COMPUTER SYSTEM AND MANAGEMENT METHOD FOR THE COMPUTER SYSTEM AND PROGRAM

• US 20140317297A1
• Filed: 06/30/2014
• Published: 10/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kono, Yasutaka, HARA, JUNICHI
• Granted Patent: US 9,088,528 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0629 Configuration or reconfiguration of storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/762 triggered by the network
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/9994 Distributed or remote access

Abstract

Even when a configuration in which instances of plural kinds of storage management software having equivalent functions are arranged to cooperatively manage a large-scale storage system is adopted, to prevent occurrence of a management inoperability and configuration information inconsistency and enable the same management operation and information reference as those performed when all management target objects are managed by a single instance. In the present invention, a representative management computer serving as a representative among management computers is determined. The representative management computer collects, from storage apparatuses and host computers, information concerning the management target objects and configuration summary information including a relation type among the objects and determines, on the basis of the configuration summary information, management target objects which each of the management computers should take charge of.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

at least one host computer;

at least one storage subsystem coupled to the at least one host computer and which is configured to provide the at least one host computer with information; and

a plurality of management computers which are coupled to the at least one storage subsystem and the at least one host computer and which are configured to manage a plurality of management target objects included in the at least one storage subsystem and the at least one host computer,

wherein one of the plurality of management computers is configured to serve as a representative management computer among the plurality of management computers,

wherein at least one of the management computers other than the representative management computer is configured to

detect a change of configuration summary information which includes relation type information indicating a relation among the plurality of management target objects, and

notify the representative management computer of the change of the configuration summary information, and

wherein the representative management computer is configured to allocate the management target objects having a correspondence relation as management target objects to be taken charge of by a same computer, based on the notification of the change of the configuration summary information by the at least one of the management computers other than the representative management computer.

2. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of kinds of relation type information are present,

at least the representative management computer is configured to store information concerning priority of the relation type information as an indicator for determining whether the plurality of management target objects are preferentially allocated to the same computer, and

the representative management computer is configured to determine in-charge allocation to the plurality of management computers of the plurality of management target objects by taking into account priority of the relation type information.

3. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein:

the representative management computer is configured to allocate a management target object allocated to a management computer in the past to the same management computer as the management computer to which the management target object was previously allocated.

4. A computer system according to claim 3, wherein:

the representative management computer is configured to allocate a new management target object not allocated in the past to the management computer on the basis of the relation type information and, when there is a predetermined deviation in a number of the management target objects allocated to the plurality of management computers as a result of allocation processing, determine the management computers which take charge of the plurality of management target objects.

5. A computer system according to claim 4, wherein the representative management computer is configured to:

reduce the relation type information to be taken into account,

following the reduction of the relation type information, again determine the management computers which take charge of the plurality of management target objects.

6. A computer system according to claim 2, wherein:

the relation type information includes information about the management target objects being in a local copy relation, in a cluster formation relation, in the correspondence relation, and being present in an external storage,

the management target objects being in the local copy relation are set to have a highest priority, and

the representative management computer is configured to always allocate the management target objects in the local copy relation to the same management computer.

7. A computer system according to claim 1, wherein the representative management computer is configured to:

collect, from the at least one host computer and the at least one storage subsystem, site information indicating arrangement locations of the at least one host computer and the at least one storage subsystem, and

determine, on the basis of the site information and the configuration summary information, management target objects for which each of the plurality of management computers should aggregate and take charge.

8. A management method for a computer system including:

at least one host computer;

at least one storage subsystem coupled to the at least one at least one host computer and configured to provide the at least one host computer with information; and

a management computer which is coupled to the at least one storage subsystem and the at least one host computer and configured to manage a plurality of management target objects included in the at least one storage subsystem and the at least one host computer, the management computer including a processor and a memory and being configured to provide a plurality of virtual management servers which manage the plurality of management target objects,

the management method comprising;

providing one of the plurality of management computers to serve as a representative management computer among the plurality of management computers,

detecting, by at least one of the management computers other than the representative management computer, a change of configuration summary information which includes relation type information indicating a relation among the plurality of management target objects,

notifying the representative management computer of the change of the configuration summary information, and

allocating, by the representative management computer, the management target objects having a correspondence relation as management target objects to be taken charge of by a same computer, based on the notification of the change of configuration summary information by the at least one of the management computers other than the representative management computer.

9. The management method according to claim 8, further comprising:

providing, by the processor, the plurality of virtual management servers with information concerning a priority of the relation type information used as an indicator for determining whether the plurality of management target objects are preferentially allocated to a same virtual management server,

wherein the allocating comprises determining an in-charge allocation to the plurality of virtual management servers of the plurality of management target objects by taking into account the priority of the relation type information, and

wherein a plurality of kinds of relation type information are present.

10. The management method according to claim 8, wherein:

the allocating comprises allocating a management target object allocated to a virtual management server in the past to the same virtual management server as the virtual management server.

11. The management method according to claim 10, wherein:

the allocating comprises allocating, to a new management target object not allocated to a virtual management server in the past, the virtual management server on the basis of the relation type information, and

the management method further comprises subsequently allocating, by the processor, when there is a predetermined deviation in a number of the management target objects allocated to the plurality of virtual management servers as a result of allocation processing, the virtual management servers which take charge of the plurality of management target objects.

12. The management method according to claim 11, wherein:

the subsequent allocating comprises determining, after reduction of the relation type information which should be taken into account, the virtual management servers which take charge of the plurality of management target objects.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium for a computer system including at least one host computer coupled to at least one storage subsystem that provides information to the at least one host computer, and a plurality of management computers coupled to the at least one storage subsystem and the at least one host computer, which plurality of management computers is configured to manage a plurality of management target objects in the at least one host computer and the at least one storage system, the computer-readable storage medium having

instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause one of the plurality of management computers to perform operations comprising:

providing one of the plurality of management computers to serve as a representative management computer among the plurality of management computers,

detecting, by at least one of the management computers other than the representative management computer, a change of configuration summary information which includes relation type information indicating a relation among the plurality of management target objects,

notifying the representative management computer of the change of the configuration summary information, and

allocating, by the representative management computer, the management target objects having a correspondence relation as management target objects to be taken charge of by a same computer, based on the notification of the change of the configuration summary information by the at least one of the management computers other than the representative management computer.