Self-archiving data recording
First Claim
1. In the method of operating a data storage unit having a continuous address space bounded by first and second addresses and respectively representing data storage areas of said data storage unit addressably accessible by addresses in said address space;
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repeatedly receiving records of diverse data for storage in the data storage unit, storing said received data in said data storage areas beginning at said first addressed data storage area and proceeding sequentially at successively addressed ones of said data storage areas toward said second addressed data storage area;
each time any of said received records of data are stored in said data storage areas, creating a record directory entry having an identification of the received and just stored records of data and an address pointer identifying the data storage area in which said received and just stored records of data are stored; and
storing said created record directory entries respectively in data storage areas of said data storage unit beginning at said second address and storing successively created ones of said entries respectively at successive addressed ones of said data storage areas beginning at said second address and proceeding sequentially toward said first address.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Data recording is self-archiving by non-delete recording combined with a directory that grows with each recording in a manner that all previous recordings related to the respective files or data sets are pointed to in the directory. Non-delete recording is applicable to those record media exhibiting indelible characteristics, such as write-once optical media and to rewritable media, such as magnetic recording media of all types. Each directory entry is identified by file or data set name and has one field for each data segment currently a part of the file or data set. Each field has a pointer to its represented data irrespective of when it was recorded. Each directory entry also points to the entry associated with the immediately preceding recording operation on any part of the file or data set such that data changes can be traced using the directory. The directory is stored in one address end portion of the data storing medium while the data is stored in the opposite address end portion--the directory is preferably at the low addresses while the data is at the high addresses. The directory recording is at ever increasing addresses while the data recording is at ever decreasing addresses.
42 Citations
25 Claims
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1. In the method of operating a data storage unit having a continuous address space bounded by first and second addresses and respectively representing data storage areas of said data storage unit addressably accessible by addresses in said address space;
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the steps of;
repeatedly receiving records of diverse data for storage in the data storage unit, storing said received data in said data storage areas beginning at said first addressed data storage area and proceeding sequentially at successively addressed ones of said data storage areas toward said second addressed data storage area;each time any of said received records of data are stored in said data storage areas, creating a record directory entry having an identification of the received and just stored records of data and an address pointer identifying the data storage area in which said received and just stored records of data are stored; and storing said created record directory entries respectively in data storage areas of said data storage unit beginning at said second address and storing successively created ones of said entries respectively at successive addressed ones of said data storage areas beginning at said second address and proceeding sequentially toward said first address. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. In the method of operating a data processing apparatus having a data storage unit having a plurality of addressable data storage areas;
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the steps of; repeatedly receiving records of diverse data for storage in the data storage unit, each of said received records of data having an identifying name therewith, a plurality of received records sharing a common identifying name, some of said received records are being received to update predetermined ones of records currently stored in the data storage unit, respectively, while others of said currently stored records are not being updated; creating a record directory entry for all of said received records having a common identifying name and which were concurrently received, including in each said created record directory entry said common name and the addresses of the data storage area of all records stored in said data storage unit having said common name, which are not being updated by said concurrently received records, irrespective of time of receipt and storage of such included records and including said currently received records; and storing each said created record directory entry in a data storage area of said data storage unit and retaining in said data storage unit all current copies of the directory entries and of concurrently stored data. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. In a data processing apparatus including data storage means for storing data, in combination:
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a data storage unit having a large plurality of data storage areas addressable by addresses in an address space bounded by first and second addresses with the addresses in the address space being sequentially increasing from the first address to the second address; data receiving means connected to said data storage unit for supplying records of data thereto for recording in predetermined ones of said data storage areas, data set means in said data receiving means for identifying said supplied data by record and data set names and for supplying data processing commands which indicate data processing operations, such as recording supplied data, to be performed; record directory control means connected to said data receiving means including said data set means for responding to said data set means supplied data set name to identify a stored copy of data in said addressable data storage areas identifiable by said supplied data set name, record directory creating means in said record directory control means for creating record directory entries and connected to said addressable data storage areas for storing said created record directory entries, fetching means in said record directory control means connected to said addressable data storage areas for fetching a record directory entry identified by said data set means supplied data set name, merge means in said record directory control means connected to said fetching means and to said receiving means and to said record directory creating means for transferring address pointers from said fetched record directory entry of all records represented by said receiving means supplied data set name that do not correspond to any of said supplied records of data to said record directory creating means such that said record directory creating means creates a record directory entry containing addresses of all records stored in said data storage unit related to said supplied data set name whether supplied by the receiving means or currently stored in the data storage unit and not corresponding to supplied records which update records currently stored in the data storage unit and said record directory creating means storing the just created record directory entry in a unused one of said addressable data storage areas and maintaining a copy of said fetched record directory entry in its data storage area; and storage control means connected to said data receiving means and to said data storage areas for storing supplied records only in unused data storage areas while maintaining storage of all previous copies of such supplied records whereby the data storage unit stores supplied records and creates record directory entries without deleting any previously stored record directory entries or records of data. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. For a data storage unit having a data storage area with a given continuous address space identifiable from area zero to area end, a directory for identifying the locations of data stored in said data storage unit by using said continuous address space, including, in combination:
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a first entry stored in said data storage unit in a first data storage area of said data storage unit and containing an identification of a group of related records of data stored in the data storage unit and a plurality of address pointers of said continuous address space pointing respectively to data stored in the data storage unit at diverse ones of said data storage areas and the extent of data storage space storing said first entry being a first extent determined by a fixed amount of data storage space plus a second extent determined by the number of pointers to the stored data; and a second entry stored in said data storage unit in a second data storage area of said data storage unit and spaced from said first data storage area so that the addresses of said first and second data storage areas are not successive addresses in said continuous address space, said second entry having said identification of data stored and a plurality of address pointers of said continuous address space pointing to stored data stored in said data storage unit as indicated in said first entry by predetermined ones of its said data address pointers, said predetermined ones being less than the number of data address pointers of said first entry and including additional data address pointers to data stored in said data storage unit since said first entry was stored in said data storage unit except that some of said additional address pointers point to stored data as an update of data currently stored in said data storage unit. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification