ASSET BROWSING AND RESTORATION OVER A NETWORK USING PRE-STAGING AND DIRECTORY STORAGE

• US 20160274979A1
• Filed: 11/01/2013
• Published: 09/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Longsand Limited (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Longsand Limited (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Boucher, Mike, Ficara, Joseph S.
• Granted Patent: US 10,671,491 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1464 for networked environments
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/172 Caching, prefetching or hoarding of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/50 Allocation of resources, e.g. of the central processing unit [CPU]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 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]

Abstract

Example embodiments relate to asset browsing and restoration over a network using on demand staging. A method may include accessing a compound asset in the storage system and restoring it as a staged asset in a staging area of the storage access system before receiving an indication from a client device to browse at least a portion of the compound asset. The method may include accessing the internal structure of the staged asset to generate an asset directory, wherein the asset directory indicates discrete items within the compound asset. The method may include storing the asset directory in the storage access system. The method may include providing the stored asset directory or a portion of the stored asset directory to the client device over a network in response to an indication from the client device to browse the compound asset.

Claims

1. A method executed in a storage access system for browsing and restoring assets of a storage system, the method comprising:

accessing a compound asset in the storage system and restoring it as a staged asset in a staging area of the storage access system before receiving an indication from a client device to browse at least a portion of the compound asset;

accessing the internal structure of the staged asset to generate an asset directory, wherein the asset directory indicates discrete items within the compound asset;

storing the asset directory in the storage access system; and

providing the stored asset directory or a portion of the stored asset directory to the client device over a network in response to an indication from the client device to browse the compound asset.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the asset directory is stored in a directory repository along with other asset directories that were proactively created for other compound assets.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a subsequent portion of the stored asset directory to the client device over a network in response to a subsequent indication from the client device to browse the compound asset such that portions of the asset directory are provided on-the-fly in response to browsing indications of the client.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing at least a portion of the compound asset in the storage system and restoring it as a staged asset in the staging area of the storage access system, wherein the accessing is performed on demand in response to an indication from the client device of at least one of the discrete items to restore; and

accessing the internal structure of the staged asset to generate at least one restored item.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising providing the at least one restored item to the client device over the network without providing all the data of the compound asset to the client device over the network.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising removing or deleting the staged asset from the storage access system once the asset directory is stored in the storage access system.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein restoring the staged asset in the staging area includes configuring multiple component pieces of data of the compound asset such that the staged asset is a contiguous, sequential chain of data.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the multiple component pieces of data of the compound asset are stored in the storage system across more than one storage device of the storage system or in a non-contiguous manner.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the accessing the internal structure of the staged asset to generate the asset directory is performed using an application programming interface (API).

10. A storage access system for asset browsing and restoration, the storage access system comprising:

an asset finder to retrieve a compound asset in a storage system, wherein the retrieval is performed without receiving an indication from a client device to browse at least a portion of the compound asset;

an asset stager to store the compound asset as a staged asset that is a contiguous, sequential chain of data;

a directory repository to store asset directories that are proactively created for the compound asset and other compound assets; and

a directory creator to access the internal structure of the staged asset to generate an asset directory and store the asset directory in the directory repository, wherein the asset directory indicates discrete items within the compound asset.

11. The storage access system of claim 10, where the directory creator causes the asset directory to be sent to the client device over a network in response to an indication from the client device to browse the compound asset.

12. The storage access system of claim 10, wherein the asset finder is further to access at least a portion of the compound asset in the storage system that relates to at least one discrete item, the storage access system further comprising an item server to provide the at least one discrete item of the compound asset to the client in response to the client indicating the at least one discrete item using the provided asset directory.

13. The storage access system of claim 10, wherein the retrieval is performed after a defined period of time since the last time the asset directory was created or changed.

14. A machine-readable storage medium encoded with instructions executable by a processor of a storage access system for asset browsing and restoration, the machine-readable storage medium comprising:

instructions to access a compound asset in the storage system and restore it as a staged asset in a staging area of the storage access system before receiving an indication from a client device to browse at least a portion of the compound asset;

instructions to access the internal structure of the staged asset to generate an asset directory, wherein the asset directory indicates discrete items within the compound asset;

instructions to store the asset directory in the storage access system; and

instructions to provide the stored asset directory or a portion of the stored asset directory to the client device over a network in response to an indication from the client device to browse the compound asset.

15. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising:

instructions to access at least a portion of the compound asset in the storage system and restore it as a staged asset in the staging area of the storage access system, wherein the access is performed on demand in response to an indication from the client device of at least one of the discrete items to restore; and

instructions to access the internal structure of the staged asset to generate at least one restored item.