Applied Micro Circuits Corporation

Summit Data Systems LLC

Iprivacy, LLC

Jeffrey D Chung

Douglas E Jewett

Rod S Thompson

Bradley D Strand

Adam J Radford

Joel D Jacobson

Robert B Haigler

Thomas L Couch

Salvatore J Stolfo

Jonathan Michael Smith

Jeffrey Charles Sherwin

Andreas L Prodromidis

A network-based storage system comprises one or more block-level storage servers that connect to, and provide disk storage for, one or more host computers. In one embodiment, the system is capable of subdividing the storage space of an array of disk drives into multiple storage partitions, and allocating the partitions to host computers on a network. A storage partition allocated to a particular host computer may appear as local disk drive storage to user-level processes running on the host computer.

Network-based storage system capable of allocating storage partitions to hosts

A network-based storage system comprises one or more block-level storage servers that connect to, and provide disk storage for, one or more host computers ('hosts') over logical network connections (preferably TCP/IP sockets). In one embodiment, each host can maintain one or more socket connections to each storage server, over which multiple I/O operations may be performed concurrently in a non-blocking manner. The physical storage of a storage server may optionally be divided into multiple partitions, each of which may be independently assigned to a particular host or to a group of hosts. When a host initially connects to a storage server in one embodiment, the storage server initially authenticates the host, and then notifies the host of the ports that may be used to establish data connections and of the partitions assigned to that host.

Architecture for providing block-level storage access over a computer network

A network-based storage system comprises one or more block-level storage servers that connect to, and provide disk storage for, one or more host computers ('hosts') over logical network connections (preferably TCP/IP sockets). In one embodiment, each host can maintain one or more socket connections to each storage server, over which multiple I/O operations may be performed concurrently in a non-blocking manner. The physical storage of a storage server may optionally be divided into multiple partitions, each of which may be independently assigned to a particular host or to a group of hosts. Host driver software presents these partitions to user-level processes as one or more local disk drives. When a host initially connects to a storage server in one embodiment, the storage server initially authenticates the host, and then notifies the host of the ports that may be used to establish data connections and of the partitions assigned to that host.

A method and system for obscuring user requests for information in a computer network. A user request for information, aimed at another network member, is routed to a first cache memory. If the first cache memory contains the requested information, the cache returns the requested information in response to the user request without releasing the user request to the network member. If the first cache memory does not contain the requested information, a first reference editing function edits user identity information contained in the request, resulting in an edited request with obscured identity information. The edited request is then released to the network member and the requested information is received by the user from the network member. A copy of the requested information is stored in the first cache memory. In this method and system, user privacy is enhanced because user requests for information that can be satisfied by information stored in the cache memory are not revealed to other network members, and user requests that cannot be satisfied by the cache memory are obscured by the reference editing function prior to release to other network members. A software program and system for implementing the method are also disclosed.

Method and system for obscuring user access patterns using a buffer memory

Growing community of inventors

Cupertino, CA, United States of America

Jeffrey D Chung