Real-time remote backup system and related method

• US 7,315,959 B2
• Filed: 05/05/2004
• Issued: 01/01/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: FUJIFILM Healthcare Corp. (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: IEI Integration Corp.
• Inventors: Wu, Chih-Sung
• Primary Examiner(s): MASKULINSKI, MICHAEL C
• Application Number:
  US10/709,426
• Publication Number:
  US 20050160313A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,336 Days
• Field of Search: 714/6
• US Class Current: 714/6.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2056 by mirroring
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99955 Archiving or backup

Abstract

A real-time remote backup system and related method used for a network system connecting at least one source computer system and one destination computer system is disclosed. The system includes a loadable kernel module capable of presetting up at least one specific system call in the kernel space of the source computer system. Besides the kernel software, the specific system call can notify the loadable kernel module to generate a corresponding file modification message when a file modification event occurs in the user space of the source computer system. A scheduling module sequentially queues and implements the file modification messages from the loadable kernel module, and then generates a corresponding backup command according to each said file modification message. And, a network backup unit installed in the source computer system is facilitated to directly back up variant part of the file through the network system to the destination computer system when receiving the backup command transmitted from the scheduling module.

Claims

1. A real-time remote backup system used in a network system connecting at least one source computer system and one destination computer system, each computer system consisting of a kernel space and a user space, and the backup system comprising:

a loadable kernel module that pre-sets up at least a specific system call defined by a user within the kernel space of the source computer system, receiving a notification generated from the pre-set system call to generate a corresponding file modification message when a file modification event conforming to the specific system call occurs in the user space of the source computer system;

a scheduling module queuing each said file modification message from the loadable kernel module, and then generating a corresponding backup command in response to each said file modification message; and

at least one network backup unit installed in the source computer system, in accordance with a file information of a known modified file provided within the backup command, performing a checksum test to determine a variant part of the known modified file and backing-up the variant part of the known modified file through the network system to the destination computer system when receiving each backup command transmitted from the scheduling module.

2. The backup system of claim 1 wherein the loadable kernel module further comprises a replacement unit for replacing an original system call in the source computer system with the specific system call.

3. The backup system of claim 2, further including a graphical user interface (GUI) having an automatic network backup switch for enabling the user to switch on/off an automatic network backup function, so that the replacement unit of the loadable kernel module will switch to the original system call when the automatic network backup function is switched off.

4. The backup system of claim 1 wherein the loadable kernel module further comprises:

a call determining unit determining whether the specific system call is one of a plurality of predetermined system calls; and

a message processing unit generating the file modification message to the scheduling module, when the call determining unit determines that the specific system call is one of a plurality of predetermined system calls.

5. The backup system of claim 1 wherein the file modification message comprises at least the filename and the path of the known modified file.

6. The backup system of claim 1, wherein the scheduling module further comprises a queue unit for accommodating the file modification messages in sequence from the loadable kernel module.

7. The backup system of claim 6, wherein the scheduling module further comprises a schedule managing unit for queuing sequentially each said message into the queue unit, and a schedule processing unit for sequentially reading the messages out the queue unit and transmitting the backup commands according to the messages.

8. The backup system of claim 7 wherein the schedule managing unit and the schedule processing unit use a same algorithm.

9. The backup system of claim 8 wherein the algorithm used by both the schedule managing unit and the schedule processing unit is in coordination with an algorithm used by the network backup unit to prevent data from losing during the transmission process of said message and command.

10. The backup system of claim 9 wherein the schedule managing unit and the schedule processing unit respectfully have at least one specific thread for defining an adjustable optimized time interval.

11. The backup system of claim 1 wherein the backup command comprises at least a path of the known modified file.

12. The backup system of claim 1 wherein the destination computer system further comprises another one same network backup unit for receiving backup data from the source computer system.

13. A real-time remote backup system installed in a source computer system connected to a destination computer system through a network system, each computer system comprising at least one kernel space for a kernel and a user space for a network backup unit, and the backup system comprising:

a loadable kernel module that pre-sets up at least one specific system call defined by a user in the kernel space of the source computer system, generates a corresponding file modification message, according to the type of the system call, to notify the kernel when a file modification event conforming to the specific system call occurs in the user space of the source computer system, wherein the loadable kernel module comprises a replacement unit for replacing an original system call in the source computer system with the specific system call; and

a scheduling module sequentially queuing and processing each said file modification message transmitted from the loadable kernel module to generate a corresponding backup command to facilitate that the network backup unit of the source computer system backs-up a modified file to the destination computer system through the network system.

14. The backup system of claim 13, wherein the file modification message comprises at least a filename and a path of the modified file.

15. The backup system of claim 13, wherein the backup command comprises at least a path of the modified file.

16. A method of real-time remote backup used in a network system interconnecting between at least one source computer system and one destination computer system, each computer system consisting of a kernel space and a user space, and the method comprising:

implementing a specific system call defined by a user that is pre-loaded by a loadable kernel module in the kernel space of the source computer system, to notify a kernel of the source computer system of a file modification event when the tile modification event conforming to the specific system call occurs in the user space of the source computer system;

notifying the loadable kernel module of said file modification event to determine whether a file modification message should be generated with reference to the type of the specific system call, as soon as the specific system call is implemented;

queuing in sequence each said file modification message into a queue unit;

sequentially taking and processing the file modification messages from the queue unit to generate a corresponding backup command; and

utilizing a network backup unit for performing a checksum test to determine a variant part of a known modified file according to a file information of the known modified file provided therein and backing-up the variant part of the known modified file to the destination computer system through the network.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the file modification message comprises at least a filename and a path of the modified file.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the backup command comprises at least a path of the modified file.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the loadable kernel module only generates the file modification message if the system call is one of a plurality of predetermined system calls.

20. A real-time remote backup, system used in a network system connecting at least one source computer system and one destination computer system, each computer system consisting of a kernel space and a user space, and the backup system comprising:

a loadable kernel module that pre-sets up at least a specific system call within the kernel space of the source computer system to generate a corresponding file modification message when a file modification event occurs in the user space of the source computer system;

at least one network backup unit installed in the source computer system, in accordance with a file information provided within the backup command, backing-up a variant part of a file through the network system to the destination computer system when receiving a backup command;

a schedule managing unit for queuing sequentially each said message into a queue unit; and

a schedule processing unit for sequentially reading the messages from the queue unit and transmitting backup commands according to the messages;

wherein both the schedule managing unit and the schedule processing unit use an algorithm which is in coordination with an algorithm used by the network backup unit.

21. The backup system of claim 20 wherein the schedule managing unit and the schedule processing unit respectfully have at least one specific thread for defining an adjustable optimized time interval.