File server having snapshot application data groups
DCFirst Claim
1. A file server system for storing data sets for at least one data processor comprising:
- a plurality of data storage volumes, each of which is capable of storing at least one data set received from a data processor;
means for maintaining data set pointers indicative of a set of data sets managed as a single data entity consisting of a plurality of interrelated ones of said data sets stored in first available memory space in a plurality of said data storage volumes in said file server system;
means, responsive to the subsequent receipt of a data set access request from a data processor identifying one of said data sets stored in said set of data sets, for creating a new version of said set of data sets that contains said requested data set, independent of said data set requesting data processor, including;
means for identifying a physical memory location of each data set in said set of data sets that contains said requested data set as specified by its data set pointer,means for generating a new data set pointer, duplicative of said data set pointer, as the data set pointer for said copy of each said data set in said set of data sets,means for maintaining data indicative of a correspondence between said data set pointers and said duplicative data set pointers, andmeans for providing said data set requesting data processor with access to said set of data sets via said duplicative data set pointers.
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Abstract
This file server system appears to the host computer to be a plurality of data storage devices which are directly addressable by the host computer using the native data management and access structures of the host computer. The file server however is an intelligent data storage subsystem that defines, manages and accesses synchronized sets of data and maintains these synchronized sets of data external from the host computer system'"'"'s data management facilities in a manner that is completely transparent to the host computer. This is accomplished by the use of the snapshot application data group that extends the traditional sequential data set processing concept of generation data groups.
1147 Citations
42 Claims
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1. A file server system for storing data sets for at least one data processor comprising:
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a plurality of data storage volumes, each of which is capable of storing at least one data set received from a data processor; means for maintaining data set pointers indicative of a set of data sets managed as a single data entity consisting of a plurality of interrelated ones of said data sets stored in first available memory space in a plurality of said data storage volumes in said file server system; means, responsive to the subsequent receipt of a data set access request from a data processor identifying one of said data sets stored in said set of data sets, for creating a new version of said set of data sets that contains said requested data set, independent of said data set requesting data processor, including; means for identifying a physical memory location of each data set in said set of data sets that contains said requested data set as specified by its data set pointer, means for generating a new data set pointer, duplicative of said data set pointer, as the data set pointer for said copy of each said data set in said set of data sets, means for maintaining data indicative of a correspondence between said data set pointers and said duplicative data set pointers, and means for providing said data set requesting data processor with access to said set of data sets via said duplicative data set pointers. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. In a file server system having a plurality of data storage volumes, each of which is capable of storing at least one data set received from a data processor, a method for storing data sets for at least one data processor, comprising the steps of:
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maintaining data set pointers indicative of a set of data sets managed as a single data entity consisting of a plurality of interrelated ones of said data sets stored in first available memory space in a plurality of said data storage volumes in said file server system; creating, in response to the subsequent receipt of a data set access request from a data processor identifying one of said data sets stored in said set of data sets, a new version of said set of data sets that contains said requested data set, independent of said data set requesting data processor, including; identifying a physical memory location of each data set in said set of data sets that contains said requested data set as specified by its data set pointer, generating a new data set pointer, duplicative of said data set pointer, as the data set pointer for said copy of each said data set in said set of data sets, maintaining data indicative of a correspondence between said data set pointers and said duplicative data set pointers, and providing said data set requesting data processor with access to said set of data sets via said duplicative data set pointers. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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Specification