Low level storage protocols, systems and methods

• US 7,916,727 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2006
• Issued: 03/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ServStor Technologies, LLC (IP Investments Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Rateze Remote Mgmt. L.L.C. (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Ludwig, Thomas, Babbitt, William, Hanan, Thomas, Frank, Charles
• Primary Examiner(s): HSU, ALPUS
• Application Number:
  US11/344,874
• Publication Number:
  US 20060126666A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,883 Days
• Field of Search: 370/392, 370/395.52, 370/428, 370/469, 711/4, 711/6
• US Class Current: 370/392
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/28 characterised by path configuration, e.g. LAN [Local Area Networks] or WAN [Wide Area Networks] wireless communication networks H04W ; arrangements for dividing the transmission path H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2832 Interconnection of the control functionalities between home networks single bridge functionality H04L12/4625
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2836 Protocol conversion between an external network and a home network controlling appliance services of a home automation network from a device located outside the home and the home network H04L12/2818; protocol conversion H04L69/08; adaptation of digital video signals for transport over a specific home network H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/46 Interconnection of networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4616 LAN interconnection over a LAN backbone
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4625 Single bridge functionality, e.g. connection of two networks over a single bridge
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4633 Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 Audio/video appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/604 Address structures or formats
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2212/00 Encapsulation of packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/00 Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/35 involving non-standard use of addresses for implementing network functionalities, e.g. coding subscription information within the address or functional addressing, i.e. assigning an address to a function
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/12 Applying verification of the received information cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for data integrity or data verification H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers

Abstract

Communication protocols, systems, and methods that facilitate communication between disaggregated elements, and also to devices adapted to function as such disaggregated elements, particularly across peer-to-peer (masterless) and include one or more unique features such as packet atomicity, blind ACKs, NAT bridging, locking, multicast spanning and mirroring, and authentication.

Claims

1. A method of transferring data to a block of a target storage device using a packet that includes:

an address of a storage area of the target storage device;

a logical block address (LBA) of the block; and

the data, the method comprising;

incorporating the address of the storage area of the target storage device into a protocol header of the packet; and

incorporating the LBA of the block into the packet;

wherein the protocol header is associated with a protocol that operates lower than a universal datagram protocol (UDP) and a transmission control protocol (TCP) in an open systems interconnect (OSI) model, and the address of the storage area distinctly identifies the storage area from at least one other storage area on the target storage device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the packet does not comprise UDP or TCP protocol headers.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising transporting the packet using the protocol that operates lower than UDP and TCP.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising broadcasting the packet.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the packet comprises information indicating a command associated with an advanced technology attachment (ATA) interface, a small computer system interface (SCSI), or an ATA packet interface (ATAPI).

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the target storage device comprises a disk drive.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, to the target storage device, a request for an allocation of storage; and

receiving, from the target storage device, a response including the address of the storage area of the target storage device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said incorporating the LBA of the block into the packet comprises:

incorporating the LBA of the block into a data portion of the packet.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the storage area is a physical partition.

10. A storage system comprising:

a first and second storage device that are individually accessible across a network, wherein the first storage device is adapted to receive a packet that includes

an address of a storage area of the first storage device in a protocol header of the packet, wherein the protocol header is associated with a protocol that operates lower than a universal datagram protocol (UDP) and a transmission control protocol (TCP) in an open systems interconnect (OSI) model, and the address of the storage area distinctly identifies the storage area from at least one other storage area of the first storage device,

a logical block address (LBA) of a block within the first storage device or the second storage device, and

data.

11. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the packet does not comprise UPD or TCP protocol headers.

12. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the data comprises the LBA.

13. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the first storage device comprises a first name and the second storage device comprises a second name that is different from the first name.

14. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the packet includes a command indicating the data is to be written to at least one of the first and second storage device.

15. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the packet includes a command indicating other data is to be read from at least one of the first and second storage device.

16. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the first and second storage devices are disk drives.

17. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the first storage device is further adapted

to receive a request from a requestor over the network;

to allocate the storage area on the first storage device and another storage area on the second storage device based on the request; and

to provide the requestor with the address that is associated with the storage area and the another storage area.

18. The storage system of claim 17, wherein the address is a multicast address.

19. The storage system of claim 10, wherein the storage area is a physical partition.

20. A method comprising:

receiving a packet at a storage device from a requestor over a network, the packet including a network address in a header portion of the packet, a block identifier, and a command to read data from, or write data to, a storage block associated with the block identifier, wherein the network address uniquely identifies one or more storage areas of a plurality of storage areas of the storage device, the one or more storage areas of the storage device being less than the plurality of storage areas of the storage device, and the header portion of the packet is associated with a protocol that operates lower than a universal datagram protocol (UDP) and a transmission control protocol (TCP) in an open systems interconnect (OSI) model; and

reading data from, or writing data to, the storage block based on said receiving of the packet.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the packet does not comprise UDP or TCP protocol headers.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the storage device is a first storage device, and the method further comprises:

receiving, at the first storage device, a request from the requestor over the network, the request seeking an allocation of storage that exceeds an amount of allocatable storage of the first storage device;

allocating the one or more storage areas on the first storage device and another storage area on a second storage device to the requestor based on the request; and

transmitting, to the requestor, a response that includes the network address to facilitate access to the one or more storage areas and the another storage area.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the request is a first request and said allocating the another storage area comprises:

transmitting, to the second storage device, a second request to allocate storage based on said receiving of the first request.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the network address is a multicast address associated with both the one or more storage areas and the another storage area.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the block identifier is a logical block address (LBA) that corresponds to the another storage area and the method further comprises:

transmitting another packet, to the second storage device, to execute the command with respect to the LBA.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the request includes another network address associated with a network interface of the first storage device.

27. The method of claim 22, wherein the first storage device and the second storage device are peers.

28. The method of claim 20, wherein the network address uniquely identifies the one or more storage areas among the plurality of storage areas.

29. The method of claim 20, wherein the network address is an Internet protocol address.

30. The method of claim 20, wherein the one or more storage areas are one or more physical partitions.

31. An apparatus comprising:

a network interface;

a first storage medium; and

a controller coupled to the network interface and the first storage medium and configured to;

receive, a packet from a requestor via the network interface, the packet including a network address in a header portion of the packet, a block identifier, and a command to read data from, or write data to, a storage block associated with the block identifier, wherein the network address uniquely identifies one or more storage areas of a plurality of storage areas of the first storage medium, the one or more storage areas being less than the plurality of storage areas of the first storage medium, and the header portion of the packet is associated with a protocol that operates lower than a universal datagram protocol (UDP) and a transmission control protocol (TCP) in an open systems interconnect (OSI) model.

32. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the packet does not comprise UDP or TCP protocol headers.

33. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the controller is further configured to:

receive a request from the requestor via the network interface, the request seeking an allocation of storage that exceeds an amount of allocatable storage of the first storage medium;

allocate one or more first storage areas on the first storage medium and another storage area on a second storage medium to the requestor based at least in part on the request; and

transmit, to the requestor via the network interface, a response that includes the network address to facilitate access to the one or more first storage areas and the another storage area.

34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the storage block is in the another storage area.

35. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the network address uniquely identifies the one or more storage areas among the plurality of storage areas.