DATA STORAGE SYSTEM UTILIZING PROXY DEVICE FOR STORAGE OPERATIONS

• US 20130238562A1
• Filed: 03/06/2013
• Published: 09/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Kumarasamy, Paramasivam, Nallathambi, Vimal Kumar, Zakharkin, Dmitriy Borisovich
• Granted Patent: US 9,298,715 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/649
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1451 by selection of backup contents
• 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 16/13 File access structures, e.g. distributed indices arrangements of input from, or output to, record carriers G06F3/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/134 Distributed indices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1748 De-duplication implemented within the file system, e.g. based on file segments de-duplication techniques in storage systems for the management of data blocks G06F3/0641
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/188 Virtual file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/22 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45583 Memory management, e.g. access or allocation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects

Abstract

A data storage environment can include one or more virtual clients instantiated on a host proxy computing device. The virtual clients may have only indirect access to a storage device, and may access the storage device via the proxy computing device. For example, the proxy computing device receives storage operation requests from one of the virtual clients, such as a request to create, mount or revert a snapshot of virtual client data. The proxy computing device generally acts as an intermediary between the virtual clients and the storage device to carry out the snapshots or other storage operations. The proxy computing device may further receive a notification upon completion of the storage operations, and transmits relevant data to the requesting virtual client regarding the storage operation.

Claims

1. A method for creating a snapshot of a data store associated with a virtual machine using a proxy computing device on which the virtual machine resides, the method comprising:

receiving a snapshot request at a proxy computing device having a plurality of virtual machines instantiated thereon, each of the plurality of virtual machines having a data store associated therewith comprising primary data generated by at least one application executing on the respective virtual machine,

wherein the snapshot request comprises a request by a first virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines to create a point-in-time snapshot copy of at least a portion of the data store associated with the first virtual machine, and wherein the proxy computing device forms part of a networked storage system comprising at least one storage device that is capable of taking snapshots representing point-in-time copies of data;

forwarding, by the proxy computing device, the snapshot request to the storage device on behalf of the first virtual machine, wherein a point-in-time snapshot is created on the storage device in response to the snapshot request;

receiving, at the proxy computing device, a snapshot identifier associated with the created snapshot; and

forwarding the snapshot identifier to the first virtual machine by the proxy computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the snapshot is a hardware snapshot that is created in a self-contained manner by the storage device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the proxy computing device, a request from the first virtual machine to retrieve the snapshot from the storage device, the request including the snapshot identifier;

forwarding the snapshot retrieval request from the proxy client to the storage device on behalf of the first virtual machine;

receiving snapshot location information from the storage device by the proxy computing device, the snapshot location information indicative of a location of the snapshot on the storage device; and

forwarding the received snapshot location information from the proxy computing device to the first virtual machine.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the proxy client, a request from the first virtual machine to revert the data store associated with the first virtual machine to a previous state represented by a previously created snapshot of the data store;

forwarding the reversion request from the proxy computing device to the storage device on behalf of the first virtual machine;

receiving, at the proxy client, a notification that the storage device has reverted the data store associated with the first virtual machine to the previous state; and

forwarding the notification from the proxy client to the first virtual machine.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first virtual machine is not in direct communication with the storage device and is in only indirect communication with the storage device via the proxy computing device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first virtual machine does not have direct access to the storage device and only indirectly accesses the storage device via the proxy computing device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, at the time the snapshot is created, a first copy of the data store exists on the storage device that represents a version of the data at a first point-in-time, and wherein the snapshot is created using the first copy and reflects a version of the data at a second point-in-time later than the first point-in-time.

8. A data storage system, comprising:

a host computing device comprising one or more processors;

a plurality of virtual machines instantiated on the host computing device and executing on the one or more processors, each virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines having at least one application executing thereon that produces primary data; and

a plurality of data stores each associated with a corresponding one of the virtual machines and containing the primary data associated with the corresponding virtual machine,

wherein at least a first virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines is configured to generate a request to perform a point-in-time copy of at least a portion of the primary data contained on the data store of the first virtual machine, and

wherein the host computing device is configured to act as a proxy between the first virtual machine and at least one storage device by forwarding the request to perform the point-in-time copy to the at least one storage device on behalf of the first virtual machine, wherein the at least one storage device performs the point-in-time copy in response to the forwarded request.

9. The data storage system of claim 8, wherein the primary data comprises to one or more files or directories.

10. The data storage system of claim 8, wherein at least some of the plurality of data stores reside on a common storage device.

11. The data storage system of claim 8, wherein, following completion of the requested point-in-time copy operation, the at least one storage device transmits a point-in-time copy identifier corresponding to the requested point-in-time copy operation to the host computing device.

12. The data storage system of claim 8, wherein the at least one storage device is configured to create hardware snapshots in response to the forwarded request in a self-contained manner without substantial involvement from software or hardware external to the at least one storage device.

13. The data storage system of claim 8, wherein the plurality of virtual machines are not in direct communication with the at least one storage device and are in only indirect communication with the storage device via the host computing device.

14. The data storage system of claim 8, wherein the plurality of virtual machines do not have direct access the at least one storage device and only indirectly access the at least one storage device via the host computing device.

15. A method for performing a data storage operation associated with a virtual machine and using a proxy computing device on which the virtual machine resides, the method comprising:

receiving a storage operation request at a proxy computing device having at least one virtual machine instantiated thereon, the at least one virtual machine having a data store associated therewith comprising primary data generated by at least one application executing on the at least one virtual machine,

wherein the proxy computing device forms part of a networked storage system comprising at least one storage device that is capable of performing the requested storage operation;

forwarding, by the proxy computing device, the storage operation request to the storage device on behalf of the first virtual machine, wherein the storage device performs the storage operation in response to the request.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the requested storage operation comprises a backup operation.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the requested storage operation comprises a snapshot operation.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the requested storage operation comprises an archive operation.