MULTI-CLIENT STORAGE SYSTEM AND STORAGE SYSTEM MANAGEMENT METHOD

• US 20130086270A1
• Filed: 10/04/2011
• Published: 04/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Nishikawa, Norifumi, Ikeda, Hirokazu, Iwasaki, Masaaki
• Granted Patent: US 8,751,657 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0604 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. storage management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0631 by allocating resources to storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5011 the resources being hardware resources other than CPUs, Servers and Terminals
• 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

An aspect of the invention is a multi-client storage system comprising a management computer including a processor and a memory, for allocating resources of a plurality of storage apparatus to a plurality of clients, the management computer comprising: a receiving unit for receiving conditions for a client to which a new resource is to be allocated; a determining unit for determining whether the new resource is securable under the received conditions without changing resources allocated to existing clients and conditions for the volumes for each of the existing clients; and an allocation unit for securing, when it is determined that the new resource is securable under the received conditions, the new resource under the received conditions for the client in the plurality of storage apparatus and allocating the new resource to the client.

Claims

1. A multi-client storage system comprising a management computer including a processor and a memory, for allocating resources of a plurality of storage apparatus to a plurality of clients, the management computer comprising:

a receiving unit for receiving conditions for a client to which a new resource is to be allocated;

a determining unit for determining whether the new recourse is securable under the received conditions without changing resources allocated to existing clients and conditions for the volumes for each of the existing clients; and

an allocation unit for securing, when it is determined that the new resource is securable under the received conditions, the new resource under the received conditions for the client in the plurality of storage apparatus and allocating the new resource to the client.

2. The multi-client storage system according to claim 1, further comprising a changing unit for performing change of the resources allocated to the existing clients,

wherein the determining unit is configured to:

determine, when it is determined that the new resource is not securable under the received conditions without changing the resources allocated to the existing clients and the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients, whether or not the new resource is securable under the received conditions with the changing of the resources allocated to the existing clients; and

issue, when it is determined that the new resource is securable under the received conditions with the changing of the resources allocated to the existing clients, a command to the changing unit to perform the changing of the resources.

3. The multi-client storage system according to claim 2, wherein the changing unit refers to the resources allocated to the existing clients and the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients, and to the conditions for the client to which the new resource is to be allocated, which are received by the receiving unit, to generate a allocation plan for the resources allocated to the existing clients.

4. The multi-client storage system according to claim 3, wherein the changing unit refers to the resources allocated to the existing clients and the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients, and to the conditions for the client to which the new resource is to be allocated, which are received by the receiving unit, to generate a plurality of the allocation plans for the resources allocated to the existing clients and select a allocation plan that satisfies predetermined conditions from among the plurality of the allocation plans.

5. The multi-client storage system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined conditions are that a data migration amount is smallest in the changing of the resources and that effects on the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients are smallest.

6. The multi-client storage system according to claim 4, wherein the changing unit generates a new allocation plan based on the selected allocation plan that satisfies the predetermined conditions.

7. The multi-client storage system according to claim 4, wherein the changing unit obtains an evaluation value regarding a performance of storage apparatus of the generated plurality of the allocation plans and selects a allocation plan for which the evaluation value is highest.

8. The multi-client storage system according to claim 4, wherein the changing unit calculates maximum IOPS of each of the plurality of the allocation plans as an evaluation value and sets a allocation plan for which the maximum IOPS meet the predetermined conditions and a data migration amount is smallest in the changing of the resources.

9. The multi-client storage system according to claim 2, wherein the conditions for allocating the new resource received by the receiving unit include a time limit for allocating the new resource, and wherein the changing unit is configured to:

refer to the resources allocated to the existing clients and the conditions for the resource for each of the existing clients, and to the conditions for the client to which the new resource is to be allocated, which are received by the receiving unit, to generate a allocation plan for the resources allocated to the existing clients; and

when the allocation plan does not satisfy one of the time limit and the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients, generate one of a first compromised plan for delaying the time limit and a second compromised plan for constraining the resources for the existing clients.

10. The multi-client storage system according to claim 4, wherein the changing unit is configured to:

recombine allocations of the resources based on the selected allocation plan that satisfies the predetermined conditions to generate a plurality of new allocation plans;

obtain a first evaluation value regarding a performance of storage apparatus for each of the generated plurality of new allocation plans;

select an allocation plan for which the first evaluation value is the highest from among the plurality of new allocation plans;

further recombine allocations of the resources to generate a plurality of new allocation plans;

obtain a second evaluation value regarding a performance of storage apparatus for each of the generated plurality of new allocation plans;

select a allocation plan for which the second evaluation value is highest from among the plurality of new allocation plans; and

repeat the recombination of the allocations of the resources until a difference between the evaluation values of the allocation plan for which the first evaluation value is highest and the allocation plan for which the second evaluation value is highest converges.

11. A storage system management method for use in a management computer including a processor and a memory, for allocating resources of a plurality of storage apparatus to a plurality of clients, the storage system management method comprising:

a first step of receiving, by the management computer, conditions for a client to which a new resource is to be allocated;

a second step of determining, by the management computer, whether or not the new resource is securable under the received conditions without changing resources allocated to existing clients and conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients; and

a third step of securing, by the management computer, when it is determined that the new resource is securable under the received conditions, the new resource under the received conditions for the client in the plurality of storage apparatus and allocating the new resource to the client.

12. The storage system management method according to claim 11, wherein the second step comprises determining, when it is determined that the new resource is not securable under the received conditions without changing the resources allocated to the existing clients and the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients, whether or not the new resource is securable under the received conditions with changing of the resources allocated to the existing clients, and the storage system management method further comprises a fourth step of performing, when it is determined that the new resource is securable under the received conditions with the changing of the resources allocated to the existing clients, the changing of the resources.

13. The storage system management method according to claim 12, wherein the fourth step comprises referring to the resources allocated to the existing clients and the conditions for the resources for each of the existing clients, and to the conditions for the client to which the new resource is to be allocated, which are received in the first step, to generate a allocation plan for the resources allocated to the existing clients.