Apparatus and Method for Resource Alerts

• US 20140281330A1
• Filed: 03/13/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Baldwin, Duane M., Patil, Sandeep R., Shiraguppi, Riyazahamad M., Barrera, Clodoaldo
• Granted Patent: US 9,251,050 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 711/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3034 where the computing system component is a storage system, e.g. DASD based or network based digital input from or digital output to record carriers G06F3/06; digital recording or reproducing 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 11/3037 where the computing system component is a memory, e.g. virtual memory, cache accessing, addressing or allocating within memory systems or architectures G06F12/00; checking stores for correct operation G11C29/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3055 Monitoring arrangements for monitoring the status of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring if the computing system is on, off, available, not available error or fault processing without redundancy G06F11/0703; error detection or correction by redundancy in data representation G06F11/08; error detection or correction by redundancy in operation G06F11/14; error detection or correction by redundancy in hardware G06F11/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/023 Free address space management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/50 Allocation of resources, e.g. of the central processing unit [CPU]

Abstract

A method of managing resource allocations in a storage system provisioning system, including monitoring write applications that result in new storage block allocations during a current time slice, calculating a time remaining to exceed actual capacity of allocated storage blocks, if the calculated remaining time does exceed length of next time slice immediately transmitting an alert when an estimated number of future write requests exceeds a predetermined threshold, and if the calculated remaining time does exceed length of next time slice immediately transmitting an alert when an estimated number of future write requests exceeds a predetermined threshold, wherein a duration of a time slice is set by a storage system administrator based upon a current storage library setup and a time required to arrange a new storage device when a thin provisioning device is going out of disk space.

Claims

1. A method of managing resource allocations in a storage system provisioning system, comprising:

monitoring write applications that result in new storage block allocations during a current time slice;

based upon said monitoring, calculating a time remaining to exceed actual capacity of allocated storage blocks;

if said calculated remaining time does not exceed length of next time slice, transmitting an alert; and

if said calculated remaining time does exceed length of next time slice, immediately transmitting an alert when an estimated number of future write requests exceeds a predetermined threshold.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a record, during each of a plurality of time slices, of a number of data write requests initiated by each of a plurality of applications;

calculating a remaining time to exceed all space usage; and

identifying applications currently requiring allocation of additional storage blocks;

transmitting information reciting said calculated remaining time and said identified applications.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the information identifies a listing of applications that have initiated a number of write requests that exceeds the average number of data write requests for each one of the plurality of applications.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the number of future write requests is estimated using the formula:

α

*Total Allocation in Current Time Slice+(1−

α

)*Average of Past Allocation Counts,

where α

is a system defined parameter.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein α

is set to 0, wherein the number of future write requests is set to equal a total allocation in a current time slice.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein α

is set to 1, wherein the number of future write requests is set to equal an average of past allocation counts.

7. The method of claim 1, including identifying a second number of data write requests initiated by each one of the plurality of applications that result in a deallocation of physical resources.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the write requests are issued by clients to the provisioning system.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein a duration of each one of the plurality of time slices is set by a storage system administrator based upon a current storage library setup and a time required to arrange a new storage device when a thin provisioning device is going out of disk space.

10. The method of claim 1, including identifying a second number of virtual block data write requests initiated by each one of a plurality of applications that does not result in an allocation of previously unallocated physical resources.

11. An article of manufacture comprising a processor and a non-transitory data storage medium comprising computer readable program code encoded therein to managing resource allocations in a storage system provisioning system, the computer readable program code comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect:

maintaining a record, during each of a plurality of time slices, of a number of virtual block data write requests initiated by each one of a plurality of applications that result in an allocation of previously unallocated physical resources;

monitoring write applications that result in new storage block allocations during a current time slice;

based upon said monitoring, calculating a time remaining to exceed actual capacity of allocated storage blocks;

if said calculated remaining time does not exceed length of next time slice, transmitting an alert; and

if said calculated remaining time does exceed length of next time slice, immediately transmitting an alert when an estimated number of future write requests exceeds a predetermined threshold.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 11, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect:

maintaining a record, during each of a plurality of time slices, of a number of data write requests initiated by each of a plurality of applications;

calculating a remaining time to exceed all space usage; and

identifying applications currently requiring allocation of additional storage blocks;

transmitting information reciting said calculated remaining time and said identified applications.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 12, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect generating information that identifies a listing of applications that have initiated a number of write requests that exceeds the average number of data write requests for each one of the plurality of applications.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 11, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect estimating the number of future write requests using the formula:

α

*Total Allocation in Current Time Slice+(1−

α

)*Average of Past Allocation Counts,

where α

is a system defined parameter.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 14, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect setting a to 0, wherein the number of future write requests is set to equal a total allocation in a current time slice.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 14, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect setting α

to 1, wherein the number of future write requests is set to equal an average of past allocation counts.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 11, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect identifying a second number of data write requests initiated by each one of the plurality of applications that result in a deallocation of physical resources.

18. The article of manufacture of claim 11, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect issuing write requests by clients to the provisioning system.

19. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein a duration of each one of the plurality of time slices is set by a storage system administrator based upon a current storage library setup and a time required to arrange a new storage device when a thin provisioning device is going out of disk space.

20. The article of manufacture of claim 11, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect identifying a second number of virtual block data write requests initiated by each one of a plurality of applications that does not result in an allocation of previously unallocated physical resources.

21. A storage provisioning system comprising a processor, a non-transitory data storage medium comprising computer readable program code encoded therein to managing resource allocations, and a tranche distributed repository wherein the contents of all files on the repository are hashed, and a unique hash is used as a token to access each file, the computer readable program code comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect:

maintaining a record, during each of a plurality of time slices, of a number of virtual block data write requests initiated by each one of a plurality of applications that result in an allocation of previously unallocated physical resources;

monitoring write applications that result in new storage block allocations during a current time slice;

based upon said monitoring, calculating a time remaining to exceed actual capacity of allocated storage blocks;

if said calculated remaining time does not exceed length of next time slice, transmitting an alert; and

if said calculated remaining time does exceed length of next time slice, immediately transmitting an alert when an estimated number of future write requests exceeds a predetermined threshold.

22. The storage provisioning system of claim 21, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect:

maintaining a record, during each of a plurality of time slices, of a number of data write requests initiated by each of a plurality of applications;

calculating a remaining time to exceed all space usage; and

identifying applications currently requiring allocation of additional storage blocks;

transmitting information reciting said calculated remaining time and said identified applications.

23. The storage provisioning system of claim 22, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect generating information that identifies a listing of applications that have initiated a number of write requests that exceeds the average number of data write requests for each one of the plurality of applications.

24. The storage provisioning system of claim 21, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect estimating the number of future write requests using the formula:

α

*Total Allocation in Current Time Slice+(1−

α

)*Average of Past Allocation Counts,

where α

is a system defined parameter.

25. The storage provisioning system of claim 24, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect setting α

to 0, wherein the number of future write requests is set to equal a total allocation in a current time slice.

26. The storage provisioning system of claim 24, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect setting α

to 1, wherein the number of future write requests is set to equal an average of past allocation counts.

27. The storage provisioning system of claim 21, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect identifying a second number of data write requests initiated by each one of the plurality of applications that result in a deallocation of physical resources.

28. The storage provisioning system of claim 21, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect issuing write requests by clients to the provisioning system.

29. The storage provisioning system of claim 21, wherein a duration of each one of the plurality of time slices is set by a storage system administrator based upon a current storage library setup and a time required to arrange a new storage device when a thin provisioning device is going out of disk space.

30. The storage provisioning system of claim 21, said computer readable program code further comprising a series of computer readable program steps to effect identifying a second number of virtual block data write requests initiated by each one of a plurality of applications that does not result in an allocation of previously unallocated physical resources.