Pool of devices providing operating system redundancy

• US 9,792,181 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2010
• Issued: 10/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Coronado, Juan A., Martinez, Lisa R., Saba, Raul E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Yi, David X
• Assistant Examiner(s): GOLDSCHMIDT, CRAIG S
• Application Number:
  US12/710,116
• Publication Number:
  US 20110208922A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,794 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1438 Restarting or rejuvenating
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1482 by means of middleware or OS functionality
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/20 using active fault-masking, e.g. by switching out faulty elements or by switching in spare elements

Abstract

Systems, methods, and computer program products for providing operating system (O/S) redundancy in a computing system are provided. One system includes a host computing device, a plurality of memory devices, and a sub-loader coupled between the host computing device and the plurality of memory devices. Each memory device stores a respective O/S and the sub-loader is configured such that the plurality of memory devices appear transparent to the host computing device. One method includes designating, a first logical unit device as a primary logical unit device and subsequently determining that the first logical unit device is unresponsive. The designation is removed from the first logical unit device and a second logical unit device is designated as a new primary logical unit device. One computer program product includes instructions for performing the above method.

Claims

1. A system providing operating system redundancy, comprising:

a host computing device;

a plurality of physical memory devices, each memory device storing a respective operating system; and

a sub-loader coupled between the host computing device and the plurality of physical memory devices such that the host computing device sees the plurality of physical memory devices and the sub-loader as a single memory device, wherein the sub-loader is configured to;

comprise a memory device connected to one of the plurality of physical memory devices to present the plurality of physical memory devices to the host computing device as a single memory device,

designate a first logical unit device as a primary logical unit device comprising a first physical memory disk and storing a first respective operating system, the first logical unit device being a first type of memory device having a first mirroring scheme,

determine that the first logical unit device is unresponsive pursuant to failing to receive a response to perform a functional request after a predetermined threshold of time,

remove the designation of primary logical unit device from the first logical unit device,

designate a second logical unit device as a new primary logical unit device after removal of the primary logical unit device designation from the first logical unit device, the second logical unit device comprising a second physical memory disk, storing a second operating system comprising a cloned copy of the first respective operating system such that any modifications applied during operation of the first respective operating system are identically applied to the second operating system, and being a second type of memory device selected to have a different mirroring scheme than the first mirroring scheme and to have a different redundant array of independent disks (RAID) configuration than the first logical unit device, and

maintain a first table for each of the first and second logical unit devices for tracking out-of-synch sectors on each respective logical unit device relative to sectors on the primary logical unit device, and maintain a second table indicating which of the first and the second logical unit devices is the primary logical unit device,

wherein removing the primary logical unit device designation from the first logical unit device and designating the second logical unit device as the new primary logical unit device is transparent to the host computing device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein at least two of the plurality of physical memory devices are a same type of memory device.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein one of the plurality of physical memory devices is one of a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) device, an enterprise device, and a solid-state device.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first logical unit device is a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) device and the second logical unit device is an enterprise device.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first logical unit device is a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) device and the second logical unit device is a solid-state device.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first type of memory device is an enterprise device and the second type of memory device is a solid-state device.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of physical memory devices comprises at least three memory devices storing a respective operating system.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the sub-loader is configured to set each bit in the first table to indicate which sector needs to be synched when a response for input/output indicating that data is hardened on the primary logical unit device is received.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the sub-loader is configured to implement an asynchronous process for synchronizing the first and the second logical unit devices.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the sub-loader is further configured to reset the table once each sector is cloned.

11. A method for providing operating system redundancy in a computing system including a host computing device coupled to a first logical unit device comprising a first physical memory disk and including a first operating system and to a second logical unit device comprising a second physical memory disk and including a second operating system via a sub-loader such that the host computing device sees the first and second logical unit devices and the sub-loader as a single memory device, the first operating system and the second operating system being clones of one another such that any modifications applied during operation of the first operating system are identically applied to the second operating system, the method comprising:

designating, by the sub-loader, the first logical unit device as a primary logical unit device, the first logical unit device being a first type of memory device and having a first mirroring scheme;

determining, by the sub-loader, that the first logical unit device is unresponsive pursuant to failing to receive a response to perform a functional request after a predetermined threshold of time;

removing, by the sub-loader, the designation of primary logical unit device from the first logical unit device;

designating, by the sub-loader, the second logical unit device as a new primary logical unit device after removal of the primary logical unit device designation from the first logical unit device, the second logical unit being a second type of memory device and selected to have a different mirroring scheme than the first mirroring scheme and to have a different redundant array of independent disks (RAID) configuration than the first logical unit device;

maintaining by the sub-loader a first table for each of the first and second logical unit devices for tracking out-of-synch sectors on each respective logical unit device relative to sectors on the primary logical unit device, and maintaining a second table indicating which of the first and the second logical unit devices is the primary logical unit device; and

after designating the second logical device as the new primary logical unit device, attempting to bring the first logical unit device back in synch with the new primary logical unit device so that the first logical unit device is available,

wherein removing the primary logical unit device designation from the first logical unit device and designating the second logical unit device as the new primary logical unit device is transparent to the host computing device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein designating the first logical unit device as the primary logical unit device comprises designating the first logical unit device as the primary logical unit device based on the first type of memory device for the first logical unit device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the first type of memory device is one of a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) device, an enterprise device, and a solid-state device.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the second type of memory device is one of a SATA device, an enterprise device, and a solid-state device.

15. A computer program product for facilitating operating system redundancy, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code portions stored therein, the computer-readable program code portions comprising:

a first executable portion for designating a first logical unit device as a primary logical unit device comprising a first physical memory disk and storing a first operating system, the first logical unit device being a first type of memory device;

a second executable portion for determining that the first logical unit device is unresponsive pursuant to failing to receive a response to perform a functional request after a predetermined threshold of time;

a third executable portion for removing the designation of primary logical unit device from the first logical unit device;

a fourth executable portion for designating a second logical unit device as a new primary logical unit device after removal of the primary logical unit device designation from the first logical unit device, the second logical unit device comprising a second physical memory disk and including a second operating system, the second operating system being a clone of the first operating system such that any modifications applied during operation of the first operating system are identically applied to the second operating system, and the second logical unit device being a second type of memory device and selected to have a different mirroring scheme than the first mirroring scheme and to have a different redundant array of independent disks (RAID) configuration than the first logical unit;

a fifth executable portion for maintaining a first table for each of the first and second logical unit devices for tracking out-of-synch sectors on each respective logical unit device relative to sectors on the primary logical unit device, and maintaining a second table indicating which of the first and the second logical unit devices is the primary logical unit device; and

a sixth executable portion for, after designating the second logical device as the new primary logical unit device, attempting to bring the first logical unit device back in synch with the new primary logical unit device so that the first logical unit device is available,

wherein removing the primary logical unit device designation from the first logical unit device and designating the second logical unit device as the new primary logical unit device is transparent to the host computing device.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the first executable portion comprises a first executable sub-portion for designating the first logical unit device as the primary logical unit device based on the first type of memory device for the first logical unit device.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first type of memory device is one of a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) device, an enterprise device, and a solid-state device.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the fourth executable portion comprises a second executable sub-portion for designating the second logical unit device as the new primary logical unit device based on the second type of memory device for the second logical unit device, wherein the second type of memory device is one of a SATA device, an enterprise device, and a solid-state device.