Anomaly notification control in disk array

• US 8,015,442 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2010
• Issued: 09/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Morita, Seiki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lohn; Joshua A
• Application Number:
  US12/882,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20110004786A1
• Time in Patent Office: 356 Days
• Field of Search: 714/6, 714/7, 714/6.2, 714/6.3, 714/6.32, 719/325, 719/327
• US Class Current: 714/6.32
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0727 in a storage system, e.g. in a DASD or network based storage system drivers for digital recording or reproducing units G06F3/06; circuits for error detection or correction within digital recording or reproducing units G11B20/18; 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], H04L67/1097
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/076 by exceeding a count or rate limit, e.g. word- or bit count limit
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2094 Redundant storage or storage space G06F11/2056 takes precedence

Abstract

In a storage device incorporating a plurality of kinds of disk drives with different interfaces, the controller performs sparing on a disk drive, whose errors that occur during accesses exceed a predetermined number, by swapping it with a spare disk drive that is prepared beforehand.

Claims

1. A disk array system comprising:

a controller, adapted to be coupled to a host computer, and receiving data from the host computer;

a plurality of first disk drives, coupled to the controller, and being related to a first RAID group and storing data received from the controller, each of the first disk drives comprising a first type interface;

if the disk array system comprises a first type spare disk drive comprising the first type interface, the controller performing sparing of at least one of the plurality of first disk drives related to the first RAID group to the first type spare disk drive; and

if the disk array system does not comprise the first type spare disk drive, the controller performing sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives related to the first RAID group to a second type spare disk drive comprising a second type interface.

2. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the first type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface has an interface type other than an interface type of the SATA interface.

3. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the first type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface is a Fibre Channel (FC) interface.

4. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the first type interface has an interface type other than an interface type of a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface is the SATA interface.

5. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the first type interface is a Fibre Channel (FC) interface, and

the second type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface.

6. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the controller performs sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives based on error information of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives.

7. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the controller performs sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives based on whether a number of errors is over a predetermined level, at least one of the errors occurring at a timing that the controller controls reading/writing data from/to the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives.

8. The disk array system according to claim 1, wherein:

the controller stores information of a disk type of each of the plurality of first disk drives and a spare disk drive comprised in the disk array system.

9. A control method of a disk array system, the control method comprising:

receiving data from a host computer;

storing data received from the host computer in a plurality of first disk drives, the plurality of first disk drives being related to a first RAID group, each of the first disk drives comprising a first type interface;

if the disk array system comprises a first type spare disk drive comprising the first type interface, performing sparing of at least one of the plurality of first disk drives related to the first RAID group to the first type spare disk drive; and

if the disk array system does not comprise the first type spare disk drive, performing sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives related to the first RAID group to a second type spare disk-drive comprising a second type interface.

10. The control method according to claim 9, wherein:

the first type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface has an interface type other than an interface type of the SATA interface.

11. The control method according to claim 9, wherein:

the first type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface is a Fibre Channel (FC) interface.

12. The control method according to claim 9, wherein:

the first type interface has an interface type other than an interface type of a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface is the SATA interface.

13. The control method according to claim 9, wherein:

the first type interface is a Fibre Channel (FC) interface, and

the second type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface.

14. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

performing sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives based on error information of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives.

15. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

performing sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives based on whether a number of errors is over a predetermined level, at least one of the errors occurring at a timing that the controller controls reading/writing data from/to the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives.

16. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

storing information of a disk type of each of the plurality of first disk drives and a spare disk drive comprised in the disk array system.

17. A computer program stored in a computer readable storage medium and executable by a storage apparatus, the computer program comprising:

code for receiving data from a host computer;

code for storing data received from the host computer in a plurality of first disk drives, the plurality of first disk drives being related to a first RAID group, each of the first disk drives comprising a first type interface;

code for performing, if the disk array system comprises a first type spare disk drive comprising the first type interface, sparing of at least one of the plurality of first disk drives related to the first RAID group to the first type spare disk drive; and

code for performing, if the disk array system does not comprise the first type spare disk drive, sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives related to the first RAID group to a second type spare disk drive comprising a second type interface.

18. The computer program according to claim 17, wherein:

the first type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface has an interface type other than an interface type of the SATA Interface.

19. The computer program according to claim 17, wherein:

the first type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface is a Fibre Channel (FC) interface.

20. The computer program according to claim 17, wherein:

the first type interface has an interface type other than an interface type of a Serial ATA (SATA) interface, and

the second type interface is the SATA interface.

21. The computer program according to claim 17, wherein:

the first type interface is a Fibre Channel (FC) interface, and

the second type interface is a Serial ATA (SATA) interface.

22. The computer program according to claim 17, further comprising:

code for performing sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives based on error information of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives.

23. The computer program according to claim 17, further comprising:

code for performing sparing of the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives based on whether a number of errors is over a predetermined level, at least one of the errors occurring at a timing that the controller controls reading/writing data from/to the at least one of the plurality of first disk drives.

24. The computer program according to claim 17, further comprising:

code for storing information of a disk type of each of the plurality of first disk drives and a spare disk drive comprised in the disk array system.