Emc Corporation

Emc IP Holding Company LLC

Ilya Liubovich

Ruben Michel

Stanislav Sosnovsky

Richard Francis Cormier

Ohad Zeliger

Boris Farizon

Satish Suryanarayan

Eric Young

Mordechai Zvi Zur

Samuil Shmuylovich

Serge Marokhovsky

David Barta

Jeffrey Louis Alexander

Jay S Stevens

Dongjun Sun

Urayoan Irizarry

Dan Lottero

Joseph Berry

Douglas Leech

A storage system query mechanism and corresponding techniques for implementing queries are provided. In one exemplary method, queries are processed by providing a server-side meta-model for creating queries on the server; and providing a client-side meta-model for creating queries on the client, wherein the client and the server are based on different programming languages and wherein the queries created on the client are translated from a language of the client into a language of the server for processing by the server. The query results are optionally converted to data transfer objects for presentation on the client. In an exemplary query service method, at least one base meta-model is provided having a plurality of base classes and a domain-specific injection point; and at least one domain-specific meta-model is received and injected into the base meta-model at the domain-specific injection point.

Storage system query mechanism and techniques

A storage system query mechanism and corresponding techniques for implementing queries are provided. In an exemplary method, control path data in a storage array is processed by obtaining an object model (OM) data object comprising retrieved control path data upon an initial user request; storing the OM data object in a cache using one or more fa&#xe7;ade data classes; employing a refresh service to listen to refresh events that impact a validity of the OM data object, wherein the OM data object is evicted from the cache when the validity of the OM data object is impacted by one of the refresh events; and delivering the OM data object from the cache upon a subsequent user request if the OM data object remains in the cache at a time of the subsequent user request.

A storage system query mechanism and corresponding techniques for implementing queries are provided. Queries can be created on a client and server, where the client and the server are based on different programming languages, by providing a server-side meta-model and client-side meta-model. A base meta-model is provided having a plurality of base classes and a domain-specific injection point to allow domain specific meta-models to be injected into the base meta-model. Domain-specific query executors can be employed to process a query. Techniques are also provided for caching control path data in a storage array using one or more fa&#xe7;ade data classes and a refresh service to listen to refresh events that impact a validity of the cached data objects. Applications can optionally register domain specific query executors, object model providers and/or class loaders. Query results can be presented on a client device by providing a declarative data grid component as part of a graphical user interface.

In a storage area network (SAN), different tasks may expect different types of commands for commencing execution, such as interactive or offline, and may have different formats for reporting status and completion, such as log files or message based. A framework for defining the business logic enveloped in a particular task, and providing a common manner of deploying, or enabling invocation, of the task provides consistent operator control for scheduling, monitoring, ensuring completion, and tracking errors and other events. Business logic modules are identified as commands corresponding to a task. Transactions including a set of the commands define an ordered sequence for completing the task. The operator requests a particular set of tasks, using a selection tree, and the task manager builds a corresponding execution tree to identify and map the transactions and commands of the task to the execution tree to optimize execution and mitigate redundancies.

System and methods for task management

A system produces a component framework that insulates components from an underlying communication infrastructure by receiving a component descriptor that specifies fundamental properties of a component and receiving a definition of remotable interfaces associated with the component. A generation tool emits a component framework that includes: i) a coInterface interface that exposes the component's remotable interfaces; ii) a coFactories interface that declares factories for component operation; iii) a template for a coClass class, the coClass class operable to receive developer programmed functionality; and iv) a coBridge class that extends the coClass class and functions as a morphism from an IDL-defined component to an object model based, middleware-independent component.

Categorical approach for implementing a software component development architecture

A system provides a generation tool that emits a method declaration in a coFactory, and further emits the method's definition in a coBridge. Locating a naming service is delegated to a server infrastructure, and names of the sought after interface and the required component are further emitted. The generative approach disclosed assures a proper type of a downcast. Errors are handled by throwing an exception if either the component or its interface is absent. The coClass implements the coFactories, and a developer of a component can access other component by simply invoking a method within the coClass, which is implemented in a coBridge.

System and methods for generating a software component interface

A software build framework includes and architecture to identify software components including sets of classes, or objects, and categorizes the objects into layers in the component. A set of build rules identifies allowable dependencies between the component layers among the same and other components in the system, as well as external entities such as off the shelf (OTS) and third party vendor products outside the development control. The build mechanism enumerates a set of dependencies for each of the components, and an enforcer analyzes the dependencies to identify dependencies in violation of the rules. The enforcer separates the compile time and runtime inheritance paths to detect indirect monolithic inheritance. In this manner, dependency rules define an efficient and optimal architecture which lends itself well to modifications, timely builds and deliverable releases, and enforces the dependency rules at compile time so as to avoid generating an obsolete or suspect build.

System and methods for defining a software build

Mechanisms and techniques for processing information in a management application, such as a storage area network management application, include a load manager, a set of distributed agents that collect information, and a set of store process that store the agent-collected information. The load manager receives load information from a plurality of store processes. The load information indicates a relative processing load for respective store processes. The load manager determines store process availability based on the received load information. The load manager receives a store assignment request from an agent that has an agent transaction to perform with a store process and assigns a store process of the plurality of store processes for the agent to use to perform the agent transaction based on the determined store process availability. In addition, other embodiments include the use of agent transaction weights to allow the store process and/or the load manager to further load-balance agent transactions between store processes.

Methods and apparatus for load balancing processing of management information

Conventional development architectures for software system development employ varied invocation and triggering mechanisms for various objects and processes, such as services. Integrating new services tends to impose substantial changes in multiple code objects, requires retroactive testing, and increases the risk of failure. A services architecture in which users of a service seamlessly employ a respective service using only the objects, classes, and entities germane to the service usage provides interprocess module and service entity invocation. Extraneous definitions and functions, such as housekeeping relating to activation and passivation, location (module or component) of the service, and memory allocation, are removed from the user view. The architecture provides for automatic activation in the event components for providing the service have been passivated. Invocation requests are mapped across modules to the appropriate service entities. In this manner, the services architecture provides a seamless user view of the service by handling extraneous functions and allowing the service user to focus on the subscriber rather than the service implementation detail.

Methods and apparatus for providing extensible lightweight services in a data storage environment

In a conventional managed information environment network, event notification mechanisms typically monitor the various nodes and interconnections in the network. In particular configurations of the invention, an event service infrastructure allows an event, or class definition, to define the event and related event data. Invocation of the event includes only the event specific class definition. The infrastructure transparently processes the subsequent reporting and invocation of the appropriate event handler. The event handler, corresponding to the event definition, performs remedial and responsive processing of the event. A developer need only develop entities to subscribe to an event to identify the appropriate handler, and publish the event with any related event data upon detection. Each particular event avoids extraneous event definitions and associated files, thereby relieving the developer from unrelated events and allowing focus on the pertinent events. A detecting software entity initiates event handling by publishing the event, upon which the event service identifies and invokes each subscriber entity for performing the event handler associated with the event.

Methods and apparatus providing an event service infrastructure

Complex software systems often require time-based processing, such as delayed or periodic timer event handling. A timer service provides an Application Programming Interface (API) for managing timers, and therefore provides a developer abstraction for representing time-based processing. In operation, the timer service infrastructure employs a plurality of timer events, each having a corresponding timer handler, in which each of the timer events is associated with a generic timer reference, employed by a timer interface. The generic reference, therefore, may refer to any of the plurality of timers. The timer service may disable, or passivate modules including subscribers having timer handlers without disrupting timer continuity and invocation. Upon timer expiration, the timer service enables modules having subscribers to the timer. The timer service therefore seamlessly enables inactive modules upon timer expiration. Further, the common generic timer reference avoids timer event specific stubs and references related to specific classes, which tend to complicate deployment.

Methods and apparatus for a timer event service infrastructure

A system abstracts an object model by receiving an object model specification defining application semantics for an application to access, via invocations, objects identified in the object model specification. The system applies a categorical-based generator that applies at least one morphism to the object model specification to generate an abstraction interface object model that preserves application semantics defined within the object model specification and is independent of a middleware object access mechanism. The system also generates an implementation of the abstraction interface object model for a particular middleware object access mechanism used to access data within objects corresponding to the object model specification.

Methods and apparatus for creating middleware independent software

Collecting data for a storage area network includes providing a plurality of agents that collect data from objects of the storage area network, providing a plurality of data collection policies, where each of the policies indicates a type of data to be collected and a frequency of collection, and applying the policies to the agents, where the agents collect data according to the type of data and the frequencies indicated by the data collection policies. At least one of the agents may have a plurality of data collection policies applied thereto to cause the at least one agent to collect the types of data at the frequencies indicated by the merge of all of the data collection policies applied to the at least one agent. Merging the data collection policies may be performed by the at least one of the agents that receives the data collection policies or may be performed by an entity other than the at least one of the agents.

Data collection policy for storage devices

Monitoring a plurality of objects in a storage area network includes assigning a plurality of primary agents to monitor the objects, assigning to the objects a plurality of secondary agents that are configured to monitor the objects, maintaining a table of agents and objects, and, in response to failure of a primary agent of an object, converting a secondary agent to a primary agent of the object according to information in the table. Monitoring a plurality of objects in a storage area network may also include assigning a cost value to each of the secondary agents, and including the cost value in the table of agents and objects. The cost value for a particular secondary agent may vary according to an amount of processing time for the particular secondary agent to perform an assigned operation with respect to an object associated with the particular secondary agent. Converting a secondary agent to a primary agent may include choosing a secondary agent having the lowest cost.

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Shrewsbury, MA, United States of America

Ilya Liubovich