LIGHTWEIGHT MOUNTING OF A SECONDARY COPY OF FILE SYSTEM DATA

• US 20140046904A1
• Filed: 03/07/2013
• Published: 02/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Kumarasamy, Paramasivam
• Granted Patent: US 9,026,498 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/652
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/113 Details of archiving lifecycle management in storage systems G06F3/0649; backup systems G06F11/1446
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/119 Details of migration of file systems migration mechanisms in storage systems G06F3/0647
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/14 Details of searching files based on file metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/148 File search processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1844 Management specifically adapted to replicated file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/065 Replication mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

A data storage system allows a user to search a secondary copy such as a back up, archive, or snapshot and receive an abbreviated version of the secondary copy of the file system as a result of the search. The abbreviated version of the secondary copy of the file system may include metadata such as a listing of secondary copy data that correspond with a search term or other filtering criteria provided by the user. An operating system of the user'"'"'s computing device may mount the abbreviated version so that it can be displayed within a view of the file system of the computing device. Once a user selects one or more desired data objects listed in the abbreviated version, the selected actual one or more data objects are retrieved from secondary storage.

Claims

1. A networked data storage system comprising:

a user computing device configured to;

transmit filtering criteria to a media agent that is in communication with secondary storage, the secondary storage maintaining a secondary copy of at least a portion of a file system;

receive metadata corresponding to an abbreviated version of the secondary copy from the media agent, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of data objects in the secondary copy that are identified by the media agent as satisfying the filtering criteria; and

mount the abbreviated version of the secondary copy, wherein the mounted abbreviated version is displayed within a view of a file system of the user computing device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the user computing device is further configured to:

receive an indication of user selection of one of the listed data objects, the selection made by a user via a graphical user interface that displays the mounted abbreviated version of the secondary copy;

transmit a command to the media agent instructing the media agent to retrieve the selected data object from secondary storage; and

receive the selected data object from the media agent.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the filtering criteria comprises a search term comprising text and an identification of the secondary copy, the secondary copy comprising at least one of a back up copy, an archive copy, or a snapshot copy in which a search should be performed to identify data objects which include one or more instances of the text in metadata associated with the data objects, in content associated with the data objects, or both.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of data objects including one or more instances of the text and a listing of data objects not including one or more instances of the text, and wherein the listing of each data object including one or more instances of the text is identified differently than the listing of each data object not including one or more instances of the text.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein a file structure of the abbreviated version of the secondary copy is the same as a file structure of the secondary copy.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the data objects in the secondary copy comprise first data objects that correspond to unidentified data objects that do not match the filtering criteria and second data objects that correspond to the identified data objects that do match the filtering criteria.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of the identified data objects, wherein the listing does not include the unidentified data objects.

8. A method for searching a file system, the method comprising:

transmitting, by a user computing device, filtering criteria to a media agent that is in communication with secondary storage, the secondary storage maintaining a secondary copy of at least a portion of a file system;

receiving metadata corresponding to an abbreviated version of the secondary copy from the media agent, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of data objects in the secondary copy that are identified by the media agent as satisfying the filtering criteria; and

mounting, by the user computing device, the abbreviated version of the secondary copy, wherein the mounted abbreviated version is displayed within a view of a file system of the user computing device.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving an indication of user selection of one of the listed data objects, the selection made by a user via a graphical user interface that displays the mounted abbreviated version of the secondary copy;

transmitting a command to the media agent instructing the media agent to retrieve the selected data object from secondary storage; and

receiving the selected data object from the media agent.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein transmitting filtering criteria comprises transmitting a search term comprising text and an identification of the secondary copy, the secondary copy comprising at least one of a back up, an archive, or a snapshot copy in which a search should be performed to identify data objects which include one or more instances of the text in metadata associated with the data objects, in content associated with the data objects, or both.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein receiving metadata corresponding to an abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises receiving a listing of data objects including one or more instances of the text and a listing of data objects not including one or more instances of the text, and wherein the listing of each data object including one or more instances of the text is identified differently than the listing of each data object not including one or more instances of the text.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein receiving metadata corresponding to an abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises receiving a listing of data objects including one or more instances of the text and not data objects including one or more instances of the text.

13. A networked data storage system comprising:

a storage manager executing in one or more processors and configured to cause a graphical user interface to be presented on a display, the graphical user interface comprising a filter field;

secondary storage configured to maintain a secondary copy of at least a portion of a file system; and

a media agent, executing in one or more processors and in communication with the secondary storage, including a content indexing module executing on a first computing device and configured, in response to instructions from the storage manager, to;

receive filtering criteria entered into the filter field;

identify data objects in the secondary copy that satisfy the filtering criteria;

generate an abbreviated version of the secondary copy based on the identified data objects, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of data objects in the secondary copy that are identified by the media agent as satisfying the filtering criteria; and

transmit the abbreviated version of the secondary copy to a second computing device, wherein the second computing device is configured to mount the abbreviated version of the secondary copy.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the media agent is further configured to:

receive a command from the second computing device instructing the media agent to retrieve data objects selected by a user of the second computing device via a graphical user interface that displays the mounted abbreviated version of the secondary copy;

retrieve the selected data objects from a secondary storage medium based on the command; and

transmit the retrieved data objects to the second computing device.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the filtering criteria comprises a search term comprising text and an identification of the secondary copy, the secondary copy comprising at least one of a back up copy, an archive copy, or a snapshot copy in which a search should be performed to identify data objects which include one or more instances of the text in metadata associated with the data objects, in content associated with the data objects, or both.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of data objects including one or more instances of the text and a listing of data objects not including one or more instances of the text, and wherein the listing of data objects including one or more instances of the text is identified differently than the listing of data objects not including one or more instances of the text.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein generating an abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises generating a listing of data objects including one or more instances of the text and not data objects not including one or more instances of the text.

21. The system of claim 13, wherein a file structure of the abbreviated version of the secondary copy is the same as a file structure of the secondary copy.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the data objects in the secondary copy comprise first data objects that correspond to unidentified data objects that do not match the filtering criteria and second data objects that correspond to the identified data objects that do match the filtering criteria.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the abbreviated version of the secondary copy comprises a listing of the identified data objects, wherein the listing does not include the unidentified data objects.

17. (canceled)

18. (canceled)

19. (canceled)