Virtual machine fault tolerance

• US 8,621,274 B1
• Filed: 05/18/2011
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NetApp, Inc.
• Original Assignee: NetApp, Inc.
• Inventors: Forgette, Eric Paul, Gaonkar, Shravan, Kenchammana-Hosekote, Deepak, Lent, Arthur Franklin
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, KAMINI B
• Application Number:
  US13/110,582
• Time in Patent Office: 958 Days
• Field of Search: 714/10
• US Class Current: 714/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1435 using file system or storage system metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1451 by selection of backup contents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1469 Backup restoration techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1471 involving logging of persistent data for recovery
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1484 involving virtual machines
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/203 using migration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2035 without idle spare hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2048 where the redundant components share neither address space nor persistent storage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/815 Virtual
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data

Abstract

One or more techniques and/or systems are provided for hosting a virtual machine from a snapshot. In particular, a snapshot of a virtual machine hosted on a primary computing device may be created. The virtual machine may be hosted on a secondary computing device using the snapshot, for example, when a failure of the virtual machine on the primary computing device occurs. If a virtual machine type (format) of the snapshot is not supported by the secondary computing device, then the virtual machine within the snapshot may be converted to a virtual machine type supported by the secondary computing device. In this way, the virtual machine may be operable and/or accessible on the secondary computing device despite the failure. Hosting the virtual machine on the secondary computing device provides, among other things, fault tolerance for the virtual machine and/or applications comprised therein.

Claims

1. A method for providing virtual machine fault tolerance from a snapshot, comprising:

receiving a snapshot of a virtual machine, the snapshot created while the virtual machine is hosted on a primary computing device, the snapshot representing the virtual machine according to a primary virtual machine type;

detecting a failure of the virtual machine hosted on the primary computing device; and

hosting the virtual machine on a secondary computing device based upon the snapshot, the secondary computing device supporting a secondary virtual machine type, the hosting comprising;

responsive to the secondary computing device not supporting the primary virtual machine type;

utilizing the snapshot to host a temporary virtual machine within a virtual machine host software environment that supports the primary virtual machine type;

converting the temporary virtual machine from the primary virtual machine type to the secondary virtual machine type to create a secondary virtual machine; and

hosting the secondary virtual machine on the secondary computing device as the virtual machine on the secondary computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising:

determining whether the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in a running state or an off state.

3. The method of claim 2, the hosting the virtual machine comprising:

if the primary virtual machine type is supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then hosting the virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the running state from the snapshot.

4. The method of claim 2, the hosting the virtual machine comprising:

if the primary virtual machine type is supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then hosting the virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state from the snapshot.

5. The method of claim 2, the hosting the virtual machine comprising:

if the primary virtual machine type is supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the off state, then hosting the virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state from the snapshot.

6. The method of claim 2, the hosting the virtual machine comprising:

if the primary virtual machine type is not supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then;

hosting the temporary virtual machine in the running state within the virtual machine host software environment;

shutting down the running state of the temporary virtual machine to the off state;

converting the temporary virtual machine in the off state from the primary virtual machine type to the secondary virtual machine type supported by the secondary computing device to create the secondary virtual machine; and

hosting the secondary virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state.

7. The method of claim 2, the hosting the virtual machine comprising:

if the primary virtual machine type is not supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the off state, then;

converting the temporary virtual machine in the off state from the primary virtual machine type to the secondary virtual machine type supported by the secondary computing device to create the secondary virtual machine; and

hosting the secondary virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising:

creating a second snapshot of the virtual machine hosted on the secondary computing device; and

sending the second snapshot to the primary computing device for hosting on the primary computing device based upon re-initialization of the primary computing device.

9. The method of claim 1, comprising:

maintaining a plurality of snapshots of the virtual machine hosted on the primary computing device.

10. The method of claim 9, the hosting the virtual machine comprising:

selecting the snapshot from the plurality of snapshots based upon the snapshot comprising desired backup data for the virtual machine.

11. The method of claim 1, comprising:

making a clone of the snapshot; and

hosting the virtual machine on the secondary computing device based upon the clone.

12. The method of claim 1, comprising:

providing fault tolerance for an application within the virtual machine based upon restoring the application using the virtual machine hosted on the secondary computing device.

13. A method for providing virtual machine fault tolerance from a snapshot, comprising:

providing a snapshot of a virtual machine hosted on a primary computing device to a secondary computing device, the snapshot representing the virtual machine according to a primary virtual machine type supported by the primary computing device;

detecting a re-initialization of the primary computing device due to a failure;

receiving a second snapshot from the secondary computing device, the second snapshot based upon a backup of the virtual machine hosted on the secondary computing device, the second snapshot representing the virtual machine according to a secondary virtual machine type supported by the secondary computing device; and

responsive to the primary computing device not supporting the secondary virtual machine type;

utilizing the second snapshot to host a temporary virtual machine within a virtual machine host software environment that supports the secondary virtual machine type;

converting the temporary virtual machine from the secondary virtual machine type to the primary virtual machine type to create a restored primary virtual machine; and

hosting the restored primary virtual machine on the primary computing device as the virtual machine.

14. The method of claim 13, comprising:

determining whether the second snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in a running state or an off state on the secondary computing device.

15. The method of claim 14, the hosting comprising:

if the secondary virtual machine type is supported by the primary computing device and the second snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then hosting the virtual machine on the primary computing device in the running state from the second snapshot.

16. The method of claim 14, the hosting comprising:

if the secondary virtual machine type is supported by the primary computing device and the second snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then hosting the virtual machine on the primary computing device in the off state from the second snapshot.

17. The method of claim 14, the hosting comprising:

if the secondary virtual machine type is supported by the primary computing device and the second snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the off state, then hosting the virtual machine on the primary computing device in the off state from the second snapshot.

18. The method of claim 14, the hosting comprising:

if the secondary virtual machine type is not supported by the primary computing device and the second snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then;

hosting the temporary virtual machine in the running state within the virtual machine host software environment;

shutting down the running state of the temporary virtual machine to the off state;

converting the temporary virtual machine in the off state from the secondary virtual machine type to the primary virtual machine type supported by the primary computing device to create the restored primary virtual machine; and

hosting the restored primary virtual machine on the primary computing device in the off state.

19. The method of claim 14, the hosting comprising:

if the secondary virtual machine type is not supported by the primary computing device and the second snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the off state, then;

converting the temporary virtual machine in the off state from the secondary virtual machine type to the primary virtual machine type supported by the primary computing device to create the restored primary virtual machine; and

hosting the restored primary virtual machine on the primary computing device in the off state.

20. A system for providing virtual machine fault tolerance from a snapshot, comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory comprising instructions that when executed by at least one of the one or more processors implement at least some of;

a backup component configured to;

maintain one or more snapshots of a virtual machine hosted on a primary computing device according to a primary virtual machine type; and

a hosting component configured to;

detect failure of the virtual machine hosted on the primary computing device; and

host the virtual machine on a secondary computing device, supporting a secondary virtual machine type, based upon a snapshot, comprising;

responsive to the secondary computing device not supporting the primary virtual machine type;

utilize the snapshot to host a temporary virtual machine within a virtual machine host software environment that supports the primary virtual machine type;

convert the temporary virtual machine from the primary virtual machine type to the secondary virtual machine type to create a secondary virtual machine; and

host the secondary virtual machine on the secondary computing device as the virtual machine on the secondary computing device, at least some of at least one of the backup component or the hosting component implemented at least in part via a processor.

21. The system of claim 20, the hosting component configured to:

determine whether the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in a running state or an off state.

22. The system of claim 21, the hosting component configured to:

if the primary virtual machine type is supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then host the virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the running state from the snapshot.

23. The system of claim 21, the hosting component configured to:

if the primary virtual machine type is supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then host the virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state from the snapshot.

24. The system of claim 21, the hosting component configured to:

if the primary virtual machine type is supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the off state, then host the virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state from the snapshot.

25. The system of claim 21, the hosting component configured to:

if the primary virtual machine type is not supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the running state, then;

host the temporary virtual machine in the running state within the virtual machine host software environment;

shut down the running state of the temporary virtual machine to the off state;

convert the temporary virtual machine in the off state from the primary virtual machine type to the secondary virtual machine type supported by the secondary computing device to create the secondary virtual machine; and

host the secondary virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state.

26. The system of claim 21, the hosting component configured to:

if the primary virtual machine type is not supported by the secondary computing device and the snapshot was created while the virtual machine was in the off state, then;

convert the temporary virtual machine in the off state from the primary virtual machine type to the secondary virtual machine type supported by the secondary computing device to create the secondary virtual machine; and

host the secondary virtual machine on the secondary computing device in the off state.

27. The system of claim 20, the backup component configured to:

create a second snapshot of the virtual machine hosted on the secondary computing device; and

send the second snapshot to the primary computing device for hosting on the primary computing device based upon re-initialization of the primary computing device.