Disaster recovery at high reliability in a storage cluster

• US 9,087,012 B1
• Filed: 06/04/2014
• Issued: 07/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pure Storage, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Pure Storage, Inc.
• Inventors: Hayes, John, Botes, Par
• Primary Examiner(s): Chu, Gabriel
• Application Number:
  US14/296,155
• Time in Patent Office: 412 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1458 Management of the backup or restore process
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2094 Redundant storage or storage space G06F11/2056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/602 Providing cryptographic facilities or services
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6272 by registering files or documents with a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/065 Replication mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/085 Secret sharing or secret splitting, e.g. threshold schemes

Abstract

A storage grid is provided. The storage grid includes a first cluster, a second cluster, and a third cluster. Each of the first cluster, the second cluster and the third cluster is configured to store an amount of data ranging from a portion of a copy of the data to a full copy of the data. The first cluster has a full copy of data written to the first cluster and at least a partial copy of data written to the second and third cluster. The second cluster has a full copy of data written to the second cluster, and at least a partial copy of the data written to the first and third cluster. The third cluster has a full copy of data written to the third cluster and at least a partial copy of the data written to the first and second cluster. A method of storing data is also provided.

Claims

1. A method of storing data, comprising:

receiving data at one storage cluster of a storage grid, the storage grid comprising multiple storage cluster;

storing the data at the first storage cluster of the storage grid;

storing a portion of the data at the second storage cluster of the storage grid;

storing a remaining portion of the data at the third storage cluster of the storage grid; and

repeating the receiving and each storing operation with a second data, such that no one storage cluster of the storage grid has a full copy of the data and a full copy of the second data, wherein at least one method operation is executed by a processor.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

changing data destinations among the storage clusters of the storage grid and wherein each combination of two storage clusters of the storage grid has at least the full copy of the data and the full copy of the second data.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

splitting the data into the portion and the remaining portion, wherein the splitting is performed by one of the storage clusters of the storage grid or a network coupled to each of the storage clusters of the storage grid.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data includes a first segment of data and a second segment of data, the portion of the data includes the first segment of data, and the remaining portion of the data includes the second segment of data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein storing a portion of the data at the second storage cluster and storing a remaining portion of the data at the third storage cluster includes writing alternating segments of data to the second storage cluster and the third storage cluster.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

interleaving the portion of the data and the remaining portion of the data so as to recover a copy of the data, responsive to a failure of the first storage cluster of the storage grid.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

encrypting contents of each of the first storage, the second storage and the third storage, via a shared secret; and

storing a first share of the shared secret at the first storage, a second share of the shared secret at the second storage, and a third share of the shared secret at the third storage, such that any two of the first share, the second share, and the third share suffice for decrypting the contents of any of the first storage, the second storage, and the third storage.

8. A storage grid, comprising:

a first storage cluster, a second storage cluster, and a third storage cluster; and

each of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster and the third storage cluster is configured to store an amount of data ranging from a portion of a copy of the data to a full copy of the data, for each of at least a first data, a second data and a third data, such that;

the first data has a full copy of the first data written to the first storage cluster, a partial copy of the first data written to the second storage cluster, and a difference between the full copy of the first data and the partial copy of the first data written to the third storage cluster;

the second data has a full copy of the second data written to the second storage cluster, a partial copy of the second data written to the third storage cluster, and a difference between the full copy of the second data and the partial copy of the second data written to the first storage cluster; and

the third data has a full copy of the third data written to the third storage cluster, a partial copy of the third data written to the first storage cluster, and a difference between the full copy of the third data and the partial copy of the third data written to the second storage cluster.

9. The storage grid of claim 8, wherein:

no one of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, or the third storage cluster, has a full copy of each of the first data, a full copy of the second data and a full copy of the third data; and

each two of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, or the third storage cluster, has at least the full copy of each of the first data, the full copy of the second data or the full copy of the third data.

10. The storage group of claim 8, further configured so that in the event of a failure of the first storage cluster, the first data can be recovered by interleaving the partial copy of the first data, from the second storage cluster and the difference between the full copy of the first data and the partial copy of the first data, from the third storage cluster, the interleaving at a granularity of a segment.

11. The storage grid of claim 8, further comprising:

each of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, and the third storage cluster including flash.

12. The storage grid of claim 8, further comprising:

the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, and the third storage cluster configured to couple to each other via a network and wherein each of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, and the third storage cluster have different storage capacities.

13. The storage grid of claim 8, further comprising:

a secret generation unit, configured to generate a shared secret applicable to encrypting keys;

a share generation unit, configured to generate shares of the shared secret; and

each of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster and the third storage cluster configured to store one of the shares of the shared secret.

14. The storage grid of claim 8, further comprising:

each of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster and the third storage cluster includes a plurality of storage units with solid-state memory.

15. A storage grid comprising:

a first storage cluster, a second storage cluster, and a third storage cluster;

the first storage cluster configured to receive a first data, write the first data into the first storage cluster, send a portion of a copy of the first data to the second storage cluster, and send a remaining portion of the copy of the first data to the third storage cluster;

the second storage cluster configured to receive a second data, write the second data into the second storage cluster, send a portion of a copy of the second data to the third storage cluster, and send a remaining portion of the copy of the second data to the first storage cluster; and

the third storage cluster configured to receive a third data, write the data into the third storage cluster, send a portion of a copy of the third data to the first storage cluster, and send a remaining portion of the copy of the third data to the second storage cluster.

16. The storage grid of claim 15, wherein:

the first storage cluster lacks all of the first data, the second data and the third data;

the second storage cluster lacks all of the first data, the second data and the third data;

the third storage cluster lacks all of the first data, the second data and the third data; and

wherein any combination of two clusters of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, and the third storage cluster can recover the first data, the second data and the third data.

17. The storage grid of claim 15, wherein the first storage cluster is configured to send the copy of the first data and the remaining portion of the copy of the first data as alternating segments of data to the third storage cluster and the second storage cluster.

18. The storage grid of claim 15, further comprising:

at least one processor configured to generate a shared secret and shares of the shared secret;

each of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, and the third storage cluster configured to store at least one of the shares of the shared secret, wherein shares of the shared secret from two of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, and the third storage cluster are applicable to decrypt data on any one of the first storage cluster, the second storage cluster, or the third storage cluster.

19. The storage grid of claim 15, wherein the first data, the second data and the third data is portioned by one of the storage clusters of the storage grid or a network coupled to each of the storage clusters of the storage grid.

20. The storage grid of claim 15, further comprising:

the first storage cluster and the second storage cluster configured to recover the third data by combining the portion of the copy of the third data from the first storage cluster and the remaining portion of the copy of the third data from the second storage cluster;

the second storage cluster and the third storage cluster configured to recover the first data by combining the portion of the copy of the first data from the second storage cluster and the remaining portion of the copy of the first data from the third storage cluster; and

the third storage cluster and the first storage cluster configured to recover the second data by combining the portion of the copy of the second data from the third storage cluster and the remaining portion of the copy of the second data from the first storage cluster.