SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MANAGING FILESYSTEM OBJECTS

• US 20130339406A1
• Filed: 06/19/2012
• Published: 12/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infinidat Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Infinidat Ltd.
• Inventors: Kanfi, Arnon
• Granted Patent: US 9,317,511 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/825
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/122 using management policies backup systems G06F11/1446; file migration policies for HSM systems G06F16/185
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/185 Hierarchical storage management [HSM] systems, e.g. file migration or policies thereof details of archiving G06F16/11
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/289 Object oriented databases

Abstract

A system and method of operating a filesystem for managing filesystem objects is disclosed. The filesystem objects are characterized by metadata parameters included in a global directory object arranged in a plurality of global directory object (GDO) pages. Responsive to receiving a request for creating a new filesystem object, a parent key is obtained. The parent key is indicative of an identifier of a direct parent directory requested for hosting the new filesystem object. A target page that corresponds to the parent key is located within the plurality of GDO pages. The target page further includes a direct parent directory metadata record associated with the direct parent key and includes metadata parameters related to the direct parent directory. An object key is created as corresponding to the same target page, thereby enabling accommodation of an object metadata record, related to the new filesystem object, on the target page.

Claims

1. A method of operating a filesystem for managing filesystem objects located in a non-transitory storage media and arranged in a hierarchical directory structure, said filesystem objects characterized by metadata parameters comprised in a global directory object arranged in a plurality of global directory object (GDO) pages, the method comprising:

responsive to receiving a request for creating a new filesystem object, obtaining a parent key indicative of an identifier of a direct parent directory requested for hosting said new filesystem object;

locating within the plurality of GDO pages a target page corresponding to said direct parent key, wherein said target page further comprises a direct parent directory metadata record associated with the direct parent key and comprising metadata parameters related to the direct parent directory;

creating an object key indicative of the new filesystem object, wherein said object key is created as corresponding to the same target page, thereby enabling accommodation of an object metadata record on said target page, said object metadata record associated with the object key and configured to comprise metadata parameters related to the new filesystem object.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating a metadata record comprising metadata parameters related to the new filesystem object;

associating said metadata record with the object key indicative of said new filesystem object, and storing said metadata record on the target page corresponding to said object key.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the new filesystem object is selected from a group of filesystem objects comprising files, directories and access control lists (ACL).

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said parent key is comprised in said request for creating a new filesystem object and wherein said parent key is further indicative of a non-direct parent directory, the method further comprising:

(a) locating within the plurality of GDO pages a page corresponding to said parent key indicative of a non-direct parent directory;

(b) obtaining a respective directory identifier and a filename from a non-direct parent metadata record comprised on said page and associated with said parent key indicative of a non-direct parent directory;

(c) composing a new parent key based on the directory identifier and the filename and repeating operations a) and b) until composing the direct parent key.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising creating an object directory identifier in a case when the new filesystem object is a sub-directory, such that the object directory identifier is lexicographically subsequent to a respective direct parent directory identifier.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the object directory identifier comprises the direct parent directory identifier as the most significant part, appended by an uniquifier index.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising creating an object directory identifier in a case when the new filesystem object is a sub-directory, wherein the object directory identifier is selected from a predefined pool of consecutive identifiers, said predefined pool being associated with the target page.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising creating a filename value based on an object name comprised in said request for creating a new filesystem object.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the filename value is created such that multiple filename values are consecutive if the corresponding object names are consecutive.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the object key comprises said identifier of a direct parent directory, as the most significant part of the object key and the respective filename value as the least significant part of the object key.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising creating a file handle configured to accommodate the object key to be generated in association with said request for creating a new filesystem object.

12. A method of operating a filesystem for managing filesystem objects located in a non-transitory storage media and arranged in an hierarchical directory structure, said filesystem objects are characterized by metadata parameters comprised in a global directory object (GDO) comprising a plurality of global directory object pages, the method comprising:

(a) responsive to receiving a request for scanning a directory, obtaining a first key indicative of the directory to be scanned, wherein the first key includes a first directory identifier as the most significant part;

(b) locating within the plurality of GDO pages a target page corresponding to said first key and comprising a directory metadata record corresponding to the first key and indicative of a directory identifier of the directory to be scanned;

(c) retrieving from said target page one or more metadata records comprising metadata parameters related to respective filesystem objects hosted in the directory to be scanned, wherein each said metadata record is associated with an object key indicative of respective filesystem object, and wherein said object key includes the directory identifier as the most significant part; and

wherein the GDO pages are sorted according to object keys and wherein the directory identifier is lexicographically subsequent to the first directory identifier.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising:

(d) in case the filesystem object is a directory, obtaining from a metadata record related to said filesystem object a second directory identifier, and recursively repeating step (c) using the second directory identifier as the directory identifier, wherein the second directory identifier is lexicographically subsequent to the directory identifier.

14. The method of claim 12 further comprising:

concurrently with step c, prefetching at least one adjacent page into a metadata cache memory, wherein the at least one adjacent page is a GDO page having object keys with higher consecutive values in relation to values of the object keys in the target page and wherein metadata records, related to additional filesystem objects hosted in the directory to be scanned or in sub-directories within the directory to be scanned, are hosted in the at least one adjacent page; and

retrieving from the at least one adjacent page additional metadata records comprising metadata parameters related to the respective additional filesystem objects.

15. A system for managing filesystem objects arranged in a hierarchical directory structure, said filesystem objects characterized by metadata parameters comprised in a global directory object (GDO) comprising a plurality of global directory object pages, the system comprising a processor, a metadata cache memory in communication with the processor, for caching GDO pages and a non-transitory storage media memory in communication with the processor, said non-transitory storage media storing machine instructions that cause the processor to perform the following functions:

responsive to receiving a request for creating a new filesystem object, obtain a parent key indicative of an identifier of a direct parent directory requested for hosting said new filesystem object;

locate within the plurality of GDO pages a target page corresponding to said direct parent key, wherein said target page further comprises a direct parent directory metadata record associated with the direct parent key and comprising metadata parameters related to the direct parent directory;

create an object key indicative of the new filesystem object, wherein said object key is created as corresponding to the target page, thereby enabling accommodation of an object metadata record on said target page, said object metadata record associated with the object key and configured to comprise metadata parameters related to the new filesystem object.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein said parent key is comprised in said request for creating a new filesystem object, wherein said parent key is further indicative of a non-direct parent directory, and wherein said non-transitory storage media further stores the machine instructions that cause the processor to perform the following functions:

(a) locate within the plurality of GDO pages a page corresponding to said parent key indicative of a non-direct parent directory;

(b) obtain a respective directory identifier and a filename from a non-direct parent metadata record comprised on said page and associated with said parent key indicative of a non-direct parent directory;

(c) compose a new parent key based on the directory identifier and the filename and repeat operations a) and b) until composing the direct parent key.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein said non-transitory storage media further stores the machine instructions that cause the processor to perform the function of creating an object directory identifier in a case when the new filesystem object is a sub-directory, such that the object directory identifier is lexicographically subsequent to a respective direct parent directory identifier.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the object directory identifier comprises the direct parent directory identifier as the most significant part, appended by an uniquifier index.

19. The system of claim 15 wherein said non-transitory storage media further stores the machine instructions that cause the processor to perform the function of creating an object directory identifier in a case when the new filesystem object is a sub-directory, wherein the object directory identifier is selected from a predefined pool of consecutive identifiers, said predefined pool associated with the target page.

20. The system of claim 15 wherein the filesystem objects are stored in a separate storage system operatively connected to the system.