SHADOW COPY BOOKMARK GENERATION

• US 20130054529A1
• Filed: 08/24/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Computer Associates Think Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wang, Xiaopin, Zhang, Haiyang, Li, Shaorong
• Granted Patent: US 8,732,128 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/639
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1448 Management of the data involved in backup or backup restore
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/128 Details of file system snapshots on the file-level, e.g. snapshot creation, administration, deletion use of snapshots for error detection or correction G06F11/14, G06F11/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/82 Solving problems relating to consistency ensuring consistency in mirrored systems G06F11/2064
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data

Abstract

Systems and methods for generating a bookmark for a snapshot of one or more volumes of a production server include initiating a snapshot process to capture a shadow copy of a snapshot-volume set, which includes one or more volumes of the production server. The snapshot process (e.g., Volume Shadow Copy Service of Windows™ operating system) may include (a) temporarily freezing operations on a file system of the production server, and (b) releasing a freeze of operations on the file system of the production server. A bookmark for the shadow copy (representing a consistent state of the associated volumes) may be generated such that the bookmark corresponds to a completion of the temporarily freezing or releasing a freeze of the operations. The bookmark may include a point in time of the completion of the temporarily freezing or releasing the freeze of the operations.

Claims

1. A method to generate a bookmark corresponding to a snapshot of a volume of a production server, the method comprising:

initiating, using a processor operatively associated with the production server, a snapshot process to capture a snapshot of a volume of the production server, wherein the snapshot process comprises (a) temporarily freezing write operations on a file system of the production server, and (b) releasing a freeze of write operations on the file system of the production server; and

generating, using the processor, a bookmark for the snapshot of the volume, wherein the bookmark comprises a point in time of completion of said temporarily freezing write operations or a point in time of a completion of said releasing a freeze of write operations.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the bookmark further comprises an identifier associated with the initiation of the snapshot process.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

recording, in a memory operatively associated with the production server, the generated bookmark as an event in an event sequence;

recording, as an operation event in the event sequence in the memory, an operation performed on a data item or a file stored in the volume of the production server; and

sending at least a part of the event sequence to a backup server.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the operation event is recorded in the event sequence without recording data content associated with the operation performed on the data item or the file.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the operation comprises one or more selected from:

write, change security, change property, truncate, rename, remove, or create operations.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the snapshot process is performed periodically.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying the volume of the production server, wherein the identified volume associated with an application executing on the production server.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the snapshot process is based on Volume Shadow Copy Service of Windows operating system.

2. (canceled)

10. A system to generate a bookmark corresponding to a snapshot of a volume of a production server, the system comprising a processor configured to:

initiate a snapshot process to capture a snapshot of a volume of the production server, wherein the snapshot process comprises (a) temporarily freezing write operations on a file system of the production server, and (b) releasing a freeze of write operations on the file system of the production server; and

generate a bookmark for the snapshot of the volume, wherein the bookmark comprises a point in time of to a completion of said temporarily freezing write operations or a point in time of a completion of said releasing a freeze of write operations.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

record, in a memory operatively associated with the production server, the generated bookmark as an event in an event sequence;

record, as an operation event in the event sequence in the memory, at I act one an operation performed on a data item or a file stored in the volume of the production server; and

send at least a part of the event sequence to a backup server.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the operation event is recorded in the event sequence without recording data content associated with the operation performed on the data item or the file.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the operation comprises one or more selected from:

write, change security, change property, truncate, rename, remove, or create operations.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein the snapshot process is performed periodically.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

identify the volume of the production server, wherein the identified volume is associated with an application executing on the production server.

18. The system of claim 10, wherein the snapshot process is based on Volume Shadow Copy Service of Windows operating system.

11. (canceled)

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the bookmark further comprises an identifier associated with the initiation of the snapshot process.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium holding computer executable instructions thereon, the computer-executable instructions, when executed by a processing device, cause the processing device to perform a method to generate a bookmark corresponding to a snapshot of a volume of a production server, the method comprising:

initiating a snapshot process to capture a snapshot of a volume of the production server, wherein the snapshot process comprises (a) temporarily freezing a write operation on a file system of the production server, and (b) releasing a freeze of a write operation on the file system of the production server; and

generating a bookmark for the snapshot of the volume, wherein the bookmark comprises a point in time of a completion of said temporarily freezing write operations or a point in time of a completion of said releasing a freeze of write operations.

22. The medium of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises:

recording, in a memory operatively associated with the production server, the generated bookmark as an event in an event sequence;

recording, as an operation event in the event sequence in the memory, an operation performed on a data item or a file stored in the volume of the production server; and

sending at least a part of the event sequence to a backup server.

23. The medium of claim 22, wherein the operation event is recorded in the event sequence without recording data content associated with the operation performed on the data item or file.

24. The medium of claim 22, wherein the operation comprises one or more selected from:

write, change security, change property, truncate, rename, remove, or create operations.

25. The medium of claim 19, wherein the snapshot process is performed periodically.

26. The medium of claim 19, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying the volume of the production server, wherein the identified volume is associated with an application executing on the production server.

27. The medium of claim 19, wherein the snapshot process is based on Volume Shadow Copy Service of Windows operating system.

20. (canceled)

21. The medium of claim 20, wherein the bookmark further comprises an identifier associated with the initiation of the snapshot process.

28. A method to generate a bookmark corresponding to a snapshot of a volume of a production server, the method comprising:

initiating, using a processor operatively associated with the production server, a snapshot process to capture a snapshot of a volume of the production server, wherein the snapshot process comprises (a) temporarily freezing operations related to a file system of the production server, and (b) releasing a freeze of operations related to the file system of the production server; and

generating, using the processor, a bookmark for the snapshot of the volume, wherein the bookmark comprises a point in time of a completion of said temporarily freezing operations or a completion of said releasing a freeze of operations.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the operations related to the file system of the production server comprises write operations on a file of the file system.

30. A method to generate a bookmark corresponding to a snapshot of a volume of a production server, the method comprising:

initiating, using a processor operatively associated with the production server, a snapshot process to capture a local copy of at least a part of stored data of the production server, wherein the snapshot process comprises (a) temporarily inactivating operations affecting a data-storage system of the production server, and (b) reactivating operations affecting the data-storage system of the production server; and

generating, using the processor, a bookmark for the local copy of the at least part of stored data of the production server, wherein the bookmark comprises a point in time related to an execution stage of said temporarily inactivating operations or a point in time related to an execution stage of a completion of said reactivating operations.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the snapshot process is based on Volume Shadow Copy Service of Windows™

operating system, and the local copy is a shadow copy of the at least part of stored data of the production server.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the at least part of stored data comprises a volume of the production server.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

identifying the volume of the production server, wherein the identified volume is associated with an application executing on the production server.

34. The method of claim 30, wherein the data-storage system of the production server comprises a file system of the production server.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the operations affecting the file system of the production server comprises an operation to add, modify, or both, a file of the file system.

36. The method of claim 30, wherein the operations affecting the data-storage system of the production system comprises an operation to add, modify, or both, a data item stored in a volume of the production server.

37. The method of claim 30, wherein the execution stage of said temporarily inactivating operations comprises a completion of said temporarily inactivating operations.

38. The method of claim 30, wherein the execution stage of said reactivating operations comprises a completion of said reactivating operations.

39. (canceled)