Network Storage

• US 20100011091A1
• Filed: 07/10/2008
• Published: 01/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Blackwave Inc.
• Inventors: Gerovac, Branko J., Carver, David C.
• Application Number:
  US12/170,769
• Publication Number:
  US 20100011091A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/30 Managing network names, e.g. use of aliases or nicknames name-to-address mapping H04L61/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

Systems, methods, and apparatus including computer program products to receive a data transfer request that includes a specification of an access operation to be executed in association with one or more network-based storage resource elements, the specification including respective persistent fully-resolvable identifiers for the one or more network-based storage resource elements, and process the access operation in accordance with its specification to effect a data transfer between nodes on a data network.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a data transfer request that includes a specification of an access operation to be executed in association with one or more network-based storage resource elements, wherein the specification includes respective persistent fully-resolvable identifiers for the one or more network-based storage resource elements; and

processing the access operation in accordance with its specification to effect a data transfer between nodes on a data network.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the data transfer request is received from a first node on the data network and the processing of the access operation affects a data transfer between the first node and a second node on the data network.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein:

the first node manages a first set of network-based storage resource elements, one of which is associated with a first persistent fully-resolvable identifier provided in the specification; and

the second node manages a second set of network-based storage resource elements, one of which is associated with a second persistent fully-resolvable identifier provided in the specification.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein:

the element of the first set, which is associated with the first persistent fully-resolvable identifier, represents a data source of the data transfer request; and

the element of the second set, which is associated with the second persistent fully-resolvable identifier, represents a data destination of the data transfer request.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein:

the element of the first set, which is associated with the first persistent fully-resolvable identifier, represents a data destination of the data transfer request; and

the element of the second set, which is associated with the second persistent fully-resolvable identifier, represents a data source of the data transfer request.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the data transfer request is received from a first node on the data network and the processing of the access operation affects a data transfer between a second node and a third node on the data network.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the data transfer request is received by the second node on the data network.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the data transfer request is received by a fourth node on the data network.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein:

the second node manages a first set of network-based storage resource elements, one of which is associated with a first persistent fully-resolvable identifier provided in the specification; and

the third node manages a second set of network-based storage resource elements, one of which is associated with a second persistent fully-resolvable identifier provided in the specification.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification includes a data transfer request type that comprises one of the following:

a READ request type, a WRITE request type, a MOVE request type.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information that specifies a synchronous or asynchronous nature of the access operation to be executed.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information that specifies a time-based period within which the data transfer is to be affected.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information that specifies a time-based period within which the access operation is to be executed.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information that uniquely identifies a session context within which the access operation is to be executed.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information that indicates that the received data transfer request is a last of a set of session-specific data transfer requests.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information to prompt a confirmation to be generated upon completion of the data transfer.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the specification of the access operation further includes information to prompt a status update to be generated upon satisfaction of a condition of an event.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein each persistent fully-resolvable identifier for a network-based storage resource element is comprised of a uniform resource identifier (URI).

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the data transfer request is specified in accordance with HTTP syntax or an extension thereof.

20. A system comprising:

nodes on a data network;

storage resources that are managed by one or more nodes on the data network, wherein each element of a storage resource is uniquely addressable by a persistent fully-resolvable identifier within the system; and

a machine-readable medium that stores executable instructions to cause a machine to;

receive a data transfer request that includes a specification of an access operation to be executed in association with one or more network-based storage resource elements, wherein the specification includes respective persistent fully-resolvable identifiers for the one or more network-based storage resource elements; and

process the access operation in accordance with its specification to affect a data transfer between nodes on a data network.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein each addressable element of a first storage resource is associated with a name that conforms to a direct addressing scheme that specifies a physical location on the first storage resource.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein each element of a first storage resource is associated with a name that conforms to an abstract addressing scheme that specifies a logical unit number of the first storage resource.

23. The system of claim 20, wherein each element of a first storage resource is associated with a name that conforms to an addressing scheme that uses a combination of direct and abstract addressing.

24. The system of claim 20, wherein elements of a first storage resource are associated with names that conform to a first addressing scheme, and elements of a second storage resource are associated with names that conform to a second, different addressing scheme.