Hitachi, Ltd.

Kiichiro Urabe

Ikuo Uratani

Toshio Nakano

Koichi Kimura

Toshihiko Ogura

Hiroaki Aotsu

Hisao Homma

Yoshihito Nakagawa

Satoru Ozaki

Hiroshi Ohno

Kenji Yamagami

Takao Satoh

Hideo Tabuchi

Keishi Tamura

Shizuo Yokohata

Haruaki Watanabe

Takeshi Ido

Kazunobu Ohashi

Naoki Hino

Akira Yamamoto

Manabu Kitamura

Shigeo Honma

Dai Taninaka

Shoji Sugino

Hiroshi Taninaka

An object is to efficiently set configurations of a storage apparatus. Provided is an information apparatus communicably coupled to a storage apparatus, which validates a script executed by the storage apparatusfor setting a configuration of the storage apparatus, the information apparatus generating configurations of the storage apparatuswhen after each command described in a script is executed sequentially; and performing consistency validation on the script by determining whether or not the command described in the script is normally executable in a case the command is executed on an assumption that the storage apparatushas the configuration immediately before the execution.

Information apparatus and method for controlling the same

When detecting the completion of remote copying of a primary volume to a secondary volume, a host compute splits a copy pair into the primary volume and the secondary volume and has the secondary volume store a snapshot of the primary volume. A backup server recognizes the secondary volume.

System and method for backup by splitting a copy pair and storing a snapshot

When detecting the completion of remote copying of a primary volume to a secondary volume, a host computer splits a copy pair into the primary volume and the secondary volume and has the secondary volume store a snapshot of the primary volume. A backup server recognizes the secondary volume.

A storage control system is provided where a first host system connected to a first storage controller can issue a control command to a second storage controller connected another host system. The first storage controller is connected to the second storage controller and the command is issued without providing the command to the other host system. The first storage controller has a virtual volume, a memory unit for storing information necessary for mapping the virtual volume to a logical device in the second storage controller, and attribute information for the logical device. The host system identifies the virtual volume as the logical device in the second storage controller and issues a control command to this logical device via the virtual volume.

Storage control system

A method for verifying data in a storage system is disclosed. A host computer transmits area management data to a storage controller. The area management data specifies a range of a storage area in a storage device to be used by an application program having a mechanism for verifying data suitability. Upon receipt of an input/output request transmitted from the host computer, the storage controller performs verification, which is usually performed by the application program, of the data that is to be processed according to the data input/output request and to be input/output to/from the storage area, which is specified in accordance with the received area management data.

Method and apparatus for verifying data in a storage system

A storage control device provided in a storage control system reports a virtual storage capacity value stored in a shared memory, to a host terminal, and ensures that, after the virtual storage capacity value has been stored in the host terminal, the virtual storage capacity value thus reported cannot be changed while the virtual storage unit having the virtual storage capacity value is connected to the host terminal.

Storage control sub-system comprising virtual storage units

A method for copying information from a first storage subsystem to a second storage subsystem is disclosed. The first and second storage subsystems are provided in a data storage system. The method comprises transmitting first data block from the first storage subsystem to the second storage subsystem, the first storage subsystem being associated with a first host computer and the second storage subsystem being associated with a second host computer; and transmitting first attribute information from the first storage subsystem to the second storage subsystem without intervention from the first host computer.

Data transfer and access control between disk array systems

Provided is a storage system having a host system, a first storage controller and a second storage controller. The first storage controller has a primary logical volume formed from an actual volume, and a secondary logical volume formed from a virtual volume capable of forming a copy pair with the primary logical volume. The second storage controller has an external volume formed from an actual volume to be mapped to the secondary logical volume. The host system has device data showing the mapping relationship between the external volume and the secondary logical volume.

Storage system and control method thereof, and computer program product

In order to allow a host computer to specify an operable logical unit (LU), a storage system responds with extended LU information, including at least connection portion numbers, target IDs and logical unit numbers according to an inquiry made from the host computer. An external storage system adds extended LU numbers used in coupling as responses to inquiry commands to specified logical units. Owing to such addition, the host computer is capable of collecting responses of inquiry commands to special device files of all storage systems recognized by the host computer. It is thus possible to obtain a list of extended LU numbers corresponding to all logical units recognized by the host computer. Since such an external storage system using LUN security is capable of effecting coupling operations only on logical units recognized by the host computer, security is enhanced.

Storage system

The present invention makes it possible to change over a volume transparently with respect to a host. A first storage deviceA and a second storage deviceB are connected through a communication networkB; a volumeprovided by the second storage deviceB is mapped as a volume of the first storage deviceA. A hostis capable of accessing either of the volumeor volumevia a virtual LU. A connection control unit, which may be constructed of tables or the like, connects the virtual LUto either one of volumeand volume. Changeover of the connection target is performed transparently with respect to the hostand so is not recognized by the host. Consequently, the actual data storage target volume can be changed over while the hostalways accesses the same virtual LU

Storage device and device changeover control method for storage devices

A storage controller can perform backup processing without proceeding via a server and without the need for the server to grasp the state of pair volumes. When an instruction for backup is given from the server while data is being copied from a source volume to a target volume, the storage controller transfers the data to a backup device using differential information between the pair volumes after waiting until data about a range to be backed up and instructed by the server is copied into the target volume.

Storage system, backup system, and backup method

When copy instruction details are transferred to a first storage control unit from an application program, a channel processor captures the instruction details into local memory. Then, the instruction details are analyzed, and based on the analysis result, an open remote copy/MRCF instruction is output to an open remote copy/MRCF control section. If the instruction details have no problem, a response is made to a host unit that the writing response is normally made. To be ready for reading of inquiry information by the host unit, shared memory is searched for the inquiry information to create output data from the first storage control unit to the host unit. With such a structure, a storage device in a disk array apparatus external to another disk array apparatus can be used as resources of any device connectable to higher-level systems.

Disk array apparatus, and method for avoiding data corruption by simultaneous access by local and remote host device

A synchronization confirmation method required for operation of a database is provided to a host device connected to a disk device which provides remote asynchronous data transfer. Immediately after commit of write data, an application of the host device issues a sync command which requires synchronization confirmation. A disk control device notifies the host device of a number concerning latest data received from the host device of a local side and a number concerning latest data received by a remote side. When the two numbers have coincided with each other, the host device judges the commit operation to have been completed.

Storage system making possible data synchronization confirmation at time of asynchronous remote copy

A storage control device provided in a storage control sub-system reports a virtual storage capacity value stored in a shared memory, to a host terminal, and ensures that, after the virtual storage capacity value has been stored in the host terminal, the virtual storage capacity value thus reported cannot be changed while the virtual storage unit having the virtual storage capacity value is connected to the host terminal.

Growing community of inventors

Isehara, Japan

Kiichiro Urabe