Using an enhanced data agent to restore backed up data across autonomous storage management systems

• US 9,444,811 B2
• Filed: 10/21/2014
• Issued: 09/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Nara, Prasad, Klose, Michael F.
• Primary Examiner(s): LEE, JASON T
• Application Number:
  US14/519,402
• Publication Number:
  US 20160112407A1
• Time in Patent Office: 693 Days
• Field of Search: 726/5, 707/680
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/14 Error detection or correction of the data by redundancy in operation G06F11/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1402 Saving, restoring, recovering or retrying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1451 by selection of backup contents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1464 for networked environments
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2094 Redundant storage or storage space G06F11/2056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3034 where the computing system component is a storage system, e.g. DASD based or network based digital input from or digital output to record carriers G06F3/06; digital recording or reproducing G11B20/18; for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS], H04L67/1097
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3433 for load management allocation of a server based on load conditions G06F9/505; load rebalancing G06F9/5083; redistributing the load in a network by a load balancer H04L67/1029
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0604 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. storage management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0619 in relation to data integrity, e.g. data losses, bit errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0622 in relation to access
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0637 Permissions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0647 Migration mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0649 Lifecycle management
• 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 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• 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 69/40 : for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06

Abstract

An exemplary system preserves the autonomy of two or more distinct storage management systems all the while enabling backed up data to be restored from a first storage management system (the “local system”) to a specially-configured client in a second storage management system (the “remote system”). For example, backed up data in the local system (e.g., a secondary copy of production data) may be transferred, in a restore operation, from secondary storage in the local storage management system, which originated the data, to a client of the remote storage management system (the “remote client”). As a specially-configured “restore-only client,” the remote client is limited to receiving backed up data from the local storage management system, via restore operation(s) managed by the local storage manager. The remote client remains a full-fledged client in its home system, the remote storage management system.

Claims

1. A system for restoring a secondary copy of data generated in a local storage management system to a specially configured client in a remote storage management system, the system comprising:

a first computing device comprising one or more hardware processors,

wherein the first computing device is a component of the remote storage management system and is configured to execute a data agent;

a data storage device which is associated with the first computing device and which is also a component of the remote storage management system;

wherein the data agent is configured to perform as both;

(i) a restore-only client of the local storage management system managed by a local storage manager,

based on an authentication certificate and a registry key for communicating with the local storage manager,

wherein the registry key associates the data agent and the local storage manager,

wherein the authentication certificate and registry key are received from a remote storage manager, and

wherein the restore-only client is a destination for restored data from the local storage management system but is not a source of data for storage management operations in the local storage management system, and

(ii) a full-function client of the remote storage management system managed by the remote storage manager,

wherein the full-function client participates in storage management operations managed by the remote storage manager in the remote storage management system;

wherein, as a restore-only client of the local storage management system, the data agent is configured to participate in a restore operation managed by the local storage manager,

wherein in the restore operation a secondary copy of data generated in the local storage management system is restored to the data storage device which is associated with the first computing device in the remote storage management system;

a second computing device comprising one or more hardware processors,

wherein the second computing device is configured to execute a media agent and is a component of the local storage management system that generated the secondary copy; and

wherein the media agent is configured to transmit the secondary copy from the local storage management system to the data agent performing as a restore-only client of the local storage management system.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein

the authentication certificate is issued by the local storage based on configuration data in reference to at least one of (a) the first computing device and (b) the data agent, wherein the configuration data is requested by the local storage manager from the remote storage manager.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein

the registry key is issued by the remote storage manager and is stored by the first computing device.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the data agent is configured to communicate directly with the local storage manager in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the authentication certificate,

which is issued by the local storage manager based on configuration data in reference to at least one of (a) the first computing device and (b) the data agent, wherein the configuration data is requested by the local storage manager from the remote storage manager.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the data agent is configured to communicate directly with the local storage manager in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the registry key,

which is issued by the remote storage manager and is stored by the first computing device.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the data agent is configured to receive at least one instruction from the local storage manager in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the restore-only client configuration of the data agent.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the data agent is configured to communicate directly with the media agent in the local storage management system in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the restore-only client configuration of the data agent.

8. A method for restoring a secondary copy of data generated in a first storage management system to a client in a second storage management system, the method comprising:

configuring a data agent, which executes on a first computing device comprising one or more hardware processors, to perform as both;

(i) a restore-only client of a first storage management system managed by a first storage manager,

based on an authentication certificate and a registry key, received from a second storage manager, for communicating with the first storage manager,

wherein the restore-only client is a destination for restored data from the first storage management system but is not a source of data for storage management operations in the first storage management system, and

(ii) a full-function client of a second storage management system,

wherein the full-function client participates in storage management operations managed by the second storage manager in the second storage management system;

participating, by the data agent operating as the restore-only client, in a restore operation managed by the first storage manager,

wherein the source of data for the restore operation is a secondary copy of data generated in the first storage management system, and

wherein the secondary copy is restored to a data storage device in the second storage management system, wherein the data storage device is in communication with the first computing device; and

from the first computing device, natively accessing the restored secondary copy stored in the data storage device by at least one of an application, a file system, and a virtual machine executing on the first computing device.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein

the authentication certificate is issued by the first storage manager to the data agent via the second storage manager.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein

the registry key is issued by the second storage manager to the data agent, and wherein the registry key associates the data agent and the first storage manager.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the data agent is configured to communicate directly with the first storage manager in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the authentication certificate,

which is issued by the first storage manager to the data agent,

via the second storage manager,

based on configuration data in reference to at least one of (a) the first computing device and (b) the data agent, wherein the configuration data is requested by the first storage manager from the second storage manager.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein the data agent is configured to communicate directly with the first storage manager in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the registry key,

which is issued by the second storage manager to the data agent, and

wherein the registry key associates the data agent and the first storage manager.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the data agent is configured to receive at least one instruction from the first storage manager in regard to the restore operation based at least in part on the restore-only configuration of the data agent.

14. The method of claim 8 wherein the data agent performing as the restore-only client is configured to communicate directly with a media agent in the first storage management system to perform the restore operation, and

wherein the media agent executes on a second computing device comprising one or more hardware processors which operates in the first storage management system.