Method and apparatus for managing access to volumes of storage

• US 7,502,960 B1
• Filed: 04/19/2006
• Issued: 03/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Emc IP Holding Company LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: EMC Corporation (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: D'Errico, Matthew J., Todd, Stephen J., Blumenau, Steven M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilson; Yolanda L
• Application Number:
  US11/406,849
• Time in Patent Office: 1,056 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 714/13
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2066 Optimisation of the communication load
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2094 Redundant storage or storage space G06F11/2056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0617 in relation to availability
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/065 Replication mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0689 Disk arrays, e.g. RAID, JBOD

Abstract

One embodiment is directed to a method in a computer system including a host computer and at least one storage system including first and second storage volumes, the host computer including at least one application program executing thereon. The method comprises acts of intercepting and redirecting an access request from the at least one application program to the first storage volume to the second storage volume. Other embodiments are directed to a computer readable medium with instructions for performing the method, a host computer with at least one controller to intercept and redirect the access request. Other aspects are directed to methods in a computer system including a host computer, a first storage system including a first storage volume, and a second storage system including a second storage volume, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume. One method comprises an act of servicing a read request to the second storage volume while maintaining the second storage volume as an active hardware mirror of the first storage volume. Another method comprises an act of, in response to a failure preventing access from the host computer to the first storage volume, servicing access requests directed to the first storage volume from the second storage volume without reconfiguring the host computer.

Claims

1. In a computer system including a host computer and at least one storage system including a first storage volume and a second storage volume, the host computer including at least one application program executing thereon, a method comprising acts of:

(A) intercepting, before it reaches the at least one storage system, an access request from the at least one application program to the first storage volume; and

(B) redirecting said access request to the second storage volume, so that the access request is forwarded to the at least one storage system and can be serviced by the second storage volume.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second storage volume is a mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the mirror of the first storage volume.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the acts (A) and (B) are performed in a manner that is transparent to the at least one application program.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one application program includes a database management system application program.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the access request is a read request.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer system includes multiple host computers and multiple instances of the at least one application program executing simultaneously on the multiple host computers and sharing access to the first volume;

and

wherein the act (A) includes an act of intercepting an access request from a first instance of the at least one application program to the first storage volume.

7. The method of claim 6, further including an act of, in parallel with the acts (A) and (B), passing requests from a second instance of the at least one application program to the first volume.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least one storage system includes a first storage system that stores the first storage volume and a second storage system that stores the second storage volume, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one storage system includes a first storage system that stores the first storage volume and a second storage system that stores the second storage volume, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer system includes multiple host computers and multiple instances of the at least one application program executing simultaneously on the multiple host computers and sharing access to the first volume, the at least one application program including a database management system application program;

and

wherein the act (A) includes an act of intercepting an access request from a first instance of the database management system application program.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the at least one storage system includes a first storage system that stores the first storage volume and a second storage system that stores the second storage volume, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one application program lacks access privileges to read from the second storage volume.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second storage volumes are included on a same storage system.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one storage system includes a first storage system that stores the first storage volume and a second storage system that stores the second storage volume.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.

17. A computer readable storage medium encoded with instructions for execution on a computer system including a host computer and at least one storage system including a first storage volume and a second storage volume, the host computer including at least one application program executing thereon, the instructions, when executed, perform a method comprising acts of:

(A) intercepting, before it reaches the at least one storage system, an access request from the at least one application program to the first storage volume; and

(B) redirecting said access request to the second storage volume, so that the access request is forwarded to the at least one storage system and can be serviced by the second storage volume.

18. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the second storage volume is a mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the mirror of the first storage volume.

19. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the acts (A) and (B) are performed in a manner that is transparent to the at least one application program.

20. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the at least one application program includes a database management system application program.

21. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the access request is a read request.

22. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the computer system includes multiple host computers and multiple instances of the at least one application program executing simultaneously on the multiple host computers and sharing access to the first volume;

and

wherein the act (A) includes an act of intercepting an access request from a first instance of the at least one application program to the first storage volume.

23. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the computer system includes multiple host computers and multiple instances of the at least one application program executing simultaneously on the multiple host computers and sharing access to the first volume, the at least one application program including a database management system application program;

and

wherein the act (A) includes an act of intercepting an access request from a first instance of the database management system application program.

24. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the at least one application program lacks access privileges to read from the second storage volume.

25. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.

26. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the first and second storage volumes are stored on a same storage system.

27. A computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the at least one storage system includes a first storage system that stores the first storage volume and a second storage system that stores the second storage volume.

28. A computer readable storage medium of claim 27, wherein the second storage volume is a hardware mirror of the first storage volume, and wherein the act (B) includes an act of redirecting said access request to the hardware mirror of the first storage volume.