Method for saving computer data

• US 20090216941A1
• Filed: 07/20/2001
• Published: 08/27/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Emc IP Holding Company LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: EMC Corporation (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Azambre, Hubert, Blanchet, Claude, Delbosc, Jean-Marc
• Granted Patent: US 7,949,840 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/111
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1448 Management of the data involved in backup or backup restore
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1464 for networked environments
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0656 Data buffering arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0683 Plurality of storage devices

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for saving computer data which consist in transferring the data to be saved from a client computer to a buffer storage formed by the hard disc of a backup server, organised in a plurality of volumes of predetermined size, and in then transferring the data from said buffer storage onto a final medium (for example magnetic cartridge). The invention is characterised in that it consists in recording on said permanent medium, after transferring the volumes from the buffer storage onto the final medium, a single sequence of data specific to each of said volumes (basic data), the method further comprising a step which consists in constituting a database wherein are recorded the basic data.

Claims

1. A method for saving computer data which consist of transferring the data to be backed up from a client computer to a buffer memory formed by the hard disk of a backup server, organised into a plurality of volumes with predetermined sizes, and then transferring the data from the said buffer memory onto the permanent medium (for example a magnetic cartridge), characterised in that a unique sequence of data for each of the said volume (basic data) is recorded on the said permanent medium after each of the volumes and after the transfer onto the permanent medium, the method also comprising a step in which a database is created in which the basic data are saved.

2. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the basic data include the logical address on the volume start cartridge and the logical address on the volume end cartridge.

3. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the basic data include the approximate size of the volume.

4. A method for saving computer data according to claim 2, characterized in that the basic data include the approximate size of the volume.

5. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the basic data include the number of the reader used to transfer the volume from the disk cache to the cartridge and the number of the disk on which the volume is located at the time that it is transferred to the cartridge.

6. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1 characterized in that the basic data include the number of the disk partition in which the volume is located before it is transferred to the cartridge.

7. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the basic data include the processor number used to transfer the volume of the disk cache to the cartridge.

8. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the basic data include the bar code of the cartridge containing the volume and/or the name of the cartridge.

9. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the basic data include the hexadecimal code indicating the cartridge type, the total size of data stored on the cartridge, the maximum capacity of the cartridge, the state of the cartridge load counter, the hexadecimal code indicating the state of the volume, the number of the host machine in the configuration to which the volume belongs, the character code used in the volume header, the date of the most recent write or modification made by the host machine, the time of the most recent write or modification made by the host machine, the date of the most recent read access of the volume by the host machine, the time of the most recent read access of the volume by the host machine, the date on which the volume in the disk cache was transferred to the cartridge, and the time at which the volume in the disk cache was transferred to the cartridge.

10. A method for saving computer data according to claim 1, characterized in that the data transferred from the permanent support to the buffer memory when data are restored to the client computer do not include the basic data.

11. Equipment for saving data comprising a backup server controlling a buffer memory organised into volumes of a predetermined size, and a station for reading-writing permanent media, the server comprising a communication interface with at least one client computer for data exchanges, characterised in that the server also comprises a database for saving basic data and means of associating the basic data with data recorded temporarily in the volumes of the buffer memory, and for deleting the basic data when the data are transferred from the permanent media to the buffer memory.