Cross-system storage management for transferring data across autonomous information management systems

• US 9,648,100 B2
• Filed: 03/05/2014
• Issued: 05/09/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Original Assignee: CommVault Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Klose, Michael Frank, Nara, Prasad
• Primary Examiner(s): TOKUTA, SHEAN S
• Application Number:
  US14/198,517
• Publication Number:
  US 20150256617A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,161 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/119 Details of migration of file systems migration mechanisms in storage systems G06F3/0647
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/972 Access to data in other repository systems, e.g. legacy data or dynamic Web page generation
• 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 67/1097 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]

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for cross-system storage management for transferring data across autonomous information management systems. Data may be transferred from one information management system to another information management system without interfering with or overriding each system'"'"'s autonomy. For example, a secondary copy of production data (e.g., backed up data) is transferred from a first information management system that originated the data to a component of another “foreign” information management system. A first storage manager that manages the first information management system also manages the cross-system data transfer operation to a “foreign” client computing device, which remains under autonomous management as a component of the foreign information management system.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first storage manager configured to manage a first information management system, wherein the first information management system comprises;

(A) a secondary storage device comprising a secondary copy of data that originated in the first information management system, and

(B) a secondary storage computing device associated with the secondary storage device, and

wherein the first storage manager is further configured to manage a data transfer of the secondary copy of data to a second information management system that is managed autonomously by a second storage manager;

a client computing device comprising;

(a) a first executable version of an information management software, and (b) a second executable version of the information management software, and (c) shared binaries for instantiating the first executable version of the information management software and the second executable version of the information management software;

wherein the client computing device is configured to use the first executable version of the information management software at least to communicate with the secondary storage computing device to receive the data transfer of the secondary copy of data from the first information management system;

wherein the client computing device is further configured to use the second executable version of the information management software to operate under management by the second storage manager as a component of the second information management system;

the second storage manager configured to;

(i) transmit to the first storage manager information about the client computing device,

wherein the information is sufficient to enable the first storage manager to manage the data transfer to the client computing device, and the information is insufficient to enable the first storage manager to manage the client computing device as a component of the first information management system, and

(ii) instruct the client computing device to execute, based on the shared binaries, the first executable version of the information management software to receive the data transfer from the secondary storage computing device in the first storage management system, and

(iii) autonomously manage the client computing device executing the second executable version of the information management software as a component of the second information management system, based at least in part on a storage policy for protecting at least some data generated by the client computing device, whether or not the client computing device is communicatively coupled to the secondary storage computing device in the first information management system;

wherein the first storage manager is further configured to, based at least in part on the information about the client computing device received from the second storage manager, instruct the secondary storage computing device in the first information management system to transfer the secondary copy of data from the first information management system to the client computing device in the second information management system; and

wherein after the data transfer is completed, at least one of;

(I) the first storage manager is further configured to communicatively decouple the client computing device from the secondary storage computing device, and

(II) the second storage manager is further configured to instruct the client computing device to stop executing the first executable version of the information management software.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the information about the client computing device transmitted by the second storage manager to the first storage manager comprises a host identifier and a client identifier.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the first information management system lacks an information management policy in respect to the client computing device.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the first information management system lacks a storage policy in respect to data generated by the client computing device.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the first storage manager is further configured to request the second storage manager to instruct the client computing device to execute the first executable version of the information management software.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the first storage manager is further configured to perform at least one of (i) activate and (ii) instruct the activation of a communication path for the data transfer, wherein the communication path is configured between the client computing device in the second information management system and the secondary storage computing device in the first information management system.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the second storage manager is further configured to relay to the client computing device instructions in regard to the data transfer, which are issued by the first storage manager and targeted to the client computing device;

and

wherein the client computing device is further configured to at least one of (i) reject and (ii) disregard other information management commands from the first storage manager.

8. A method for transferring data from one autonomous information management system to a component of another autonomous information management system without managing the component, the method comprising:

executing, by a client computing device, a first executable version of an information management software;

executing, by the client computing device, a second executable version of the information management software, based on shared binaries for instantiating the first executable version of the information management software and the second executable version of the information management software,

wherein the client computing device uses the second executable version of the information management software to operate as a component of a second information management system that is managed by a second storage manager, based at least in part on a storage policy for protecting at least some data generated by the client computing device;

managing, by a first storage manager that manages a first information management system, a cross-system data transfer of a secondary copy of data from the first information management system to the client computing device,

wherein the cross-system data transfer is based at least in part on the first executable version of the information management software executing on the client computing device based on the shared binaries,

wherein the cross-system data transfer is enabled by information about the client computing device, comprising at least one of a host identifier and a client identifier, received by the first storage manager from the second storage manager, and

wherein the information is insufficient for the first storage manager to manage the client computing device as a component of the first information management system; and

after the cross-system data transfer completes, at least one of;

(I) communicatively decoupling, by the first storage manager, the client computing device from the first information management system, and

(II) instructing the client computing device, by the second storage manager, to stop executing the first executable version of the information management software; and

wherein, whether or not the first executable version of the information management software is executing on the client computing device, the client computing device does not operate as a component of the first information management system, which is managed by the first storage manager, at least in part because the first information management system lacks any storage policies in reference to data generated by the client computing device.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the cross-system data transfer is at least a part of a restore operation managed by the first storage manager.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the cross-system data transfer is a restore operation managed by the first storage manager, and

wherein metadata resulting from the restore operation is generated in and stored by the first information management system.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the first executable version of the information management software executes on the client computing device based on one or more instructions received by the client computing device from the second storage manager.

12. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

stopping, by the client computing device, the execution of the first executable version of the information management software, based on one or more instructions received by the client computing device from the second storage manager.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the first executable version of the information management software executes on the client computing device based on one or more instructions initiated by the first storage manager and transmitted to the client computing device by the second storage manager.

14. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

stopping, by the client computing device, the execution of the first executable version of information management software, based on one or more instructions transmitted by the first storage manager to the second storage manager after the cross-system data transfer completes, wherein the one or more instructions are received by the client computing device from the second storage manager.

15. A method for performing cross-system data transfers from a source autonomous information management system to a destination autonomous information management system without the source information management system managing the destination client computing device, the method comprising:

in a second information management system managed by a second storage manager, managing, by the second storage manager, a client computing device as a component of the second information management system, wherein the managing is based at least in part on a second executable version of an information management software that executes on the client computing device and on one or more information management policies in reference to data generated by the client computing device;

instructing, by the second storage manager, the client computing device to execute a first executable version of the information management software for establishing a communication path between the client computing device and a component of a first information management system that has access to a secondary copy of data stored in the first information management system,

wherein the first executable version of the information management software and the second executable version of the information management software are both instantiated based on shared binaries stored in the client computing device, and

wherein the first information management system is distinct from and autonomous of the second information management system;

transmitting, by the second storage manager, registry information about the client computing device to a first storage manager that manages the first information management system,

wherein the registry information is sufficient for performing a cross-system data transfer from the first information management system to the client computing device in the second information management system using the communication path, and

wherein the registry information is also insufficient for the first storage manager to manage the client computing device as a component of the first information management system at least because the registry information lacks any information management policies in reference to data generated by the client computing device;

receiving, by the client computing device, via the communication path, the cross-system data transfer of a version of the secondary copy of data from the component of the first information management system,

wherein, while receiving, the client computing device remains under management by the second storage manager as a component of the second information management system; and

after the cross-system data transfer completes, at least one of;

(I) tearing down the communication path between the client computing device and the component of the first information management system that has access to the secondary copy of data stored in the first information management system, and

(II) instructing the client computing device, by the second storage manager, to stop executing the first executable version of the information management software.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

managing, by the first storage manager, the cross-system data transfer from the component of the first information management system to the client computing device in the second information management system, based at least in part on the information about the client computing device received from the second storage manager.