System and method for fibrechannel fail-over through port spoofing

• US 6,715,098 B2
• Filed: 10/23/2001
• Issued: 03/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2001
• Status: Expired

• Current Assignee: FalconStor, Inc (Hale Capital Management LP)
• Original Assignee: FalconStor, Inc (Hale Capital Management LP)
• Inventors: Chen, Sheng-Wei, McNulty, Stephen Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Beausoliel, Robert
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bonzo, Bryce P.
• Application Number:
  US10/047,919
• Publication Number:
  US 20020133746A1
• Time in Patent Office: 889 Days
• Field of Search: 714/3, 714/5, 714/13, 714/48
• US Class Current: 714/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2028 eliminating a faulty processor or activating a spare
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2033 switching over of hardware resources
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2046 where the redundant components share persistent storage G06F11/2043 takes precedence

Abstract

In a system for appliance back-up, a primary appliance is coupled to a network, whereby the primary appliance receives requests or commands and sends a status message over the network to a standby appliance, which indicates that the primary appliance is operational. If the standby appliance does not receive the status message or the status message is invalid, the standby appliance writes a shutdown message to a storage device. The primary appliance then reads the shutdown message stored in the storage device and disables itself from processing requests or commands. When the primary appliance completes these tasks, it disables communication connections and writes a shutdown completion message to the storage device. The standby appliance reads the shutdown completion message from the storage device and initiates a start-up procedure. This procedure causes the address of the standby appliance to be identical to the primary appliance address, and the standby appliance processes the requests or commands in place of the primary appliance.

Claims

1. A system for appliance back-up comprising:

a network;

a storage device coupled to the network; and

a primary appliance and a standby appliance coupled to the network, the primary appliance receiving requests or commands and sending a status message via the network to the standby appliance indicating that the primary appliance is operational,

wherein if the standby appliance does not receive the status message or the status message is invalid;

the standby appliance writes a shutdown message to a storage device,

the primary appliance reads the shutdown message stored in the storage device and disables itself from processing requests or commands, and

the standby appliance causes a standby appliance address to be identical to a primary appliance address and processes the requests or commands.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the primary appliance completes tasks and disables communication connections.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the primary appliance writes a shutdown completion message to the storage device.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the standby appliance reads the shutdown completion message from the storage device and initiates a start-up procedure.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the primary appliance includes a primary application and the standby appliance includes a standby application, the standby application being identical to the primary application.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the primary appliance includes a first fibrechannel adapter having associated therewith the primary appliance address and the standby appliance includes a second fibrechannel adapter having associated therewith the standby appliance address.

7. A method for appliance back-up comprising:

sending a status message from a primary appliance to a standby appliance indicating that the primary appliance is operational;

if the standby appliance does not receive the status message or the status message is invalid;

writing a shutdown message to a storage device;

reading the shutdown message stored in the storage device;

disabling the primary appliance from processing requests or commands;

causing a standby appliance address to be identical to a primary appliance address; and

causing the standby appliance to process the requests or commands.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the disabling further comprises completing tasks and disabling communication connections.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the disabling further comprises writing a shutdown completion message to the storage device.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

reading the shutdown completion message from the storage device; and

initiating a start-up procedure.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the primary appliance includes a primary application and the standby appliance includes a standby application, identical to the primary application, for processing the requests or commands.

12. A method for appliance back-up comprising:

monitoring a primary appliance for an indication of a failure, the primary appliance having a primary appliance address,

wherein if the failure occurs;

writing a message to a storage device;

in response to the message, disabling the primary appliance from processing requests or commands;

causing a standby appliance address of a standby appliance to be identical to the primary appliance address; and

processing the requests or commands.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the monitoring further comprises sending a status message to the standby appliance indicating that the primary appliance is operational.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the monitoring further comprises sending a status request message to the primary appliance and receiving an update status message from the primary appliance.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the failure is the status message is not sent to the standby appliance.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the message is written if the standby appliance does not receive the status message or the status message is invalid.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the disabling further comprises completing tasks and disabling communication connections.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the disabling further comprises writing a shutdown completion message to the storage device.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

reading the shutdown completion message from the storage device; and

initiating a start-up procedure.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the message is written if the standby appliance does not receive the update status message or the update status message is invalid.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the disabling further comprises completing tasks and disabling communication connections.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the disabling further comprises writing a shutdown completion message to the storage device.

23. The method of claim 12, wherein the standby appliance address and the primary appliance address are world wide port names.

24. The method of claim 12, wherein the primary appliance includes a primary application and the standby appliance includes a standby application, identical to the primary application, for processing the requests or commands.