SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR USING FAILURE CASTING TO MANAGE FAILURES IN A COMPUTED SYSTEM

• US 20140201565A1
• Filed: 01/11/2013
• Published: 07/17/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teradata Corporation
• Original Assignee: Teradata Corporation
• Inventors: Candea, George, Bawa, Mayank, Argyros, Anastasios
• Granted Patent: US 9,684,554 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/6.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0727 in a storage system, e.g. in a DASD or network based storage system drivers for digital recording or reproducing units G06F3/06; circuits for error detection or correction within digital recording or reproducing units G11B20/18; 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], H04L67/1097
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/079 Root cause analysis, i.e. error or fault diagnosis in a hardware test environment G06F11/22; in a software test environment G06F11/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1417 Boot up procedures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1666 where the redundant component is memory or memory area
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2069 Management of state, configuration or failover
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2284 by power-on test, e.g. power-on self test [POST]

Abstract

A system and method for using failure casting to manage failures in computer system. In accordance with an embodiment, the system uses a failure casting hierarchy to cast failures of one type into failures of another type. In doing this, the system allows incidents, problems, or failures to be cast into a (typically smaller) set of failures, which the system knows how to handle. In accordance with a particular embodiment, failures can be cast into a category that is considered reboot-curable. If a failure is reboot-curable then rebooting the system will likely cure the problem. Examples include hardware failures, and reboot-specific methods that can be applied to disk failures and to failures within clusters of databases. The system can even be used to handle failures that were hitherto unforeseen failures can be cast into known failures based on the failure symptoms, rather than any underlying cause.

Claims

1-36. -36. (canceled)

37. A method of managing failures in a computing system, wherein the method is implemented at least partly by a device, and wherein the method comprises:

detecting a failure of a first failure type in the computing system;

casting the first failure type to a second failure type, different that the first failure type, wherein the second failure type has an associated failure recovery; and

attempting to resolve the first failure type by using the failure recovery associated with the second failure type.

38. The method of 37, wherein the attempting to resolve the first failure type by using the failure recovery associated with the second failure type occurs at boot and/or start-up time.

39. The method of 37, wherein the computing system includes an array of devices and the first and second failure types are associated with failures of the array of devices.

40. The method of 37, wherein the method further comprises:

using a failure casting hierarchy in a script that includes a set of non-reboot curable failures that are checked at boot time, and if a device exhibits a failure upon bootup within the set of non-reboot-curable failures, then the disk is not added to the array of devices.

41. A device that includes one or more processors configured to manage failures in a computing system at least by:

detecting a failure of a first failure type in the computing system;

casting the first failure type to a second failure type, different that the first failure type, wherein the second failure type has an associated failure recovery; and

attempting to resolve the first failure type by using the failure recovery associated with the second failure type.

42. The device of claim 41, wherein the attempting to resolve the first failure type by using the failure recovery associated with the second failure type occurs at boot and/or start-up time.

43. The device of claim 41, wherein the computing system includes an array of devices and the first and second failure types are associated with failures of the array of devices.

44. The device of claim 41, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

use a failure casting hierarchy in a script that includes a set of non-reboot curable failures that are checked at boot time, and if a device exhibits a failure upon bootup within the set of non-reboot-curable failures, then the disk is not added to the array of devices.

45. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing at least executable code for managing failures in a computing system, wherein the executable code when executed at least:

detects a failure of a first failure type in the computing system;

casts the first failure type to a second failure type, different that the first failure type, wherein the second failure type has an associated failure recovery; and

attempts to resolve the first failure type by using the failure recovery associated with the second failure type.