Disk control unit and storage system

• US 7,600,047 B2
• Filed: 08/24/2004
• Issued: 10/06/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Tanaka, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Vaughn, Jr.; William C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Serrao; Ranodhi N
• Application Number:
  US10/923,732
• Publication Number:
  US 20050210130A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,869 Days
• Field of Search: 709/250, 709/232, 370/351
• US Class Current: 709/250
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1446 Point-in-time backing up or restoration of persistent data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2071 using a plurality of controllers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2074 Asynchronous techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0607 by facilitating the process of upgrading existing storage systems, e.g. for improving compatibility between host and storage device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0638 Organizing or formatting or addressing of data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

A disk controller has a front end FC I/F to a host, a back end FC I/F to a magnetic disk, a processor, and a main memory section. The front end I/F and the back end I/F are provided for performing information exchange with a network (connected) device that is connected to a network and manages storage. The main memory section stores registered information expressing an attribution of the network (connected) device, access information including the security and the performance of each network (connected) device through the network, and ranking information assigning a rank to each network (connected) device based on the registered information and the access information. An appropriate network (connected) device is selected from various types of information including the ranking information.

Claims

1. A storage controller which accesses a plurality of Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI) devices via a network, the storage controller comprising:

a processor;

a memory;

a storage device; and

an iSCSI interface to each of the iSCSI devices,

wherein the processor accesses each of the iSCSI devices via a router on the network, obtains security information which indicates safety of routes from the iSCSI devices to the storage controller as determined based on a number of incidences on the network for each of the iSCSI devices, or obtains transfer speeds which indicate data transfer speeds to transfer data from the iSCSI devices, said transfer speeds each being a data transfer speed which is expected when accessing one of the iSCSI devices, on the network at the time of test accessing to each iSCSI device or at a time of test accessing to the router, said security information and/or said transfer speeds being obtained when the processor is connected to each iSCSI device,

wherein the processor updates ranking information in a device list based on the obtained security information and/or said transfer speeds, selects an optimum iSCSI device on the network based on the ranking information, and establishes connection to the selected iSCSI device via the network,

wherein the processor reassigns, if the ranks are updated after selecting the optimum iSCSI device, new ranks to the iSCSI devices according to update information to generate re-ranking information, selects the optimum iSCSI device based on the re-ranking information, and accesses the selected optimum iSCSI device,

wherein if an update is not necessary, then a check is performed to determine whether or not device list update information received from an external location exists,

wherein if an update is necessary, then the ranks are re-assigned to the devices in accordance with the update information, and

wherein if an update depending on the update information is not necessary, then a check is performed to determine whether or not a device request for any one of a device addition, a backup or a remote copy is issued, if a device request is issued, then a connection is established to the iSCSI device with the highest rank and that device is registered, and then the data access is carried out for the optimum device in the device list.

2. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein the network is an IP network.

3. A storage controller according to claim 2, wherein the processor gathers performance information of each storage device connected to the iSCSI devices.

4. A storage controller according to claim 3, wherein the processor gathers security information of each storage device connected to the iSCSI devices.

5. A storage controller according to claim 4, wherein the processor modifies a list including the storage devices connected to the iSCSI devices based on the performance information and the security information.

6. A storage controller according to claim 5, wherein the storage devices are graded according to the performance information and security information when the processor modifies the list of the storage devices connected to the iSCSI devices.

7. A storage controller according to claim 6, wherein the processor gathers the security information and performance information via the storage controller.

8. A storage controller according to claim 7, wherein the processor gathers other performance information related to the network, which connects the storage controller with the storage devices connected to the iSCSI devices, via a router included in the network.

11. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein said security information and/or said transfer speeds indicates safety of a route from each iSCSI device to the storage controller, and said security information and/or said transfer speeds is based on the number of accidents that have occurred on the route in the past and security set to the route.

12. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein when mirroring is to be performed, data is stored as master data on the storage device and related data is stored as slave data in the iSCSI device,

wherein the data and the related data are synchronized.

13. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein when a backup is to be performed, data is stored as master data on the storage device and backup data is stored as old data in the iSCSI device.

14. A storage controller according to claim 13, wherein when an accident occurs, the old data from the backup data is used, and system log data for restoring original data is stored onto a storage device of the iSCSI device.

15. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein each iSCSI device is connected to another storage device.

16. A storage controller according to claim 15, wherein the another storage device connected to each iSCSI device and the storage device included in the storage controller are of different types.

23. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein the processor performs a test access to an iSCSI device or a router that is in route and generates the update information if a device list update is necessary, and

wherein the processor, if the device list update is necessary, conducts the reassignment of new rankings.

25. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein if the update information indicating that a device list update is necessary is provided from external of said storage controller, then the processor conducts the reassignment of new rankings.

27. A storage controller according to claim 23, wherein if a device list update is not necessary, then the processor determines whether a device request has occurred, and

wherein if a device request has occurred, then a connection is made to an iSCSI device having the highest ranking.

29. A storage controller according to claim 25, wherein if a device list update is not necessary, then the processor determines whether a device request has occurred, and

wherein if a device request has occurred, then a connection is made to an iSCSI device having the highest ranking.

31. A storage controller according to claim 1, wherein the security information indicates safety of routes between the iSCSI devices and the storage controller, said safety being determined based on at least one of a number of failures and a security level.

9. A storage controller which accesses a plurality of Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI) devices via an Internet Protocol (IP) network, the storage controller comprising:

a processor;

a memory;

a storage device; and

an iSCSI interface to each of the iSCSI devices,

wherein the processor accesses each of the iSCSI devices via a router on the IP network, obtains security information which indicates safety of routes from the iSCSI devices to the storage controller as determined based on a number of incidences on the network for each of the iSCSI devices, or obtains transfer speeds which indicate data transfer speeds to transfer data from the iSCSI devices, said transfer speeds each being a data transfer speed which is expected when accessing one of the iSCSI devices, on the network at the time of test accessing to each iSCSI device or at a time of test accessing to the router, said security information and/or said transfer speeds being obtained when the processor is connected to each iSCSI device,

wherein the processor updates ranking information in a device list based on the obtained security information and/or said transfer speeds, selects an optimum iSCSI device on the IP network based on the ranking information, and establishes connection to the selected iSCSI device via the IP network,

wherein the processor gathers performance information of each storage device connected to the iSCSI devices,

wherein the processor gathers security information of each of the storage devices connected to the iSCSI devices,

wherein the processor modifies a list including the storage devices connected to the iSCSI devices based on the performance information and the security information,

wherein the processor reassigns, if the ranks are updated after selecting the optimum iSCSI device, new ranks to the iSCSI devices according to update information to generate re-ranking information, selects the optimum iSCSI device based on the re-ranking information, and accesses the selected optimum iSCSI device,

wherein if an update is not necessary, then a check is performed to determine whether or not device list update information received from an external location exists,

wherein if an update is necessary, then the ranks are re-assigned to the devices in accordance with the update information, and

wherein if an update depending on the update information is not necessary, then a check is performed to determine whether or not a device request for any one of a device addition, a backup or a remote copy is issued, if a device request is issued, then a connection is established to the iSCSI device with the highest rank and that device is registered, and then the data access is carried out for the optimum device in the device list.

10. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein if the performance information is changed, the processor modifies a list of storage devices connected to the iSCSI devices based on the changed performance information.

17. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein said security information and/or said transfer speeds indicates safety of a route from each iSCSI device to the storage controller, and said security information and/or said transfer speeds is based on the number of accidents that have occurred on the route in the past and security set to the route.

18. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein when mirroring is to be performed, data is stored as master data on the storage device and related data is stored as slave data in the iSCSI device,

wherein the data and the related data are synchronized.

19. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein when a backup is to be performed, data is stored as master data on the storage device and backup data is stored as old data in the iSCSI device.

20. A storage controller according to claim 19, wherein when an accident occurs, the old data from the backup data is used, and system log data for restoring original data is stored onto a storage device of the iSCSI device.

21. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein each iSCSI device is connected to another storage device.

22. A storage controller according to claim 21, wherein the another storage device connected to each iSCSI device and the storage device included in the storage controller are of different types.

24. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein the processor performs a test access to an iSCSI device or a router that is in route and generates the update information if a device list update is necessary, and

wherein the processor, if the device list update is necessary, conducts the reassignment of new rankings.

26. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein if the update information indicating that a device list update is necessary is provided from external of said storage controller, then the processor conducts the reassignment of new rankings.

28. A storage controller according to claim 24, wherein if a device list update is not necessary, then the processor determines whether a device request has occurred, and

wherein if a device request has occurred, then a connection is made to an iSCSI device having the highest ranking.

30. A storage controller according to claim 26, wherein if a device list update is not necessary, then the processor determines whether a device request has occurred, and

wherein if a device request has occurred, then a connection is made to an iSCSI device having the highest ranking.

32. A storage controller according to claim 9, wherein the security information indicates safety of routes between the iSCSI devices and the storage controller, said safety being determined based on at least one of a number of failures and a security level.