Resource management for data storage services

• US 7,788,462 B2
• Filed: 10/31/2007
• Issued: 08/31/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Plaza, Rosa Tesller, Martin, Howard Newton
• Primary Examiner(s): Bataille; Pierre-Michel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Birkhimer; Christopher D
• Application Number:
  US11/932,575
• Publication Number:
  US 20080140965A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,035 Days
• Field of Search: 711/170
• US Class Current: 711/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1464 for networked environments

Abstract

Provided are a method, system, and an article of manufacture, wherein resources corresponding to at least one copy pool are acquired, and wherein the at least one copy pool has been defined for a first primary storage pool of a storage hierarchy. The acquired resources are retained, in response to determining that data cannot be written to the first primary storage pool. The data is written to the at least one copy pool, in response to writing the data to a second primary storage pool of the storage hierarchy.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a request to write data to a disk pool of a storage hierarchy;

wherein the storage hierarchy also includes a tape pool that is lower in the storage hierarchy in comparison to the disk pool, wherein acquisition of hardware resources is required for writing to any defined copy pool, and wherein the hardware resources include at least one of a tape drive, a tape volume, and disk space;

acquiring a first set of hardware resources for the disk pool, and acquiring a second set of hardware resources corresponding to a first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool, in response to receiving the request to write the data to the disk pool;

subsequent to acquiring the first and the second set of hardware resources, determining whether the data can be written to the disk pool;

in response to determining that the data can be written to the disk pool, performing;

writing the data to the disk pool; and

writing the data to the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool; and

in response to determining that the data cannot be written to the disk pool performing;

avoiding writing the data to the disk pool, in response to the determining that the data cannot be written to the disk pool;

subsequent to avoiding writing the data to the disk pool, acquiring a third set of hardware resources corresponding to the tape pool of the storage hierarchy while retaining the second set of resources corresponding to the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool;

subsequent to acquiring the third set of hardware resources corresponding to the tape pool, writing the data to the tape pool; and

subsequent to writing the data to the tape pool, writing the data to the first copy pool that has been defined for disk pool, wherein a second copy pool has been defined for the tape pool, and wherein no hardware resources have been acquired for the second copy pool that has been defined for the tape pool.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the disk pool and the tape pool are primary storage pools, and wherein the data is preferred to be written to a highest available primary storage pool in the storage hierarchy.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the data is performed by a storage server in communication with a client that sends the data to the storage server, wherein simultaneous write has been enabled in the storage server, wherein the third set of hardware resources used to access the first copy pool are retained at least until the data has been written to the first copy pool, and wherein the data is written to the first copy pool and the disk pool substantially simultaneously.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the data is performed by a storage server in communication with a client that sends the data to the storage server, the method further comprising:

receiving, at the storage server, a request to write a plurality of files from the client;

storing at least one of the plurality of files in the disk pool;

storing at least one of the plurality of files in the tape pool;

storing all of the plurality of files in the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool; and

storing none of the plurality of files in the second copy pool that has been defined for the tape pool.

5. A system, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the processor is capable of performing operations, the operations performed by the processor comprising;

receiving a request to write data to a disk pool of a storage hierarchy;

wherein the storage hierarchy also includes a tape pool that is lower in the storage hierarchy in comparison to the disk pool, wherein acquisition of hardware resources is required for writing to any defined copy pool, and wherein the hardware resources include at least one of a tape drive, a tape volume, and disk space;

acquiring a first set of hardware resources for the disk pool, and acquiring a second set of hardware resources corresponding to a first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool, in response to receiving the request to write the data to the disk pool;

subsequent to acquiring the first and the second set of hardware resources, determining whether the data can be written to the disk pool;

in response to determining that the data can be written to the disk pool, performing;

writing the data to the disk pool; and

writing the data to the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool; and

in response to determining that the data cannot be written to the disk pool, performing;

avoiding writing the data to the disk pool, in response to the determining that the data cannot be written to the disk pool;

subsequent to avoiding writing the data to the disk pool, acquiring a third set of hardware resources corresponding to the tape pool of the storage hierarchy while retaining the second set of resources corresponding to the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool;

subsequent to acquiring the third set of hardware resources corresponding to the tape pool, writing the data to the tape pool; and

subsequent to writing the data to the tape pool, writing the data to the first copy pool that has been defined for disk pool, wherein a second copy pool has been defined for the tape pool, and wherein no hardware resources have been acquired for the second copy pool that has been defined for the tape pool.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the disk pool and the tape pool are primary storage pools, and wherein the data is preferred to be written to a highest available primary storage pool in the storage hierarchy.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the receiving of the data is performed by a storage server in communication with a client that sends the data to the storage server, wherein simultaneous write has been enabled in the storage server, wherein the third set of hardware resources used to access the first copy pool are retained at least until the data has been written to the first copy pool, and wherein the data is written to the first copy pool and the disk pool substantially simultaneously.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein the receiving of the data is performed by a storage server in communication with a client that sends the data to the storage server, wherein the operations performed by the processor further comprise:

receiving, at the storage server, a request to write a plurality of files from the client;

storing at least one of the plurality of files in the disk pool;

storing at least one of the plurality of files in the tape pool;

storing all of the plurality of files in the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool; and

storing none of the plurality of files in the second copy pool that has been defined for the tape pool.

9. A computer readable storage medium including code, wherein the code when executed is capable of causing operations, the operations comprising:

receiving a request to write data to a disk pool of a storage hierarchy;

wherein the storage hierarchy also includes a tape pool that is lower in the storage hierarchy in comparison to the disk pool, wherein acquisition of hardware resources is required for writing to any defined copy pool, and wherein the hardware resources include at least one of a tape drive, a tape volume, and disk space;

acquiring a first set of hardware resources for the disk pool, and acquiring a second set of hardware resources corresponding to a first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool, in response to receiving the request to write the data to the disk pool;

subsequent to acquiring the first and the second set of hardware resources, determining whether the data can be written to the disk pool;

in response to determining that the data can be written to the disk pool, performing;

writing the data to the disk pool; and

writing the data to the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool; and

in response to determining that the data cannot be written to the disk pool performing;

avoiding writing the data to the disk pool, in response to the determining that the data cannot be written to the disk pool;

subsequent to avoiding writing the data to the disk pool, acquiring a third set of hardware resources corresponding to the tape pool of the storage hierarchy while retaining the second set of resources corresponding to the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool;

subsequent to acquiring the third set of hardware resources corresponding to the tape pool, writing the data to the tape pool; and

subsequent to writing the data to the tape pool, writing the data to the first copy pool that has been defined for disk pool, wherein a second copy pool has been defined for the tape pool, and wherein no hardware resources have been acquired for the second copy pool that has been defined for the tape pool.

10. The computer readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the disk pool and the tape pool are primary storage pools, and wherein the data is preferred to be written to a highest available primary storage pool in the storage hierarchy.

11. The computer readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the receiving of the data is performed by a storage server in communication with a client that sends the data to the storage server, wherein simultaneous write has been enabled in the storage server, wherein the third set of hardware resources used to access the first copy pool are retained at least until the data has been written to the first copy pool, and wherein the data is written to the first copy pool and the disk pool substantially simultaneously.

12. The computer readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the receiving of the data is performed by a storage server in communication with a client that sends the data to the storage server, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving, at the storage server, a request to write a plurality of files from the client;

storing at least one of the plurality of files in the disk pool;

storing at least one of the plurality of files in the tape pool;

storing all of the plurality of files in the first copy pool that has been defined for the disk pool; and

storing none of the plurality of files in the second copy pool that has been defined for the tape pool.