Virtual disk drive system and method

• US 8,560,880 B2
• Filed: 06/29/2011
• Issued: 10/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell International LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Compellent Technologies Incorporated (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Soran, Philip E., Guider, John P., Aszmann, Lawrence E., Klemm, Michael J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Iqbal, Nadeem
• Application Number:
  US13/171,829
• Publication Number:
  US 20110258388A1
• Time in Patent Office: 839 Days
• Field of Search: 714/4.11, 714/4.2, 714/6.1, 714/6.12, 714/6.13, 714/6.2, 714/6.21, 714/6.22, 714/6.3, 714/15, 714/16, 714/37, 714/41, 714/42
• US Class Current: 714/6.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/108 Parity data distribution in semiconductor storages, e.g. in SSD
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1435 using file system or storage system metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1461 Backup scheduling policy
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1471 involving logging of persistent data for recovery
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2089 Redundant storage control functionality
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/02 Addressing or allocation; Relocation program address sequencing G06F9/00; arrangements for selecting an address in a digital store G11C8/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0608 Saving storage space on storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0611 in relation to response time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0631 by allocating resources to storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/064 Management of blocks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/065 Replication mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0659 Command handling arrangements, e.g. command buffers, queues, command scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0665 at area level, e.g. provisioning of virtual or logical volumes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0683 Plurality of storage devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0689 Disk arrays, e.g. RAID, JBOD

Abstract

A disk drive system and method capable of dynamically allocating data is provided. The disk drive system may include a RAID subsystem having a pool of storage, for example a page pool of storage that maintains a free list of RAIDs, or a matrix of disk storage blocks that maintain a null list of RAIDs, and a disk manager having at least one disk storage system controller. The RAID subsystem and disk manager dynamically allocate data across the pool of storage and a plurality of disk drives based on RAID-to-disk mapping. The RAID subsystem and disk manager determine whether additional disk drives are required, and a notification is sent if the additional disk drives are required. Dynamic data allocation and data progression allow a user to acquire a disk drive later in time when it is needed. Dynamic data allocation also allows efficient data storage of snapshots/point-in-time copies of virtual volume pool of storage, instant data replay and data instant fusion for data backup, recovery etc., remote data storage, and data progression, etc.

Claims

1. A method of data progression in a disk drive system, comprising the steps of:

determining a cost of operating for each of a plurality of data storage devices;

classifying each of the plurality of data storage devices based on the cost;

defining a default size for data storage blocks;

checking data storage blocks of the defined default size on the data storage devices to determine whether a given storage block comprises data to be moved from a data storage device of a first classification to a data storage device of a second classification; and

moving the data stored at the given storage block on the data storage device of the first classification to the data storage device of the second classification.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the cost of each of the plurality of data storage devices is based on efficiency of the data storage devices.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the cost of each of the plurality of data storage devices is based on storage efficiency of the data storage devices.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the cost of each of the plurality of data storage devices is further based on physical cost of the data storage devices.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of data storage devices are classified in relation to each other.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising rebalancing the classification of data storage devices as storage disks are added.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein checking data on the data storage devices comprises determining the access pattern of the data in the given storage block.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein data stored at the given storage block is moved to the data storage device of the second classification based on a decrease in the access pattern of the data.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein data stored at the given storage block is moved to the data storage device of the second classification if the data comprises historical snapshot data.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein data stored at the given storage block is moved to the data storage device of the second classification if a substantial portion of the storage space on the data storage device of the first classification is used up.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein data stored at the given storage block is moved to the data storage device of the second classification if the storage space on the data storage device of the first classification is substantially used up.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein data stored at the given storage block is moved to the data storage device of the second classification based on an increase in the access pattern of the data, and wherein the second classification designates a higher operating cost storage classification than the first classification.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the disk drive system comprises storage space from at least one of a plurality of RAID types RAID-0, RAID-1, RAID-5, and RAID-10.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein a RAID-10 device is converted into a RAID-5 device to more efficiently use physical disk space of the RAID device.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein data is moved aggressively when storage resources are low.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising managing a page pool of storage including a separate list of free data storage blocks for each classification of data storage devices.

18. The system of claim 7, wherein the data storage subsystem further comprises a combination of at least one of a plurality of RAID types RAID-0, RAID-1, RAID-5, and RAID-10.

19. The system of claim 8, further comprising RAID types including RAID-3, RAID-4, RAID-6, and RAID-7.

17. A disk drive system, comprising:

a data storage subsystem comprising a pool of storage; and

a disk manager having at least one disk storage system controller configured to;

determine an operating cost of each of a plurality of data storage devices of the data storage subsystem;

check data storage blocks of pre-defined default size on the plurality of data storage devices to determine whether a given storage block comprises data to be moved from a data storage device of a first classification to another of a second classification; and

move the data stored at the given storage block on the data storage device of the first classification to the data storage device of the second classification.

20. A disk drive system capable of data progression, comprising:

calculation means for determining a cost of operating for each of a plurality of data storage devices;

classification means for classifying each of the plurality of data storage devices based on the cost;

status checking means for checking data storage blocks of pre-defined default size on the data storage devices to determine whether a given storage block comprises data to be moved from a data storage device of a first classification to a data storage device of a second classification; and

transfer means for moving the data stored at the given storage block on the data storage device of the first classification to the data storage device of the second classification.