HYBRID-DEVICE STORAGE BASED ON ENVIRONMENTAL STATE

• US 20110238887A1
• Filed: 03/24/2010
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Bazzani, Khalu
• Granted Patent: US 8,850,151 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/103
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1441 Resetting or repowering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/16 Error detection or correction of the data by redundancy in hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0614 Improving the reliability of storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0631 by allocating resources to storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/064 Management of blocks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0673 Single storage device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/068 Hybrid storage device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0685 Hybrid storage combining heterogeneous device types, e.g. hierarchical storage, hybrid arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0688 Non-volatile semiconductor memory arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 19/042 due to external shock or vibration
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 19/046 Detection or prevention or problems due to temperature
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/1217 on discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/455 said record carriers being in one device and being used as primary and secondary/backup media, e.g. HDD-DVD combo device, or as source and target media, e.g. PC and portable player

Abstract

A hybrid storage device that includes a hard-disk drive (HDD) and a flash memory is described. When control logic in the hybrid storage device receives a request from an external device to write a block of data to a logical address in a first portion of an address space that maps to the HDD, the control logic writes the block of data to the HDD. However, if there is a change in environmental state information of the hybrid storage device during the write operation, the control logic writes at least a portion of the block of data to a logical address for the block of data in a second portion of the address space which maps to the flash memory. Note that the address space may be common to the external device and the hybrid storage device.

Claims

1. A hybrid storage device, comprising:

a hard-disk drive (HDD);

a flash memory;

an interface circuit; and

control logic, electrically coupled to the HDD, the flash memory, and the interface circuit, wherein the control logic is configured to;

receive a request from an external device to write a block of data to the hybrid storage device, wherein the request includes a logical address for the block of data in a first portion of an address space which maps to the HDD;

in response to the request, write the block of data to the HDD; and

if there is a change in environmental state information of the hybrid storage device during the write operation, write at least a portion of the block of data to a logical address for the block of data in a second portion of the address space which maps to the flash memory, wherein the address space is common to the external device and the hybrid storage device.

2. The hybrid storage device of claim 1, wherein the change in the environmental state information includes an operating state of the HDD in which failure or shut down of the HDD is to occur during the write operation.

3. The hybrid storage device of claim 2, wherein the operating state of the HDD is associated with a change in an internal temperature of the HDD.

4. The hybrid storage device of claim 2, wherein the operating state of the HDD is associated with acceleration of the HDD.

5. The hybrid storage device of claim 2, wherein the operating state of the HDD is associated with vibration of the HDD.

6. The hybrid storage device of claim 2, wherein one or more transducers in the HDD are parked during the operating state.

7. The hybrid storage device of claim 1, wherein the change in the environmental state information includes detecting an error associated with an operating state of the HDD.

8. The hybrid storage device of claim 7, wherein the error indicates that data stored on the HDD is at risk of imminent loss during the write operation.

9. The hybrid storage device of claim 1, wherein the first portion of the address space and the second portion of the address space are statically allocated.

10. The hybrid storage device of claim 1, wherein the first portion of the address space and the second portion of the address space are dynamically allocated based on characteristics of an activity history of the external device.

11. The hybrid storage device of claim 1, wherein the first portion of the address space and the second portion of the address space are dynamically allocated based on characteristics of an application executing on the external device.

12. A hybrid storage device, comprising:

a hard-disk drive (HDD);

a flash memory;

an interface circuit; and

control logic, electrically coupled to the HDD, the flash memory, and the interface circuit, wherein the control logic is configured to;

receive a request from an external device to write a block of data to the hybrid storage device, wherein the request includes a logical address for the block of data in a first portion of an address space which maps to the HDD;

in response to the request, write the block of data to the HDD; and

if there is a change in an operating state of the HDD in which failure or shut down of the HDD is to occur during the write operation, write at least a portion of the block of data to a logical address for the block of data in a second portion of the address space which maps to the flash memory, wherein the address space is common to the external device and the hybrid storage device.

13. A hybrid storage device, comprising:

a hard-disk drive (HDD);

a flash memory;

an interface circuit; and

control logic, electrically coupled to the HDD, the flash memory, and the interface circuit, the control logic is configured to;

receive a request from an external device to read a block of data from the hybrid storage device, wherein the request includes a logical address for the block of data in a first portion of an address space which maps to the HDD; and

in response to the request, accessing the block of data at a logic address which maps to the flash memory if the HDD is inoperative due to an environmental condition and the block of data is stored on the flash memory.

14. A computer system, comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

a hybrid storage device, the hybrid storage device including;

an HDD;

a flash memory;

an interface circuit; and

control logic, electrically coupled to the HDD, the flash memory, and the interface circuit, wherein the control logic is configured to;

receive a request from an external device to write a block of data to the hybrid storage device, wherein the request includes a logical address for the block of data in a first portion of an address space which maps to the HDD;

in response to the request, write the block of data to the HDD; and

if there is a change in environmental state information of the hybrid storage device during the write operation, write at least a portion of the block of data to a logical address for the block of data in a second portion of the address space which maps to the flash memory, wherein the address space is common to the external device and the hybrid storage device.

15. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the change in the environmental state information includes an operating state of the HDD in which failure or shut down of the HDD is to occur during the write operation.

16. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the operating state of the HDD is associated with a change in an internal temperature of the HDD.

17. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the operating state of the HDD is associated with acceleration of the HDD.

18. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the operating state of the HDD is associated with vibration of the HDD.

19. The computer system of claim 15, wherein one or more transducers in the HDD are parked during the operating state.

20. The computer system of claim 14, wherein the change in the environmental state information includes detecting an error associated with an operating state of the HDD.

21. The computer system of claim 20, wherein the error indicates that data stored on the HDD is at risk of imminent loss during the write operation.

22. A method for writing a block of data to a hybrid storage device, which includes an HDD and a flash memory, the method comprising:

receiving a request from an external device to write the block of data to the hybrid storage device, wherein the request includes a logical address for the block of data in a first portion of an address space which maps to the HDD;

in response to the request, writing the block of data to the HDD; and

if there is a change in environmental state information of the hybrid storage device during the write operation, writing at least a portion of the block of data to a logical address for the block of data in a second portion of the address space which maps to the flash memory, wherein the address space is common to the external device and the hybrid storage device.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the change in the environmental state information includes an operating state of the HDD in which failure or shut down of the HDD is to occur during the write operation.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the change in the environmental state information includes detecting an error associated with an operating state of the HDD.