Virtual disk drive system and method

• US 7,404,102 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2007
• Issued: 07/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell International LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Compellent Technologies Incorporated (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Klemm, Michael J., Soran, Philip E., Guider, John P., Aszmann, Lawrence E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Iqbal; Nadeem
• Application Number:
  US11/689,877
• Publication Number:
  US 20070180306A1
• Time in Patent Office: 488 Days
• Field of Search: 714 5- 8, 714/13, 714/42, 714/15
• US Class Current: 714/5.11
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/108 Parity data distribution in semiconductor storages, e.g. in SSD
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1435 using file system or storage system metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1461 Backup scheduling policy
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1471 involving logging of persistent data for recovery
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2089 Redundant storage control functionality
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/02 Addressing or allocation; Relocation program address sequencing G06F9/00; arrangements for selecting an address in a digital store G11C8/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0608 Saving storage space on storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0611 in relation to response time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0631 by allocating resources to storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/064 Management of blocks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/065 Replication mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0659 Command handling arrangements, e.g. command buffers, queues, command scheduling
• 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: G06F 3/0683 Plurality of storage devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0689 Disk arrays, e.g. RAID, JBOD

Abstract

A disk drive system and method capable of dynamically allocating data is provided. The disk drive system may include a RAID subsystem having a pool of storage, for example a page pool of storage that maintains a free list of RAIDs, or a matrix of disk storage blocks that maintain a null list of RAIDs, and a disk manager having at least one disk storage system controller. The RAID subsystem and disk manager dynamically allocate data across the pool of storage and a plurality of disk drives based on RAID-to-disk mapping. The RAID subsystem and disk manager determine whether additional disk drives are required, and a notification is sent if the additional disk drives are required. Dynamic data allocation and data progression allow a user to acquire a disk drive later in time when it is needed. Dynamic data allocation also allows efficient data storage of snapshots/point-in-time copies of virtual volume pool of storage, instant data replay and data instant fusion for data backup, recovery etc., remote data storage, and data progression, etc.

Claims

1. A system of data instant replay, comprising:

a RAID subsystem having a pool of storage; and

a disk manager having at least one disk storage system controller;

wherein the RAID subsystem and the disk manager dynamically allocate data across the pool of storage and a plurality of disk drives based on RAID-to-disk mapping; and

a disk storage system controller for automatically generating a snapshot of the pool of storage at predetermined time intervals and storing an address index of the snapshot or delta in the pool of storage such that the snapshot or delta of the pool of storage can be instantly located via the stored address index;

wherein the disk storage system controller monitors frequency of data use from the snapshots of the pool of storage and applies an aging rule such that the less frequently used or accessed data is moved to the less expensive RAID subsystem.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein when data in the less expensive RAID subsystem starts to be used more frequently, the controller moves the data to the more expensive RAID subsystem, thereby significantly reducing cost of the disk drive system.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the pool of storage is a page pool of storage that maintains a free list of RAIDs.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the pool of storage is a matrix of disk storage blocks that maintains a null list of RAIDs.