Data access and management system as well as a method for data access and data management for a computer system

• US 7,000,084 B2
• Filed: 07/10/2001
• Issued: 02/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/1999
• Status: Expired

• Current Assignee: AC Technologies SA
• Original Assignee: AC Technologies SA
• Inventors: Binzinger, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Vital, Pierre M.
• Application Number:
  US09/903,431
• Publication Number:
  US 20020152363A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,680 Days
• Field of Search: 711/112, 711/114, 711/161, 711/162, 711/165, 365/189.12, 365/240, 714/6
• US Class Current: 711/162
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2094 Redundant storage or storage space G06F11/2056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0604 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. storage management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/065 Replication mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• 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

The present invention permits improved data access and improved data management in a computer system. To this end, data are divided into individual partial data (F) and stored in cells (Z) of storage devices (C) in such a way that the partial data (F) being accessed and managed are present in the computer system in a redundant manner. Computer units (CL) are able to access the redundantly stored data. The fact that they are stored in the storage devices (C) ensures that the computer units (CL) accessing said data are supplied more rapidly. This is achieved in particular owing to the fact that the redundantly stored data are accessed in accordance with parameters of data transmissions between the computer units (CL) and the data storage devices (C) and that, in accordance with said data transmission parameters, the redundantly stored data are moved to and from the data storage devices (C) by corresponding copy and delete operations.

Claims

1. A data access and management system for a computer system, comprising:

at least two data storage means;

at least one computer unit which accesses the data of the data storage means;

data transmission means for a data transmission between the data storage means and the computer unit, with the data being stored in a redundant manner in at least two of the at least two data storage means; and

means for detecting prespecified parameters of the data transmission between the data storage means and the computer unit, with data being preferably stored in a redundant manner in the data storage means as a function of said detected prespecified parameters, and with the computer unit accessing one of the data storage means as a function of said detected prespecified parameters, the data storage means comprising a second means for detecting prespecified parameters for data transmissions between said data storage means; and

wherein the data storage means copies data which is redundantly stored in the system independent of an access of the computer unit as a function of the detected prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the data storage means.

2. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein each of said data storage means comprise control units for controlling the data access and the data management.

3. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the data storage means copy redundantly stored data in the system among each other as a function of the detected prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the individual data storage means and the computer unit and delete the data in the data storage means in which it had been stored beforehand.

4. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the data storage means process the stored data independent from the computer unit.

5. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the data in the system is divided into data subsets, and the data storage means are divided into cells in such a manner tat data subsets to be stored in a redundant manner are stored in one each of the cells of the corresponding data storage means.

6. A data access and management system as recited in claim 5 wherein the data storage means are divided into cells depending on data transmission parameters.

7. A data access and management system as recited in claim 5 wherein each cell comprises additional data for data access and data management which relates to the parameters of data transmissions between at least one of the individual data storage means, the computer unit, neighbouring cells, and cells which comprise data which is stored in the system in a redundant manner.

8. A data access and management system as recited in claim 5 wherein the cells interchange data among each other which is used for the data access and the data management.

9. A data access and management system as recited in claim 5 wherein the parameters of data transmission between the individual data storage means and the computer unit are identical for the cells of a data storage means.

10. A data access and management system as recited in claim 5 wherein the computer unit immediately accesses individual cells of the data storage means.

11. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the computer unit operates to perform at least one of outputting data for storage in the data storage means and processing data stored in the data storage means.

12. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the computer unit is connected with a user for at least one of transmitting the received data and control by the user.

13. A data access and management system as recited in claim 12 wherein the user is at least one of a personal computer, a central processing unit of a computer, and an additional data storage means.

14. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the computer unit is a system which provides Internet services.

15. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the detected prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the individual data storage means and the computer unit comprise at least one of the duration of the transmission, the fault rate, and the duration of data processing operations of the individual data storage means prior to the transmission of the data.

16. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 wherein the data transmission means comprise at least one of electrically conductive connections, bus systems, computer networks, wired telephone networks, wireless telephone networks, and the Internet.

17. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 for use with a database system or a computer structure which manages data by means of the data access and management system.

18. A data access and management system as recited in claim 1 for use in a system for a computer game which is provided via the Internet.

19. A data access and management system as recited in claim 18 wherein at least one computer unit is an Internet service provider.

20. A data access and management system as recited in claim 18 wherein the computer game is an interactive computer game to be used by at least two users.

21. A data access and management system as recited in claim 20 wherein each user is connected with one computer unit each.

22. A data access and management system as recited in claim 20 wherein the computer units transmit data for the execution of the computer game to the respective users.

23. A data access and management system as recited in claim 22 wherein the users process the received data for executing the computer game and transmit said processed received data beck to the corresponding computer units.

24. A data access and management system as recited in claim 18 wherein additional means are provided for detecting prespecified parameters of the data transmission between the computer units and the respectively connected users.

25. A data access and management system as recited in claim 24 wherein the detected prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the computer units and the respectively connected users comprise at least one of the duration of the transmission, the fault rate, the duration of data processing operations of the individual computer units, and the individual users prior to the transmission of the data.

26. A data access and management system as recited in claim 24 wherein the data for executing the computer game is stored in a redundant manner as a function of the detected prespecified parameters of the data transmission between the computer units and the respectively connected users.

27. A data access and management system as recited in claim 18 wherein the computer units receive control for the execution of the computer game from the respective users.

28. A data access and management system as recited in claim 27 wherein the computer units output the control data or equivalent data to the data storage means.

29. A data access and management system as recited in claim 27 wherein the computer units process data for executing the computer game depending on at least one of the control data, and the data storage means process data for executing the computer game, depending on the control data or on data equivalent to the control data.

30. A method for data access and data management for a computer system, comprising:

storing data in at least two data storage means;

accessing the stored data by at least one computer unit via data transmission means, with prespecified parameters of the data transmission between the data storage means and the computer unit being determined, the data being stored in a redundant manner in at least two of the at least two data storage means as a function of the determined prespecified parameters of the data transmission, the access to the data being effected as a function of the determined prespecified parameters of the data transmission;

detecting prespecified parameters for data transmissions between the data storage means; and

shifting redundantly stored data independent of an access of the computer unit to the data as a function of the determined prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the data storage means.

31. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the data access and the data management are controlled by the data storage means.

32. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 further including the steps of copying redundantly stored data among each other by the data storage means as a function of the determined prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the individual data storage means and the computer unit and deleting in the data storage means in which the copied data had been previously stored.

33. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 further including the step of processing the data by the data storage means independently of the computer unit.

34. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 further including the step of dividing the data into data subsets, with the data subsets to be stored in a redundant manner being stored in cells of the individual data storage means.

35. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 34 wherein additional data for data access and data management are exchanged between the cells of the data storage means.

36. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 34 wherein the access is made directly to the data of individual cells of the data storage means.

37. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the division into data subsets and the storage in the cells are carried out as a function of the data transmission parameters.

38. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein additional data for data access and data management is stored in the cells, which relate to at least one of the parameters of data transmissions between the individual data storage means, the computer unit, neighbouring cells, and cells which comprise the data redundantly stored in the system.

39. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the access to data of cells of a data storage means has identical data transmission parameters.

40. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein data is at least one of output by the computer unit for storage in the data storage means and the data stored in the data storage means is processed by the computer unit.

41. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the user either receives data transmitted by the computer unit, or controls the computer unit, or both.

42. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the method provides Internet services.

43. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the determination of the prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the individual data storage means and the computer unit comprises at least one of the determination of the duration of the transmission, the fault rate, and the duration of data processing operations of the individual data storage means prior to the transmission of the data.

44. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 for use with a database system or a computer structure which manages data by means of said method for data access and data management.

45. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 for use with a computer game which is provided via the Internet and in accordance with said method for data access and data management.

46. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 45 wherein at least two users access the computer game, the computer game being an interactive computer game.

47. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 46 wherein the data for executing the computer game is transmitted from the computer units to the respective users.

48. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 47 wherein the data received by the users are processed by the users and transmitted back to the corresponding computer units.

49. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 45 further comprising the step of determining prespecified parameters of the data transmission between the computer units and the respected users connected therewith.

50. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 49 wherein the determination of the prespecified parameters of data transmissions between the computer units and the respective users connected therewith comprises at least one of the determination of the duration of the transmission, the fault rate, the duration of data processing operations of the individual computer units, and the individual users prior to the transmission of the data.

51. A method for data access and data management, as recited in claim 49 wherein the redundant storage of the data for the execution of the computer game is carried out as a function of the determined prespecified parameters of the data transmission between the computer units and the respective users connected therewith.

52. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 45 wherein control data for the execution of the computer game is additionally transmitted by the users to the corresponding computer units.

53. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 52 wherein the control data or equivalent data is transmitted from the computer units to the data storage means.

54. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 52 wherein the data for executing the computer game is processed by at least one of the computer units as a function of the control data and the data storage means as a function of the control data or of data equivalent to the control data.

55. A method for data access and data management as recited in claim 30 wherein the access to data in the data storage means comprises the employment of an Internet service provider which operates as a computer unit.