Realtime streaming of multimedia content from secondary storage devices

• US 8,706,867 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2011
• Issued: 04/22/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Vijayan, Manoj Kumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Shin, Kyung H
• Application Number:
  US13/076,740
• Publication Number:
  US 20120254364A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,118 Days
• Field of Search: 709/209, 709/224, 707/999.102
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/06 using stored programs, i.e. using an internal store of processing equipment to receive or retain programs
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2812 describing content present in a home automation network, e.g. audio video content retrieval from the Internet G06F16/95
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 Audio/video appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A method and system for streaming media to a client from a media server is described. In some examples, the system utilizes a virtualization layer to generate a virtual computing environment, or virtual machine, at a UPnP server, which is configured to receive requests for media, identify locations for the media within the secondary storage devices, access the media, and present the media to a client computing device associated with the media requests.

Claims

1. A method performed by a media server comprising a primary storage for streaming media to a client computing device over a network, the method comprising:

receiving a request for a media file at the media server,

wherein the media server hosts a virtual layer comprising one or more virtual machines,

wherein each virtual machine includes a corresponding operating system;

wherein the virtual layer further includes a virtual machine storage manager hosted on a computing device different from the media server;

determining that a storage location of the requested media file is a secondary storage location and not the primary storage,

wherein the requested media file is stored in a backup format at the secondary storage location,

wherein the secondary storage location includes a secondary data storage drive coupled to the network; and

wherein the secondary data storage drive includes an index that stores index data generated during storage of data to the secondary data storage device,

wherein the index includes an indication of specific files being stored during the storage of data;

mounting the secondary storage drive to a virtual machine of the virtual layer;

accessing the media file via the virtual machine; and

transferring a portion of the media file from the secondary storage location, via the virtual layer, to the client computing device;

wherein the primary storage includes a stub that indicates the secondary storage location of the requested media file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a request for a media file at the media server includes receiving a request for a media file at a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) server, wherein the UPnP server includes multiple UPnP serving applications executed by the one or more virtual machines.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring the media file to the client computing device includes transferring a first portion of the media file to the client computing device upon accessing the media file and automatically transferring a second portion of the media file to the client computing device in response to continued playback of the media file at the client computing device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring the media file to the client computing device includes transferring a first portion of the media file to the client computing device upon accessing the media file and transferring a second portion of the media file to the client computing device in response to an action performed in the medial file at the client computing device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring the media file to the client computing device includes transferring a portion of the media file to the client computing device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the media file is an archive file stored at the secondary storage location.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring the media file to the client computing device includes:

streaming a first portion of a movie to the client computing device; and

streaming a second portion of the movie to the client computing device in response to a selection of the second portion at the client computing device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring the media file to the client computing device includes:

transferring a first image of an image file to the client computing device; and

transferring a second image of the image file to the client computing device in response to a selection of the second image at the client computing device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein accessing the media file via a virtual layer hosted by the media server includes establishing a virtual environment to the media server that enables access to media files stored in the secondary storage location.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium whose contents, when executed by a media server, cause the media server to perform a method for streaming media to a client computing device, the method comprising:

receiving a request from a client computing device to stream a media file,

wherein the media server hosts a virtual layer comprising one or more virtual machines, and

wherein each virtual machine includes a corresponding operating system;

wherein the virtual layer further includes a virtual machine storage manager hosted on a computing device different from the media server;

determining that the requested media file is not stored in primary storage associated with the media server but is stored at a secondary storage location in which the requested media file is stored in a backup format;

wherein the requested media file is stored in a backup format at the secondary storage location,

wherein the secondary storage location includes a secondary data storage drive coupled to the network; and

wherein the secondary data storage drive includes an index that stores index data generated during storage of data to the secondary data storage device,

wherein the index includes an indication of specific files being stored during the storage of data;

mounting the secondary storage drive to a virtual machine of the virtual layer; and

accessing the requested media file via the virtual machine;

wherein the primary storage includes a stub that indicates the secondary storage location of the requested media file.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising:

transferring the requested media file from a secondary storage device storing the media file to the client computing device using components of the media server.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising:

mounting a secondary storage device storing the media file to virtual computing environment; and

transferring the requested media file from the secondary storage device storing the media file to the client computing device using components of the media server.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising:

streaming a first portion of the requested media file from a secondary storage device storing the media file to the client computing device using components of the media server;

receiving a request from the client computing device associated with a performed action in the streamed media file;

accessing a second portion associated with the performed action of the requested media file via the virtual computing environment hosted by the media server; and

streaming the second portion of the requested media file from the secondary storage device storing the media file to the client computing device using components of the media server.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the media file is a multimedia file.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the media file is an image file.

16. A system for streaming media to a client computing device, the system comprising:

a universal plug and play server, wherein the universal plug and play server is configured to stream media over a network to a client computing device;

a plurality of virtual machines hosted by the universal plug and play server,

wherein a virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines comprises an operating system different from that of the universal plug and play server,

wherein each of the plurality of virtual machines executes a media streaming application; and

wherein the virtual machine is configured to provide media stored in secondary storage locations to the universal plug and play server; and

a media request component, where the media request component is configured to;

identify locations of media requested by a client computing device; and

when the requested media is located in primary storage locations of the universal plug and play sever, direct the universal plug and play server to stream the requested media from the primary storage locations to the client computing device; and

when the requested media is located in secondary storage locations associated with the universal plug and play server, direct the universal plug and play server to access the requested media using the virtual machine and stream a portion the requested media from the secondary storage locations to the client computing device;

wherein the requested media is stored in a backup format at the secondary storage location,

wherein the secondary storage location includes a secondary data storage drive coupled to the network;

wherein the secondary storage drive is mounted to the virtual machine for accessing the media file via the virtual machine;

wherein the secondary data storage drive includes an index that stores index data generated during storage to the secondary data storage device,

wherein the index includes an indication of specific files being stored during the storage of data; and

wherein, when the requested media is in the secondary storage location, the primary storage includes a stub that indicates the secondary storage location of the requested media.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the universal plug and play server is accessed by the client computing device via the Internet.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein at least one of the secondary storage locations is a tape library.

19. A computer-implemented method for managing storage of media files for a streaming media service, the method comprising:

comparing, by a computer, metadata associated with a media file to a retention policy for maintaining media hosted by the streaming media service in primary storage;

determining that the metadata of the media file does not satisfy the retention policy for maintaining media hosted by the streaming media service in primary storage; and

transferring the media file to secondary storage and make the media file in the secondary storage accessible via a virtual computing environment hosted by a media server of the streaming media service, wherein the virtual computing environment comprise one or more virtual machines, each virtual machine including a corresponding operating system;

wherein the requested media file is stored in a backup format at the secondary storage location,

wherein the secondary storage location includes a secondary data storage drive coupled to the network;

wherein the secondary storage drive is mounted to a virtual machine for accessing the media file via the virtual machine;

wherein the secondary data storage drive includes an index that stores index data generated during storage to the secondary data storage device,

wherein the index includes an indication of specific files being stored during the storage of data; and

wherein the primary storage includes a stub that indicates the secondary storage location of the requested media file.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein transferring the media file to secondary storage includes transferring the media file to secondary storage capable of being accessed by the streaming media server via a virtual computing environment hosted by a media server of the streaming media service.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein determining that the metadata of the media file does not satisfy the retention policy for maintaining media hosted by the streaming media service in primary storage includes determining that the media file has not been accessed within a certain time period.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein determining that the metadata of the media file does not satisfy the retention policy for maintaining media hosted by the streaming media service in primary storage includes determining that the media file has not been accessed a threshold number of times within a certain time period.