Coordinated shared storage architecture

• US 8,180,855 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2005
• Issued: 05/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NetApp, Inc.
• Original Assignee: NetApp, Inc.
• Inventors: Aiello, Anthony F., Aster, Radek, Thelen, Randal, Kong, George
• Primary Examiner(s): MACILWINEN, JOHN MOORE JAIN
• Application Number:
  US11/075,619
• Publication Number:
  US 20060206671A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,625 Days
• Field of Search: 709/219
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1092 Rebuilding, e.g. when physically replacing a failing disk
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2092 Techniques of failing over between control units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2094 Redundant storage or storage space G06F11/2056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2206/1012 Load balancing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2211/1028 Distributed, i.e. distributed RAID systems with parity
• 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 3/0632 by initialisation or re-initialisation of storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0635 by changing the path, e.g. traffic rerouting, path reconfiguration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• 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]

Abstract

The present invention provides a novel coordinated shared storage architecture that permits the amortization of cost of the spares over any number of the storage systems and enables improvements to a number of storage system operations. The coordinated shared storage architecture comprises a plurality of storage systems disk shelves via a plurality of intermediate network devices, such as hubs. Each storage system includes a storage operating system having a target device driver module. The target device driver module permits the storage system to function as a SCSI target and thereby receive and process commands directed to it from other storage systems.

Claims

1. A method for configuring a coordinated shared storage architecture utilizing a plurality of storage appliances, comprising:

operatively interconnecting the plurality of storage appliances organized as a cluster of storage appliances, wherein each storage appliance provides both storage area network (SAN) services through SAN virtualization and network attached storage (NAS) services through a file system;

operatively interconnecting one or more sets of data storage devices with the plurality of storage appliances using at least one intermediate network device;

sharing the one or more sets of data storage devices among at least two storage appliances of the plurality of storage appliances; and

enabling the at least two storage appliances to be accessed as a Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) target device by providing a target device driver in each of the at least two storage appliances in the cluster, the target device driver enabling each of the at least two storage appliances to function as the SCSI target device to receive and process a SCSI command sent via the at least one intermediate network device from storage appliances in the cluster to access any of the shared one or more sets of data storage devices.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one intermediate network device comprises a hub.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one intermediate network device comprises a router.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the one or more sets of data storage devices comprise disk drives.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing an additional storage appliance operatively interconnected with a first network and with the at least one intermediate network device, the additional storage appliance configured to access any of the one or more sets of data storage devices operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing an additional data storage device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, whereby any of the plurality of storage appliances operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device is capable of addressing the additional data storage device.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing a non-volatile random access memory device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, the non-volatile random access memory device configured to store data transmitted by a storage appliance of the plurality of storage appliances before the data is stored on one of the plurality of storage devices.

8. A system for configuring a plurality of storage appliances, comprising:

the plurality of storage appliances, each of the plurality of storage appliances comprising a processor, each of the storage appliances configured to operate as a cluster of storage appliances, wherein at least one storage appliance provides both storage area network (SAN) services through SAN virtualization and network attached storage (NAS) services through a file system;

at least one intermediate network device comprising a processor configured to operatively interconnect one or more sets of data storage devices with the plurality of storage appliances;

at least two of the storage appliances of the plurality of storage appliances further configured to share the sets of data storage devices; and

a target device driver of the at least two storage appliances in the cluster configured to enable each of the at least two storage appliances to be accessed as a Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) target device to receive and process a SCSI command directed to either of the at least two storage appliances from a storage appliance to access any of the shared sets of data storage devices, wherein the SCSI commands are sent from the storage appliance via the at least one intermediate network device.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the one or more sets of data storage devices comprise disk drives.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the at least one intermediate network devices comprises a hub.

11. The system of claim 8 wherein the at least one intermediate network devices comprises a switch.

12. The system of claim 8 wherein the at least one intermediate network devices comprises a router.

13. The system of claim 8 further comprising an additional storage appliance operatively interconnected with one of the at least one intermediate network device, the additional storage appliance configured to access any of the one or more sets of data storage devices that are operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device.

14. The system of claim 8 further comprising a non-volatile random access memory device operatively interconnected with at least one intermediate network device, the non-volatile random access memory device configured to store data transmitted by at least one of the plurality of storage appliances before the data is stored on at least one data storage device of the one or more sets of data storage devices.

15. The system of claim 8 further comprising an additional data storage device, the additional data storage device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, whereby any of the plurality of storage appliances is operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device is capable of addressing the additional data storage device.

16. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium containing executable program instructions executed by a processor, comprising:

program instructions that operatively interconnect a plurality of storage appliances organized as a cluster of storage appliances, wherein each storage appliance provides both storage area network (SAN) services through SAN virtualization and network attached storage (NAS) services through a file system;

program instructions that operatively interconnect one or more sets of data storage devices with the plurality of storage appliances using at least one intermediate network device;

program instructions that share the one or more sets of data storage devices among at least two storage appliances of the plurality of storage appliances; and

program instructions that enable the at least two storage appliances to be accessed as a Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) target device by providing a target device driver in each of the at least two storage appliances in the cluster, the target device driver enabling each of the at least two storage appliances to function as the SCSI target device to receive and process a SCSI command sent via the at least one intermediate network device from storage appliances in the cluster to access any of the shared one or more sets of data storage devices.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the at least one intermediate network devices comprises a hub.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the at least one intermediate network devices comprises a router.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the one or more sets of one or more data storage devices comprises a disk drive.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 further comprising:

program instructions that provide an additional storage appliance operatively interconnected with one of the at least one intermediate network device, the additional storage appliance configured to access any data storage device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device.

21. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 further comprising:

program instructions that provide an additional data storage device, operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, whereby any of the plurality of storage appliances operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device is capable of addressing the additional data storage device.

22. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 further comprising:

program instructions that provide a non-volatile random access memory device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, the non-volatile random access memory device configured to store data transmitted by the plurality of the storage appliances before the data is stored on a data storage device of the one or more sets of storage devices.

23. A method, comprising:

operatively interconnecting a plurality of storage appliances organized as a cluster of storage appliances, wherein each storage appliance provides both storage area network (SAN) services through SAN virtualization and network attached storage (NAS) services through a file system;

operatively interconnecting one or more sets of data storage devices with the plurality of storage appliances using at least one intermediate network device;

sharing the one or more sets of data storage devices among at least two storage appliances of the plurality of storage appliances; and

providing a target device driver in two or more of the plurality of storage appliances, the target device driver enabling the two or more storage appliances to function as one or more Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) target devices to receive and process a SCSI command sent from a storage appliance via the at least one intermediate network device.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the at least one intermediate network device comprises a hub.

25. The method of claim 23 further comprising providing an additional storage appliance operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, wherein the additional storage appliance enables access to any of the storage devices operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device.

26. The method of claim 23 further comprising providing an additional data storage device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device, whereby any of the plurality of storage appliances operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device is capable of addressing the additional data storage device.

27. The method of claim 23 further comprising:

providing a non-volatile random access memory device operatively interconnected with the at least one intermediate network device; and

storing data transmitted on the non-volatile random access memory device by a particular storage appliance of the plurality of storage appliances before the data is stored on one of the data storage devices of the set of data storage devices.

28. A computer data storage system, comprising:

a plurality of storage appliances, each comprising a processor, each of the storage appliances configured to be operatively interconnected as a cluster, wherein each storage appliance provides both storage area network (SAN) services through SAN virtualization and network attached storage (NAS) services through a file system;

at least one intermediate network device comprising a processor configured to operatively interconnect one or more sets of data storage devices with the plurality of storage appliances in the cluster, wherein the one or more sets of data storage devices are shared among at least two storage appliances of the plurality of storage appliances; and

a target device driver of each storage appliance configured to enable a first storage appliance in the cluster to receive and process a Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) command sent from a second storage appliance in the cluster as a SCSI target, wherein the SCSI command is sent via the at least one intermediate network device.