Method of relocating file and system therefor

• US 5,355,475 A
• Filed: 10/24/1991
• Issued: 10/11/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Togawa, Akihiko, Inoue, Taro, Tanaka, Kazuaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Kriess, Kevin A.
• Application Number:
  US07/782,076
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 395/425, 395/650, 395/700, 395/400, 395/155, 395/156, 395/159, 395/600
• US Class Current: 707/829
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2003/0697 device management, e.g. handlers, drivers, I/O schedulers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0601 Interfaces specially adapted for storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/956 Hierarchical
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99956 File allocation

Abstract

In a computer system which includes storage units of a hierarchy structure, a method of relocating a file stored in a source storage unit includes the steps of determining an access indicator indicative of the efficiency of access to the file in response to a relocation instruction, determining a relocating destination storage unit of the file in the storage hierarchy, and relocating the file in the determined destination storage unit.

Claims

1. In a computer system including storage units arranged in a storage hierarchy structure, a method of relocating a file stored in a source storage unit, said method being executed by a computer, comprising the steps of:

generating a relocate instruction, upon executing at least a job, in accordance with a difference between an expected execution time preset for the job and an actual execution time of the job in response to a user'"'"'s relocate request;

determining an access indicator indicative of efficiency of access to the file in accordance with said relocate instruction;

determining a destination storage unit in the storage hierarchy structure to which the file is to be relocated in accordance with the determined access indicator; and

relocating the file to the determined destination storage unit.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of generating the relocate instruction in response to an instruction indicative of a modification of a storage unit configuration when a system generation program is executed for specifying a system configuration of a computer system.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of storage units are grouped in a plurality of pools, and the method further comprises the step of generating the relocate instruction in response to an instruction representing a modification of a pool configuration when a pool configuration define program is executed for defining pools.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein said step of determining a destination storage unit comprises the steps of:

determining a destination layer of the file in the storage hierarchy structure in accordance with the determined access indicator; and

determining the destination storage unit so as to make equal, as much as possible, access frequencies among storage units in the determined destination layer.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein said

determining a destination storage unit step includes the step of determining whether data contained in the file actually needs to be transferred, and

said relocating step includes the step of, when it is determined that the data contained in the file actually need not be transferred, transferring management information of the file and selectively reserving a region for the file in the destination storage unit, in accordance with attributes of the file.

6. In a computer system including storage units which are grouped, a method of relocating a file, said method being executed by a computer, comprising the steps of:

storing an identifier for specifying at least one storage unit including a source storage unit belonging to a group;

displaying on a screen the identifier, a figure representing the group, a figure representing an objective storage unit, and an identifier for specifying the objective storage unit;

generating a relocate request in response to a manipulation for overlapping the figure representing the objective storage unit separate with the figure representing the group or a manipulation for separating the figure representing the objective storage unit from the figure representing the group;

generating a relocation instruction, upon executing at least a job, in accordance with a difference between an expected execution time preset for the job and an actual execution time of the job in response to said relocate request;

determining a destination storage unit for files stored in the source storage unit in the group in accordance with the relocation instruction; and

relocating the files in the determined destination storage unit.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein said step of determining a destination storage unit comprises the step of determining the destination storage unit for the files belonging to the group in accordance with an access indicator indicative of efficiency of access to the file.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein said step of determining a destination storage unit includes the step of determining whether the file can be relocated to the destination storage unit.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein said determining step comprises the step of determining whether the relocation is possible in accordance with a busy ratio of the destination storage unit expected when the file is relocated to the destination storage unit.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising the step of generating a message for recommending extension of a storage unit when it is determined at said determining step that the file cannot be relocated.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein said determining step includes the step of determining whether the relocation can be completed within an allowable time.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein

said determining step includes the step of determining whether data contained in the file actually need be transferred, and

said relocating step includes the step of, when it is determined that the data contained in the file actually need not be transferred, transferring management information of the file and selectively reserving a region for the file in the destination storage unit in accordance with attributes of the file.

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein

said determining step includes the step of determining whether data contained in the file actually need be transferred, and

said relocating step includes the step of, when it is determined that the data contained in the file actually need not be transferred, transferring management information of the file and selectively reserving a region for the file in a destination storage unit in accordance with attributes of the file.

14. A computer system comprising:

a plurality of storage units in a storage hierarchy, a file being stored in a source storage unit;

generating means for generating a relocation instruction, upon executing at least a job, in accordance with a difference between an expected execution time preset for the job and an actual execution time of the job in response to a user'"'"'s relocate request;

access indicator determining means for determining an access indicator indicative of efficiency of access to the file in accordance with said relocation instruction;

relocating destination determining means for determining a destination storage unit in the plurality of storage units as a relocating destination of the file in accordance with the determined access indicator; and

a relocating means for relocating the file to the determined destination storage unit.

15. A computer system comprising:

a plurality of storage units respectively having an identifier and collected as groups, each of the groups including one or more storage units;

display means for displaying a figure representing a particular group, identifiers of one or more storage units in the particular group, a figure representing an objective storage unit, and an identifier for specifying the objective storage unit;

position moving means for moving a position at which the figure representing the objective storage unit is displayed;

instruction generating means for generating a relocation request in response to a manipulation for overlapping the figure representing the objective storage unit with the figure representing the particular group or a manipulation for separating the figure representing the objective storage unit from the figure representing the particular group;

generating means for generating a relocation instruction, upon executing at least a job, in accordance with a difference between an expected execution time preset for the job and an actual execution time of the job in response to said relocate request;

means for determining a destination storage unit as a relocating destination of files stored in a source storage unit belonging to the particular group in accordance with the relocation instruction; and

relocating means for relocating the files in the determined destination storage unit.

16. In a computer system including storage units arranged in a storage hierarchy structure, a method of relocating a file stored in a source storage unit, said method being executed by a computer, comprising the steps of:

generating a relocation instruction, upon executing at least a job, in accordance with a difference between an expected execution time preset for the job and an actual execution time of the job in response to a user'"'"'s relocate request;

determining an access indicator indicative of efficiency of access to the file in accordance with said relocation instruction;

determining a destination storage unit in the storage hierarchy structure to which the file is to be relocated in accordance with the determined access indicator, determining whether the file can be relocated in the destination storage unit, and determining whether the relocation can be completed within an allowable time designated by the user; and

relocating the file to the determined destination storage unit.

17. In a computer system including storage units arranged in a storage hierarchy structure, a method of relocating a file stored in a source storage unit, said method being executed by a computer, comprising the steps of:

generating a relocation instruction in response to an instruction indicative of a modification of a storage unit configuration of said storage hierarchy structure when a system generation program is executed for specifying a system configuration of a computer system;

when a plurality of storage units are grouped in a plurality of pools, generating the relocation instruction in response to an instruction representing a modification of a pool configuration when a pool configuration define program is executed by said computer for defining pools;

determining an access indicator indicative of efficiency of access to the file in accordance with said relocate instruction;

determining a destination storage unit in the storage hierarchy structure to which the file is to be relocated in accordance with the determined access indicator; and

relocating the file to the determined destination storage unit.

18. In a computer system including storage units arranged in a storage hierarchy structure, a method of relocating a file stored in a source storage unit, said method being executed by a computer, comprising the steps of:

generating a relocation instruction, upon executing at least a job, in accordance with a difference between an expected execution time preset for the job and an actual execution time of the job in response to a user'"'"'s relocate request;

determining an access indicator indicative of efficiency of access to the file in accordance with said relocation instruction;

determining a destination storage unit in the storage hierarchy structure to which the file is to be relocated in accordance with the determined access indicator;

determining whether data contained in the file actually needs to be transferred;

when it is determined that the data contained in the file actually needs to be transferred, relocating the file to the determined destination storage unit; and

when it is determined that the data contained in the file actually need not be transferred, transferring management information of the file and selectively reserving a region for the file in the destination storage unit, in accordance with attributes of the file.