System and method for predicting storage device failures

• US 6,460,151 B1
• Filed: 07/26/1999
• Issued: 10/01/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wieland, Peter W., Warwick, Alan M., Naik, Dilip C.
• Primary Examiner(s): TU, CHRISTINE TRINH LE
• Application Number:
  US09/360,566
• Time in Patent Office: 1,163 Days
• Field of Search: 714/718, 714/37, 714/40, 714/42, 714/46, 714/47, 714/48, 714/54
• US Class Current: 714/718
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/008 Reliability or availability analysis
• 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 11/3055 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: H04L 41/147 for predicting network behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning

Abstract

A method and system for detecting and reporting storage hardware failure prediction is disclosed. The method and system provide a standardized mechanism for any type of storage device to predict and report storage failures. This includes SMART SCSI devices, SMART ATA/ATAPI devices, non-SMART SCSI devices, non-SMART ATA/ATAPI devices, proprietary storage devices, and others such as CD-ROM drives, DVD ROMs, tape drives, and RAM disks. A device driver obtains failure prediction status information and propagates it to a management application. The information may be propagated via a failure prediction filter driver used to perform statistical analysis or proprietary access to the hardware. In a Windows operating environment, information is propagated from the device driver through a Windows Management Instrumentation component. The Windows Management Instrumentation component bridges the gap across user mode and kernel mode, thereby allowing management applications in user mode to obtain information from device drivers residing in kernel mode. A standardized set of APIs is provided for performing storage device failure prediction.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable components for a standardized method of predicting storage device failures, said components comprising:

(a) at least one device driver component having an interface to a storage device;

(b) at least one storage management driver component operative to receive storage device failure status information from said at least one device driver; and

(c) at least one management application component operative to execute upon a host system, wherein said at least one storage management driver component propagates the storage device failure status information from said at least one device driver to said management application component.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein:

(a) said device driver component and said storage management driver component reside in a kernel mode; and

(b) said management application component resides in a user mode.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising a management system instrumentation provider component, wherein said storage management driver component propagates the storage device failure status information from said device driver component to said management application component via said management system instrumentation provider component.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the storage device is a SMART SCSI device.

5. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the storage device is a SMART ATA/ATAPI device.

6. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the storage device is a non-SMART storage device.

7. The computer-readable medium of claim 6, wherein the non-SMART storage device is a selected one from a group comprising a tape storage device, a CD-ROM, a DVD ROM, and a RAM disk.

8. The computer-readable medium of claim 3, wherein said management system instrumentation provider component is Windows Management instrumentation extensions to Windows Driver Model.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein:

(a) a first portion of the Windows Management Instrumentation extensions to Windows Driver Model resides in a kernel mode; and

(b) a second portion of the Windows Management Instrumentation extensions to Windows Driver Model resides in a user mode.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising a failure prediction agent, wherein the failure prediction agent resides in a user mode.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising a display component, wherein said display component provides a mechanism for a user to view the storage device failure status information.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising at least one failure prediction filter driver component, wherein said failure prediction filter driver component interfaces with said device driver component.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein said failure prediction filter driver component comprises at least one of the following:

(a) a statistical analysis component, wherein said statistical analysis component determines whether a storage device failure has occurred; and

(b) a device communication component, wherein said device communication component sends non-standard and proprietary commands directly to the storage device.

14. A computer implemented method for predicting storage device failures, said method comprising:

(a) transmitting storage device failure status information from a device driver component to a storage management driver component;

(b) determining whether the storage management driver component should propagate the storage device failure status information; and

(c) if the storage management driver component should propagate the storage device failure status information, propagating the storage device failure information to a management application component.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein propagating the storage device failure status information to the management application component comprises propagating the storage device failure status information via a management system instrumentation provider component.

16. A computer implemented method for predicting storage device failures, said method comprising:

(a) transmitting a request for storage device failure status information, wherein the request is transmitted by a management application component to at least one device driver component via a storage management driver component;

(b) determining the requested storage device failure status information; and

(c) propagating the storage device failure status information to the management application component via the storage management driver component.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein said computer implemented method accomplishes said propagating the storage device failure status information comprises propagating the storage device failure status information via a Windows Management Instrumentation extensions to Windows Driver Model component.

18. A computer implemented method for predicting storage device failures, said method comprising:

(a) querying at least one storage device connected to a host computer for status information using a procedure that is uniform for a variety of storage devices connected to the host computer;

(b) determining if a storage failure error should be reported based on the storage device status information; and

(c) if the storage failure error should be reported, reporting the storage failure error.

19. The computer implemented method of claim 18, wherein the variety of storage devices comprises SMART SCSI devices and SMART ATA/ATAPI devices.

20. The computer implemented method of claim 18, wherein the variety of storage devices comprises a non-SMART device.

21. The computer implemented method of claim 20, wherein the non-SMART device is a selected one from a group comprising:

a tape storage device, a CD-ROM, a DVD ROM, and a RAM disk.

22. The computer implemented method of claim 18, wherein querying the storage device comprises:

(a) querying the storage device based on the type of device, wherein a SMART SCSI device is queried by sending a read request and interpreting a resultant sense code, a SMART ATA/ATAPI device is queried using a read SMART status command, and a non-SMART device query is determined based on the specific type of device; and

(b) determining the storage device status information based on a result returned from the query.

23. The computer implemented method of claim 18, further comprising performing a statistical analysis to determine if a storage failure error should be reported.

24. The computer implemented method of claim 18, further comprising repeating (a)-(c) in response to a triggering event.

25. The computer implemented method of claim 24, wherein the triggering event is an expiration of a time interval.

26. The computer implemented method of claim 24, wherein the triggering event is a request.