Data placement technique for striping data containers across volumes of a storage system cluster

• US 8,032,704 B1
• Filed: 07/31/2009
• Issued: 10/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/24/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NetApp, Inc.
• Original Assignee: NetApp, Inc.
• Inventors: English, Robert M., Kleiman, Steven R., Corbett, Peter F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ellis; Kevin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Namazi; Mehdi
• Application Number:
  US12/533,633
• Time in Patent Office: 795 Days
• Field of Search: 711/7, 711/114, 711/170, 709/201, 709/203
• US Class Current: 711/114
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1096 Parity calculation or recalculation after configuration or reconfiguration of the system
• 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 3/0646 Horizontal data movement in storage systems, i.e. moving data in between storage devices or systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0689 Disk arrays, e.g. RAID, JBOD

Abstract

A method and apparatus for storing data on a computer data storage system are described. Two or more computers are coupled together to form a cluster of computers. One or more data storage devices are coupled to the two or more computers. One or more volumes of data storage devices are implemented on a plurality of computers of the two or more computers, where each volume is a logical arrangement of the one or more storage devices coupled to a selected computer of the plurality of computers. A data container holds data stored by the data storage system. The data container is striped over a plurality of the one or more volumes of data storage devices, whereby data stored in the data container is striped over a plurality of the volumes of data storage devices.

Claims

1. A method for storing data on a computer data storage system, comprising:

defining a plurality of nodes, each node having a computer of the computer data storage system to make a plurality of computers;

coupling one or more data storage devices to each computer of the plurality of computers to make a plurality of data storage devices;

implementing a plurality of volumes of data storage on the plurality of data storage devices, the plurality of volumes equal to N-1 volumes;

defining a data container to hold data stored by the data storage system;

striping the data container over the N-1 volumes to store the data in the data container in stripes over the plurality of nodes; and

adding a new volume to the data storage system, to make N volumes, and moving 1/N of the stripes from the N−

1 volumes to the new volume of the N volumes.

2. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining the striping of the data container across the N volumes so that repetitive access to the data container is distributed among different data storage devices coupled to different nodes.

3. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a volume location database (VLDB), where an entry in the VLDB keeps track of a selected volume of the N volumes, and the plurality of nodes and the plurality of data storage devices making up the selected volume.

4. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a data access request by a first computer of the plurality of computers, the request identifying the data container;

identifying a second computer of the plurality of computers, the second computer maintaining the data container;

locating a selected volume maintaining the data of the data container;

maintaining a volume location database (VLDB), where an entry in the VLDB keeps track of the selected volume of the N volumes, and one or more of the plurality of data storage devices making up the selected volume; and

directing, in response to querying the VLDB, the data access request to a selected data storage device of the plurality of data storage devices making up the selected volume.

5. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

placing the stripes substantially equally among the N volumes over which the stripe is placed.

6. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

placing the stripes for different data containers across different volumes and placing the stripes for the different data containers substantially equally among the different volumes over which the stripes are placed.

7. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

using a file as the data container.

8. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

using a logical unit number as the data container.

9. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

striping the data container over the N volumes of data storage devices as a striped volume set (SVS).

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using a magnetic disk as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using a RAID array of storage disks as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using an optical storage device as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using an electronic random access memory as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

14. A computer data storage system apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of nodes, each node having a computer of the computer data storage system to make a plurality of computers;

one or more data storage devices coupled to each computer of the plurality of computers to make a plurality of data storage devices;

a plurality of volumes of data storage implemented on the plurality of data storage devices, the plurality of volumes equal to N-1 volumes;

a data container defined to hold data stored by the data storage system;

the data container striped over the N-1 volumes to store the data in the data container in stripes over the plurality of nodes; and

a new volume added to the data storage system, to make N volumes, and 1/N of the stripes of the N−

1 volumes moved to the new volume of the N volumes.

15. The apparatus as in claim 14, further comprising:

the data container striped across the N volumes so that repetitive access to the data container is distributed among different data storage devices.

16. The apparatus as in claim 14, further comprising:

a volume location database (VLDB), where an entry in the VLDB keeps track of a selected volume of the N volumes, and the plurality of data storage devices make up the selected volume.

17. The apparatus as in claim 14, further comprising:

a data access request received by a first computer of the plurality of computers, the request identifying the data container;

a second computer of the plurality of computers, the second computer to maintain the data container;

a selected volume of the N volumes to maintain the data of the data container;

a volume location database (VLDB), where an entry in the VLDB keeps track of the selected volume of the N volumes, and the plurality of data storage devices to make up the selected volume; and

a selected data storage device, of the plurality of data storage devices that make up the selected volume as indicated by the VLDB, to receive the data access request.

18. The apparatus as in claim 14, further comprising:

the stripes placed substantially equally among the volumes of the N volumes over which the stripe is placed.

19. The apparatus as in claim 14, further comprising:

the stripes for different data containers placed across different volumes of the N volumes, and the stripes placed for the different data containers substantially equally among the different volumes of the N volumes over which the stripes are placed.

20. The method as in claim 14, further comprising:

using a file as the data container.

21. The method as in claim 14, further comprising:

using a logical unit number as the data container.

22. The apparatus as in claim 14, further comprising:

the data container striped over the N volumes of data storage devices as a striped volume set (SVS).

23. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

a magnetic disk used as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

24. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

a RAID array of storage disks used as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

25. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

an optical storage device used as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

26. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

an electronic random access memory used as a storage device of the plurality of data storage devices.

27. A computer readable non-transient storage media, comprising:

said computer readable storage media containing instructions for execution on a processor for a method of storing data on a computer data storage system, having,

defining a plurality of nodes, each node having a computer of the computer data storage system to make a plurality of computers;

coupling one or more data storage devices to each computer of the plurality of computers to make a plurality of data storage devices;

implementing a plurality of volumes of data storage on the plurality of data storage devices;

defining a data container to hold data stored by the data storage system;

striping the data container over the plurality of volumes to store the data in the data container in stripes over the plurality of nodes, the plurality of volumes equal to N-1 volumes; and

adding a new volume to the data storage system, to make N volumes, and moving 1/N of the stripes of the N−

1 volumes to the new volume of the N volumes.