DISTRIBUTED STORAGE NETWORK AND METHOD FOR COMMUNICATING DATA ACROSS A PLURALITY OF PARALLEL WIRELESS DATA STREAMS

• US 20110106909A1
• Filed: 06/15/2010
• Published: 05/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pure Storage, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Cleversafe Incorporated (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: Gladwin, Christopher S.
• Granted Patent: US 9,692,593 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1004 to protect a block of data words, e.g. CRC or checksum G06F11/1076 takes precedence; security arrangements for protecting computers or computer systems against unauthorized activity G06F21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/1408 by using cryptography for digital transmission H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2107 File encryption
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/34 Encoding or coding, e.g. Huffman coding or error correction
• 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]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/04 Protocols for data compression, e.g. ROHC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0819 Key transport or distribution, i.e. key establishment techniques where one party creates or otherwise obtains a secret value, and securely transfers it to the other(s) network architectures or network communication protocols for key distribution in a packet data network H04L63/062
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0863 involving passwords or one-time passwords network architectures or network communication protocols for using one-time keys in a packet data network H04L63/067
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0894 Escrow, recovery or storing of secret information, e.g. secret key escrow or cryptographic key storage

Abstract

A distributed storage network receives data that is to be transmitted. The data is processed via one or more error-coding dispersed storage functions and sliced into data slices. A certain number of the data slices are selected for wireless communication via a plurality of wireless modules wherein a first wireless module sends a first portion of the data slices, and a second wireless module sends a second portion of the data slices, and so on until the data slices are fully communicated. The wireless modules may be of different hardware, software, protocols, throughputs, bandwidth, speeds, encoding schemes, algorithms, etc. The transmission over several different wireless modules that potentially have different (and potentially changing over time) characteristics may increase both performance and security.

Claims

1. A method for outputting data for storage in a distributed storage network, the method comprising:

receiving the data;

processing the data into a plurality of data slices using an error coding dispersal storage function;

selecting a wireless communication approach for externally communicating the plurality of data slices where a plurality of wireless modules, each operating in accordance with at least one wireless communication protocol, are each selected to transmit a certain set of one or more data slices parallel in time with the transmission of one or more other data slices transmitted by other wireless modules in the plurality of wireless modules; and

sending the plurality of data slices via respective wireless modules of the plurality of wireless modules according to the selected wireless communication approach in a manner that enables storage of the data slices in at least two different distributed storage units across the distributed storage network and wherein the error coding dispersal storage function ensures that the data can be fully assembled even though one or more of the of the data slices are not recoverable.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein each data slice is sent by a selected different wireless module within the plurality of wireless modules.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the data is processed into a plurality of data segments whereby each data segment in the plurality of data segments is then processed into the plurality of data slices during the error coded dispersal storage function.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the data segments are processed for error correction via the error coding dispersal storage function before processing the data segments into data slices.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the data segments are processed for error correction via the error coding dispersal storage function before processing the data segments into data slices.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein a set of data slices for the same data is sent in time sequence via a selected wireless module within the plurality of wireless modules.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the wireless communication protocol is different between at least two selected wireless modules in the plurality of wireless modules.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the wireless communication protocol is different between at least four selected wireless modules in the plurality of wireless modules.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the wireless communication protocol is changed over time within a single wireless module as different data slices are sent through the single wireless module.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein an amount of data sent by one wireless module compared to the amount of data sent by another wireless module for a given plurality of data slices is set per module bandwidth characteristics.

11. A method for retrieving data from storage in a distributed storage network, the method comprising:

selecting a wireless communication approach for receiving data slices via plurality of wireless modules, each wireless module within the plurality of wireless modules operating in accordance with at least one wireless communication protocol, and wherein the plurality of wireless modules are selected to receive the data slices;

sending a request to read the data slices over the plurality of wireless modules; and

receiving the plurality of data slices in parallel manner simultaneously through the plurality of wireless modules in a manner that enables a reassembly of the data slices from many different distributed storage units across the distributed storage network to eventually create compose an original data object from the data slices and wherein an error coding dispersal storage function ensures that the original data object can be fully assembled even though one or more of the of the data slices are not recoverable.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein each data slice is received through a selected different wireless module within the plurality of wireless modules.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein one or more data slices are not retrieved whereby a remaining set of retrieved data slices are processed via an error coding dispersal storage function to obtain the original data object from less than a whole set of the data slices.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein a set of data slices for the same data is sent in time sequence via a selected wireless module within the plurality of wireless modules.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein the wireless communication protocol is different between at least two selected wireless modules in the plurality of wireless modules.

16. The method of claim 11 wherein the wireless communication protocol is different between at least four selected wireless modules in the plurality of wireless modules.

17. The method of claim 11 wherein the wireless communication protocol is changed over time within a single wireless module as different data slices are received through the single wireless module.

18. The method of claim 11 wherein an amount of data received by one wireless module compared to the amount of data received by another wireless module for a given plurality of data slices is set using module bandwidth characteristics.

19. A user device coupled with a plurality of wireless modules, the user device comprising:

an interface for sending data slices; and

a distributed storage processing module coupled to the interface and being operable to;

receive and store outgoing data;

process the outgoing data into a plurality of data slices;

select a wireless communication approach that determines a method of communicating the data slices from the user device where a plurality of wireless modules, each operating in accordance with at least one wireless communication protocol are selected to transmit two or more portions of the data slices in a parallel manner in time and in accordance with the at least one wireless communication protocol; and

transmit the plurality of data slices out through the plurality of wireless modules in the parallel manner in time to enable storage of the data slices in many different distributed storage units across the distributed storage network.

20. A user device coupled with a plurality of wireless modules, the user device comprising:

an interface for receiving data slices; and

a distributed storage processing module coupled to the interface and being operable to;

select a wireless communication approach for receiving data slices over a plurality of wireless modules, each of the wireless modules in the plurality of wireless modules operating in accordance with at least one wireless communication protocol;

send a request to read the data slices over the plurality of wireless modules; and

receive the plurality of data slices in through the plurality of wireless modules wherein two or more of the data slices in the plurality of data slices are received simultaneously in parallel through the plurality of wireless modules in a manner that enables the user device to reassemble the data slices from many different distributed storage units across the distributed storage network to eventually create an original data object.