, wherein the article of manufacture is enabled to perform operations, the operations comprising:

maintaining zone information on at least one zone, wherein each zone associates at least one client, at least one of a plurality of filesets in a namespace, and at least one storage pool, wherein for each zone, the associated at least one fileset and at least one storage pool are accessible to the at least one client associated in the zone;

receiving a request from one of the clients for filesets accessible to the client in the namespace;

determining from the zone information at least one zone associating the requesting client with at least one fileset and at least one storage pool;

providing the requesting client with the information on the at least one fileset indicated in the determined at least one zone the associating the client;

receiving one rule identifying a condition and storage pools in which to store files if the condition is satisfied;

determining whether the storage pools identified in the received rule are included in multiple zones; and

rejecting the received rule in response to determining that a specified fileset in the condition is not included in one zone including the storage pools identified in the received rule.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein one client associated with multiple zones is enabled to access the filesets and storage pools in the associated zones.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein each client is restricted to performing operations with respect to filesets and storage pools in the at least one zone including the client.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein the rule condition indicates at least one client, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining whether the at least one client indicated in the rule condition is included in the determined multiple zones; and

failing the received rule in response to determining that the at least one client is not included in one of the determined multiple zones.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein the condition indicates at least one of a fileset, file class, or client, wherein the condition is satisfied if a request to create a file satisfies the condition.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein a service class associates a service level with storage pools and zones, wherein multiple storage pools and zones are capable of being associated with one service level.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving a request to create a file from one client;

determining a rule specifying one service class that is applicable to the received request;

determining at least one storage pool included in the specified service class that is in a zone applicable to the client that initiated the request; and

creating the requested file in an area of the determined at least one storage pool.

18. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein the zone information is maintained by a metadata server in communication with the clients and wherein the metadata server provides the clients information on the filesets included in the namespace that the clients are enabled to access, wherein the metadata server further performs:

receiving a request from one client to create a file;

determining whether one rule applies to the file create request indicating at least one storage pool in which to create the file; and

creating the file in a location in the at least one storage pool indicated in the rule in response to determining that one rule applies.

19. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein the at least one storage pool comprises at least one storage device, wherein each storage device is restricted to being included in one storage pool.

20. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein the zone information is used to verify client connectivity to storage pools during client discovery, wherein the client is enabled to only access storage pools in zones including the client performing discovery.

21. A computer readable storage medium, comprising:

zone information on at least one zone, wherein each zone associates at least one client, at least one of a plurality of filesets in a namespace, and at least one storage pool, wherein for each zone, the associated at least one fileset and at least one storage pool are accessible to the at least one client associated in the zone;

wherein in response to receiving a request from one of the clients for filesets in the namespace accessible to the client, a determination is made from the zone information of at least one zone associating the requesting client with at least one fileset and at least one storage pool and the requesting client is provided with the information on the at least one fileset indicated in the determined at least one zone accessible to the client; and

a rule identifying a condition and storage pools in which to store files if the condition is satisfied, wherein a determination is made whether the storage pools identified in the received rule are included in multiple zones, and wherein the received rule is rejected in response to determining that a specified fileset in the condition is not included in one zone including the storage pools identified in the received rule.

22. The computer readable storage medium of claim 21, wherein one client associated with multiple zones is enabled to access the filesets and storage pools in the associated zones.

23. The computer readable storage medium of claim 21, wherein each client is restricted to performing operations with respect to file sets and storage pools in the at least one zone including the client.

24. The computer readable storage medium of claim 21, wherein the condition indicates at least one of a fileset, file class, or client, wherein the condition is satisfied if a request to create a file satisfies the condition.

25. The computer readable storage medium of claim 21, wherein a service class associates a service level with storage pools and zones, wherein multiple storage pools and zones are capable of being associated with one service level.