System and method for synchronization between servers

• US 9,401,957 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2007
• Issued: 07/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Roberts, Andrew Fiske
• Primary Examiner(s): Chea, Philip
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ma, Wing
• Application Number:
  US11/855,647
• Publication Number:
  US 20090077262A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,238 Days
• Field of Search: 709/221, 709/248, 709/250, 707/203, 707/611
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1662 the resynchronized component or unit being a persistent storage device re-synchronization of failed mirror storage G06F11/2082; rebuild or reconstruction of parity RAID storage G06F11/1008
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/273 Asynchronous replication or reconciliation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

A system and method for synchronizing data between two or more servers including replicating at least a portion of an original data set, associated with a first server, to provide a replicated data set, associated with a second server, the replicated data set based upon, at least in part, the original data set. One or more second-server commands executed on the replicated data set by the second server are stored. One or more first-server commands to be executed on the original data set by the first server, are provided in which the one or more first-server commands are based upon, at least in part, the one or more second-server commands. One or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to the one or more first-server commands, are compared to one or more second-server output objects, returned by the second server in response to the one or more second-server commands. An identity of one or more first-server output objects is mapped to an identity of the one or more second-server output objects.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

replicating at least a portion of an original data set, associated with a first server, to provide a replicated data set, associated with a second server, the replicated data set based upon, at least in part, the original data set;

storing one or more second-server commands executed on the replicated data set by the second server;

providing one or more first-server commands to be executed on the original data set by the first server, the one or more first-server commands based upon, at least in part, the one or more second-server commands;

comparing one or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to the one or more first-server commands, to one or more second-server output objects, returned by the second server in response to the one or more second-server commands;

mapping an identity of one or more first-server output objects to an identity of the one or more second-server output objects;

wherein providing the one or more first-server commands includes providing one or more first-server input objects based upon, at least in part, the mapped identity of the one or more first-server output objects to the identity of the one or more second-server output objects, and wherein providing the one or more first-server commands includes determining insufficient permissions associated with the second-server commands and generating an error based on the insufficient permissions;

in response to the insufficient permissions associated with the second-server commands, creating a new first-server output object in a conflict location on the first server and executing the one or more second-server commands associated with the insufficient permissions on the new first-server output object; and

mapping an identity of the new first-server output object to at least one of the one or more second-server output objects associated with the insufficient permissions and the second-server commands.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein replicating at least a portion of the original data set includes generating one or more replicating commands to be executed by the second server;

and mapping an identity of one or more objects of the original data set to an identity of one or more replicated output objects produced by the one or more replicating commands, and wherein replicating at least a portion of the original data set includes providing an identity of an input object of the one or more replicating commands based upon, at least in part, the mapped identity of the one or more objects of the original data set to the identity of the one or more replicated output objects.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein storing the one or more second-server commands includes storing the one or more second-server commands, storing one or more input objects of the one or more second-server commands, and storing one or more second-server output objects produced by the one or more second-server commands.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein comparing the one or more first-server output objects to the one or more second-server output objects includes comparing the one or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to the one or more first-server commands, to the stored one or more second-server output objects.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein storing the one or more second-server commands includes associating a sequential order with the second server commands.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein providing the one or more first-server commands based upon, at least in part, the one or more second-server commands, includes sequentially providing the one or more first-server commands in an order based upon, at least in part, the sequential order of the second-server commands.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein comparing the one or more first server output objects to the one or more second server output objects includes comparing each of the one or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to each of the one or more first-server commands, to the one or more second-server output objects, returned by the second server in response to the one or more second-server commands as the one or more first server commands are sequentially executed;

and

mapping an identity of each of the one or more first-server output objects to an identity of the one or more second-server output objects as the one or more first server commands are sequentially executed.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first server includes an online server and the second server includes an offline server.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein a first server application executing commands on the original data set and a second server application executing commands on the replicated data set each use different naming schemes.

9. A computer program product residing on a computer readable non-transitory storage medium having a plurality of instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a processor, cause the process to perform operations comprising:

replicating at least a portion of an original data set, associated with a first server, to provide a replicated data set, associated with a second server, the replicated data set based upon, at least in part, the original data set;

storing one or more second-server commands executed on the replicated data set by the second server;

providing one or more first-server commands to be executed on the original data set by the first server, the one or more first-server commands based upon, at least in part, the one or more second-server commands;

comparing one or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to the one or more first-server commands, to one or more second-server output objects, returned by the second server in response to the one or more second-server commands;

mapping an identity of one or more first-server output objects to an identity of the one or more second-server output objects;

wherein providing the one or more first-server commands includes providing one or more first-server input objects based upon, at least in part, the mapped identity of the one or more first-server output objects to the identity of the one or more second-server output objects, and wherein providing the one or more first-server commands includes determining insufficient permissions associated with the second-server commands and generating an error based on the insufficient permissions;

in response to the insufficient permissions associated with the second-server commands, creating a new first-server output object in a conflict location on the first server and executing the one or more second-server commands associated with the insufficient permissions on the new first-server output object; and

mapping an identity of the new first-server output object to at least one of the one or more second-server output objects associated with the insufficient permissions and the second-server commands.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the instructions for replicating at least a portion of the original data set include instructions for generating one or more replicating commands to be executed by the second server;

and mapping an identity of one or more objects of the original data set to an identity of one or more replicated output objects produced by the one or more replicating commands, and wherein the instructions for replicating at least a portion of the original data set include instructions for providing an identity of an input object of the one or more replicating commands based upon, at least in part, the mapped identity of the one or more objects of the original data set to the identity of the one or more replicated output objects.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the instructions for storing the one or more second-server commands include instructions for storing the one or more second-server commands, storing one or more input objects of the one or more second-server commands, and storing one or more second-server output objects produced by the one or more second-server commands.

12. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the instructions for comparing the one or more first-server output objects to the one or more second-server output objects include instructions for comparing the one or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to the one or more first-server commands, to the stored one or more second-server output objects.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the instructions for storing the one or more second-server commands include instructions for associating a sequential order with the second server commands.

14. The computer program product of claim 13, wherein the instructions for providing the one or more first-server commands based upon, at least in part, the one or more second-server commands, include instructions for sequentially providing the one or more first-server commands in an order based upon, at least in part, the sequential order of the second-server commands.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the instructions for comparing the one or more first server output objects to the one or more second server output objects include instructions for comparing each of the one or more first-server output objects, returned by the first server in response to each of the one or more first-server commands, to the one or more second-server output objects, returned by the second server in response to the one or more second-server commands as the one or more first server commands are sequentially executed;

and

mapping an identity of each of the one or more first-server output objects to an identity of the one or more second-server output objects as the one or more first server commands are sequentially executed.

16. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the first server includes an online server and the second server includes an offline server.

18. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein a first server application executing commands on the original data set and a second server application executing commands on the replicated data set each use different naming schemes.