Storage system and data relocation control device

• US 7,096,338 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2004
• Issued: 08/22/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Beniyama, Nobuo, Takahashi, Toru, Aoshima, Tatsundo, Kuroda, Takaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Padmanabhan, Mano
• Assistant Examiner(s): Walter, Craig E
• Application Number:
  US10/975,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20060047930A1
• Time in Patent Office: 662 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 711/165
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/061 Improving I/O performance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0637 Permissions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0665 at area level, e.g. provisioning of virtual or logical volumes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability

Abstract

The present invention achieves data relocation in accordance with a user'"'"'s policies, in an environment where a plurality of storage devices are combined. The volumes belonging to storage devices A–D are managed virtually integrally. A host recognizes a plurality of storage devices A–D as a single virtual storage device. The user is able to group the volumes belonging to the storage system, as a plurality of storage layers 1–3. For example, storage layer 1 can be defined as a high-reliability layer, storage layer 2, as a low-cost layer, and storage layer 3, as an archive layer. Each storage layer is constituted by a group of volumes corresponding to respective policies (high reliability, low cost, archiving). The user designates volumes to be moved V1 and V2, in group units, and indicates a storage layer forming a movement destination, whereby the data is relocated.

Claims

1. A storage system comprising:

first and second storage devices, each of which includes a plurality of physical storages and a controller coupled to the plurality of physical storages, said first and second storage devices having at least one logical volume configured by at least one of the plurality of physical storages in the respective first or second storage device;

a virtualization device adapted to be coupled to a computer system, and coupled to the first storage device via a first communication path and to the second storage device via a second communication path, said virtualization device being adapted to manage a map between the logical volumes in the first and second storage devices and at least one virtual volume constituted by at least one of the logical volumes so that the virtualization device is able to present the logical volumes in the first and second storage devices via the at least one virtual volume to the computer system; and

a management device, coupled to the virtualization device, which stores volume attribute information of the logical volumes, defines storage layers each including at least two of said logical volumes of said first and second storage devices and spanning the first and second storage devices, based upon the stored volume attribute information of the logical volumes and a policy, relocates a designated source volume from an originating storage layer among the defined storage layers to a designated target storage layer among the defined storage layers with respect to the policy.

2. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the policy can be set as desired by a user, and a same logical volume can belong to different storage layers.

3. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the management device relocates a plurality of designated source volumes, in units of migration groups, each migration group consisting of a plurality of volumes.

4. The storage system according to claim 3, wherein each migration group is composed of a plurality of volumes storing mutually related data.

5. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the management device manages prescribed processing that has been associated previously with the designated target storage layer, with respect to the relocated volume, when the designated source volume has been relocated to the designated target storage layer.

6. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein, when the management device is to relocate the designated source volume to the designated target storage layer, the virtualization device invokes a copy operation of data of said designated source volume to a target volume belonging to the designated target storage layer, and upon completion of the copy operation, changes the access path, from the designated source volume to the designated target volume.

7. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein the management device selects a target candidate volume to which the storage contents of the designated source volume can be copied, and presents the target candidate volume selected by the management device, to the user;

and

wherein the management device refers to the volume attribute information and thereby selects a volume having matching essential attributes that are previously established from among the attributes of the designated source volume, as the target candidate volume.

8. The storage system according to claim 7, wherein, if there are a plurality of target candidate volumes having the matching essential attributes, then the management device selects one of said target candidate volumes, on the basis of the degree of matching of other attributes apart from the essential attributes.

9. The storage system according to claim 8, wherein the management device changes the target candidate volume selected by the management device, and causes the target candidate volume to be selected from among the target candidate volumes that have the matching essential attributes but are not selected.

10. The storage system according to claim 7, wherein the attribute information comprises static attributes and dynamic attributes, and prescribed attributes of the static attributes are set as the essential attributes.

11. The storage system according to claim 7, wherein the essential attributes include, at the least, the storage capacity of the volume.

12. The storage system according to claim 1, having storage layer management information containing policy identification information for identifying each of a plurality of policies, and layer composition conditions respectively associated with each of the policy identification information;

wherein said storage layers are generated to correspond to the policies respectively by means of a group of logical volumes satisfying the respective layer composition conditions.

13. The storage system according to claim 12, wherein the layer composition conditions include at least one of the Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (RAID) level, the drive type, the storage capacity, the type of storage device, the device number of the storage device, and the use status.

14. A storage system comprising:

first and second storage devices, each of which includes a plurality of physical storages and a controller coupled to the plurality of physical storages, said first and second storage devices having at least one logical volume configured by at least one of the plurality of physical storages in the respective first or second storage device; and

a volume virtualization device adapted to be coupled to a computer system, and coupled to the first storage device via a first communication path and to the second storage device via a second communication path, said volume virtualization device being adapted to manage a map between the logical volumes in the first and second storage devices and at least one virtual volume constituted by at least one of the logical volumes so that the volume virtualization device is able to present the logical volumes in the first and second storage devices via the at least one virtual volume to the computer system, and which stores volume attribute information of the logical volumes, defines storage layers each including at least two of said logical volumes of said first and second storage devices and spanning the first and second storage devices, based upon the stored volume attribute information of the logical volumes and a policy, and relocates a designated source volume from an originating storage layer among the defined storage layers to a designated target storage layer among the defined storage layers with respect to the policy.

15. The storage system according to claim 14, wherein the policy can be set as desired by a user, and a same logical volume can belong to different storage layers.

16. The storage system according to claim 14, wherein the volume virtualization device relocates a plurality of designated source volumes, in units of migration groups, each migration group consisting of a plurality of volumes.

17. The storage system according to claim 16, wherein each migration group is composed of a plurality of volumes storing mutually related data.

18. The storage system according to claim 14, wherein the volume virtualization device manages prescribed processing that has been associated previously with the designated target storage layer, with respect to the relocated volume, when the designated source volume has been relocated to the designated target storage layer.

19. The storage system according to claim 14, wherein, when the volume virtualization device is to relocate the designated source volume to the designated target storage layer, the volume virtualization device invokes a copy operation of data of said designated source volume to a target volume belonging to the designated target storage layer, and upon completion of the copy operation, changes the access path, from the designated source volume to the designated target volume.

20. The storage system according to claim 14, wherein the volume virtualization device selects a target candidate volume to which the storage contents of the designated source volume can be copied, and presents the target candidate volume selected by the volume virtualization device, to the user;

and

wherein the volume virtualization device refers to the volume attribute information and thereby selects a volume having matching essential attributes that are previously established from among the attributes of the designated source volume, as the target candidate volume.

21. The storage system according to claim 20, wherein, if there are a plurality of target candidate volumes having the matching essential attributes, then the volume virtualization device selects one of said target candidate volumes, on the basis of the degree of matching of other attributes apart from the essential attributes.

22. The storage system according to claim 21, wherein the volume virtualization device changes the target candidate volume selected by the volume virtualization device, and causes the target candidate volume to be selected from among the target candidate volumes that have the matching essential attributes but are not selected.

23. The storage system according to claim 22, wherein the attribute information comprises static attributes and dynamic attributes, and prescribed attributes of the static attributes are set as the essential attributes.

24. The storage system according to claim 20, wherein the essential attributes include, at the least, the storage capacity of the volume.

25. The storage system according to claim 14, having storage layer management information containing policy identification information for identifying each of a plurality of policies, and layer composition conditions respectively associated with each of the policy identification information;

wherein said storage layers are generated to correspond to the policies respectively by means of a group of logical volumes satisfying the respective layer composition conditions.

26. The storage system according to claim 25, wherein the layer composition conditions include at least one of the Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (RAID) level, the drive type, the storage capacity, the type of storage device, the device number of the storage device, and the use status.

27. A storage system comprising:

first and second storage devices, each of which includes a plurality of physical storages and a controller coupled to the plurality of physical storages, said first and second storage devices having at least one logical volume configured by at least one of the plurality of physical storages in the respective first or second storage device; and

a third storage device adapted to manage a map between the logical volumes in the first and second storage devices and at least one virtual volume constituted by at least one of the logical volumes so that the third storage device is able to present the logical volumes in the first and second storage devices via the at least one virtual volume to a computer system, and which stores volume attribute information of the logical volumes, defines storage layers each including at least two of said logical volumes of said first and second storage devices and spanning the first and second storage devices, based upon the stored volume attribute information of the logical volumes and a policy, and relocates a designated source volume from an originating storage layer among the defined storage layers to a designated target storage layer among the defined storage layers with respect to the policy.

28. The storage system according to claim 27, wherein the policy can be set as desired by a user, and a same logical volume can belong to different storage layers.

29. The storage system according to claim 27, wherein the third storage device relocates a plurality of designated source volumes, in units of migration groups, each migration group consisting of a plurality of volumes.

30. The storage system according to claim 29, wherein each migration group is composed of a plurality of volumes storing mutually related data.

31. The storage system according to claim 27, wherein the third storage device manages prescribed processing that has been associated previously with the designated target storage layer, with respect to the relocated volume, when the designated source volume has been relocated to the designated target storage layer.

32. The storage system according to claim 27, wherein, when the third storage device is to relocate the designated source volume to the designated target storage layer, the third storage device invokes a copy operation of data of said designated source volume to a target volume belonging to the designated target storage layer, and upon completion of the copy operation, changes the access path, from the designated source volume to the designated target volume.

33. The storage system according to claim 27, wherein the third storage device selects a target candidate volume to which the storage contents of the designated source volume can be copied, and presents the target candidate volume selected by the third storage device, to the user;

and

wherein the third storage device refers to the volume attribute information and thereby selects a volume having matching essential attributes that are previously established from among the attributes of the designated source volume, as the target candidate volume.

34. The storage system according to claim 33, wherein, if there are a plurality of target candidate volumes having the matching essential attributes, then the third storage device selects one of said target candidate volumes, on the basis of the degree of matching of other attributes apart from the essential attributes.

35. The storage system according to claim 34, wherein the third storage device changes the target candidate volume selected by the third storage device, and causes the target candidate volume to be selected from among the target candidate volumes that have the matching essential attributes but are not selected.

36. The storage system according to claim 33, wherein the attribute information comprises static attributes and dynamic attributes, and prescribed attributes of the static attributes are set as the essential attributes.

37. The storage system according to claim 33, wherein the essential attributes include, at the least, the storage capacity of the volume.

38. The storage system according to claim 27, having storage layer management information containing policy identification information for identifying each of a plurality of policies, and layer composition conditions respectively associated with each of the policy identification information;

wherein said storage layers are generated to correspond to the policies respectively by means of a group of logical volumes satisfying the respective layer composition conditions.

39. The storage system according to claim 38, wherein the layer composition conditions include at least one of the Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks (RAID) level, the drive type, the storage capacity, the type of storage device, the device number of the storage device, and the use status.