Method, system and program product for storing downloadable content on a plurality of enterprise storage system (ESS) cells

• US 8,782,372 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2012
• Issued: 07/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated (Kyndryl Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Boutboul, Irwin, Kim, Moon J., Meliksetian, Dikran, Oesterlin, Robert G., Ravinsky, Anthony Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): THAI, TUAN V
• Application Number:
  US13/617,052
• Publication Number:
  US 20130054930A1
• Time in Patent Office: 669 Days
• Field of Search: 711/100, 711/154, 711/170, 711/200
• US Class Current: 711/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1727 Details of free space management performed by the file system saving storage space on storage systems G06F3/0608; management of blocks in storage devices G06F3/064
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/184 implemented as replicated file system

Abstract

The present invention takes advantage of unused storage space within the ESS cells to provide for the efficient and cost effective storage of downloadable content. Specifically, the system of the present invention generally includes a download grid manager that communicates with the ESS cells. Content to be replicated to the ESS cells, and characteristics corresponding thereto, are received on the download grid manager from a content owner (or the like). Based on the characteristics, a storage policy, and storage information previously received from the ESS cells, the download grid manager will replicate the downloadable content to unused storage space within the ESS cells.

Claims

1. A method for storing downloadable content on a plurality of Enterprise Storage System (ESS) cells to which content is assigned based on proximity to a geographic location of the sender, the plurality of ESS cells being cells that are dedicated to the ESS in a grid having service delivery agents and download services that allow requested content to be retrieved in chunks from multiple ESS cells, comprising:

receiving the downloadable content and characteristics corresponding to the downloadable content on a download grid manager; and

replicating the downloadable content from the download grid manager to unused storage space of the plurality of ESS cells based on the characteristics and a storage policy that indicates a limit of the unused storage space on each of the plurality of ESS cells that the downloadable content is permitted to occupy, by;

determining whether an ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell being greater than a proximity of a different ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender fails to comply with the storage policy;

based on a determination that the ESS cell fails to comply, replicating the downloadable content to at least one other ESS cell in the plurality of ESS cells that is less proximate to the geographic location of the sender than the ESS cell; and

otherwise, replicating the content to the ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring the storage within the plurality of ESS cells; and

providing feedback to the download grid manager based on the monitoring.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the monitoring is performed by a monitoring component within each of the ESS cells, and wherein the feedback is communicated from the monitoring component to a set of download services within each of the plurality of ESS cells and then from the set of download services to the download grid manager.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising deleting the downloadable content from one of the plurality of ESS cells when the feedback indicates that the limit of the storage policy is exceeded for the one ESS cell.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the limit is expressed within the storage policy as a total amount of unused storage space and a quota of the unused storage space permitted to be used by the downloadable content.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving storage information on the download grid manager from the plurality of ESS cells prior to the receiving step, wherein the downloadable content is replicated to the unused storage space based further on the storage information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the download grid manager manages the downloadable content by ceasing further replication to the ESS cell to which the content is assigned, based on the priority, the limit, and the feedback.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the download grid manager manages the downloadable content by making the downloadable content available for download in chunks from the ESS cell and the at least one other ESS cell.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of ESS cells includes an application for downloading the downloadable content from some of the plurality of ESS cells in chunks.

10. A system for storing downloadable content on a plurality of Enterprise Storage System (ESS) cells to which content is assigned based on proximity to a geographic location of the sender, the plurality of ESS cells being cells that are dedicated to the ESS in a grid having service delivery agents and download services that allow requested content to be retrieved in chunks from multiple ESS cells, comprising:

an input reception system for receiving the downloadable content and characteristics corresponding to the downloadable content on a download grid manager; and

a content replication system for replicating the downloadable content from the download grid manager to unused storage space of the plurality of ESS cells based on the characteristics and a storage policy that indicates a limit of the unused storage space on each of the plurality of ESS cells that the downloadable content is permitted to occupy, by;

determining whether an ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell being greater than a proximity of a different ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender fails to comply with the storage policy;

based on a determination that the ESS cell fails to comply, replicating the downloadable content to at least one other ESS cell in the plurality of ESS cells that is less proximate to the geographic location of the sender than the ESS cell; and

otherwise, replicating the content to the ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising a monitoring component for monitoring storage within the plurality of ESS cells, wherein feedback is provided to the download grid manager based on the monitoring.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein, for each of the plurality of ESS cells, the feedback is communicated from the monitoring component to a set of download services within each of the plurality of ESS cells, and then from the set of download services to the download grid manager.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising a content management system that deletes the downloadable content from one of the plurality of ESS cells when the feedback indicates that the limit of the storage policy is exceeded for the one ESS cell.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the limit is expressed within the storage policy as a total amount of unused storage space and a quota of the unused storage space permitted to be used by the downloadable content.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the input reception system further receives storage information from the plurality of ESS cells, and wherein the downloadable content is replicated to the unused space based on the storage information.

16. A program product stored on a computer recordable storage medium for storing downloadable content on a plurality of Enterprise Storage System (ESS) cells to which content is assigned based on proximity to a geographic location of the sender, the plurality of ESS cells being cells that are dedicated to the ESS in a grid having service delivery agents and download services that allow requested content to be retrieved in chunks from multiple ESS cells, which when executed, comprises:

program code for receiving the downloadable content and characteristics corresponding to the downloadable content on a download grid manager; and

program code for replicating the downloadable content from the download grid manager to unused storage space of the plurality of ESS cells based on the characteristics and a storage policy that indicates a limit of the unused storage space on each of the plurality of ESS cells that the downloadable content is permitted to occupy, by;

determining whether an ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell being greater than a proximity of a different ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender fails to comply with the storage policy;

based on a determination that the ESS cell fails to comply, replicating the downloadable content to at least one other ESS cell in the plurality of ESS cells that is less proximate to the geographic location of the sender than the ESS cell; and

otherwise, replicating the content to the ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender.

17. The program product of claim 16, further comprising program code for monitoring the storage within the plurality of ESS cells, wherein feedback is provided to the download grid manager based on the monitoring.

18. The program product of claim 17, wherein, for each of the plurality of ESS cells, the feedback is communicated from the program code for monitoring to a set of download services within each of the plurality of ESS cells, and then from the set of download services to the download grid manager.

19. The program product of claim 17, further comprising program code for managing, wherein the program code for managing deletes the downloadable content from one of the plurality of ESS cells when the feedback indicates that the limit of the storage policy is exceeded for the one ESS cell.

20. The program product of claim 16, wherein the limit is expressed within the storage policy as a total amount of unused storage space and a quota of the unused storage space permitted to be used by the downloadable content.

21. The program product of claim 16, wherein the program code for receiving further receives storage information from the plurality of ESS cells, and wherein the downloadable content is replicated to the unused space based on the storage information.

22. A system for deploying an application for storing downloadable content on a plurality of Enterprise Storage System (ESS) cells to which content are assigned based on proximity to a geographic location of the sender, the plurality of ESS cells being cells that are dedicated to the ESS in a grid having service delivery agents and download services that allow requested content to be retrieved in chunks from multiple ESS cells, comprising:

a computer infrastructure that includes a computer device, the computer infrastructure being operable to;

receive the downloadable content and characteristics corresponding to the downloadable content on a download grid manager; and

replicate the downloadable content from the download grid manager to unused storage space of the plurality of ESS cells based on the characteristics and a storage policy that indicates a limit of the unused storage space on each of the plurality of ESS cells that the downloadable content is permitted to occupy, by;

determining whether an ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell being greater than a proximity of a different ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender fails to comply with the storage policy;

based on a determination that the ESS cell fails to comply, replicating the downloadable content to at least one other ESS cell in the plurality of ESS cells that is less proximate to the geographic location of the sender than the ESS cell; and

otherwise, replicating the content to the ESS cell to which the content is assigned based on the proximity of the ESS cell to the geographic location of the sender.