International Business Machines Corporation

Mark L Yakushev

Avishai Haim Hochberg

David Maxwell Cannon

Matthew Joseph Anglin

James Patrick Smith

Mark Andrew Smith

Mandeep Kaur Jandir

Christopher Zaremba

David Gregory Van Hise

Zhengwen He

Jason Ferris Basler

Neeta Garimella

David George Derk

Thomas Franklin Ramke, Jr

Alexei Kojenov

Asaf Yeger

James Michael Dile

Limor Provizor

Edward M Collins

Lisa Anne Huston

Hunny Wiratchada Kershaw

Ursula Richter

Austen M Cook

Jean Elizabeth Vargas

An inventory of computer resources requiring backup data protection including an estimate of future growth of storage resources along with a set of data retention policies, rules, and outcomes in conformance with business requirements, is created. An architecture for initial ingest of protected data and a backup execution approach is created, based on the resource inventory, a sizing and assumptions of resources and data, and the set of data retention policies, rules, and outcomes. An initial ingest copies the protected data to the backup storage. The initial ingest architecture is transformed to a steady-state ingest phase, by incrementally adjusting the resources based on progress of the initial ingest. Responsive to completing the initial ingest of protected data, a steady-state backup ingest is performed. A validity of the sizing and assumptions of architecture resources is determined and an adjustment to the resources is performed based on the validity determination.

Comprehensive data protection backup

Described are a method, system, and computer program product for deduplicating a storage object. A hash of a window of data of a storage object is determined and a determination is made as to whether the window of data of the storage object corresponds to a chunk boundary. A determination is made as to whether the hash of the object matches one pseudo fingerprints in a list of at least one pseudo fingerprint. A storage object chunk boundary based on the window of data is stored in response to the window of data corresponding to the chunk boundary or in response to determining that the hash of the object matches one of the pseudo fingerprints. A determination is made of a new window of data in the storage object following the window of data when the window of data is not an end of data of the storage object.

Determining chunk boundaries for deduplication of storage objects

An apparatus for heterogeneous compression of data streams is disclosed. In at least one embodiment, the apparatus includes a sampling module that samples a data stream at one or more intervals to determine a content type for data within the one or more intervals. The apparatus further includes a mapping module that determines whether the content type is linked to a preferred data compression method. The apparatus further includes a processing module that compresses the data within the one or more intervals to produce compressed data using the preferred data compression method in response to determining that the content type is linked to the preferred data compression method. Embodiments of corresponding methods and computer program products are also disclosed.

Apparatus, method, and computer program product for heterogenous compression of data streams

Described are a method, network system, and computer program product for deduplication of storage objects in a network. A hash of a window of data of a storage object is determined and a determination is made as to whether the window of data of the storage object corresponds to a chunk boundary. A determination is made as to whether the hash of the object matches one pseudo fingerprints in a list of at least one pseudo fingerprint. A storage object chunk boundary based on the window of data is stored in response to the window of data corresponding to the chunk boundary or in response to determining that the hash of the object matches one of the pseudo fingerprints. A determination is made of a new window of data in the storage object following the window of data when the window of data is not an end of data of the storage object.

Determining chunk boundaries for deduplication of storage objects in a network computing environment

Controlling a software process by causing the execution of a first software process on a computer, where the first software process is configured to exclusively access a resource on the computer, causing the execution of a second software process on the computer when the first software process has exclusive access to the resource, where the second software process is configured to perform a first predefined action that is independent of the second software process accessing the resource, attempt to access the resource, and perform a second predefined action that is dependent on the second software process accessing resource, and causing the first software process to terminate its exclusive access to the resource, thereby causing the second software process to access the resource and perform the second predefined action.

Controlling software processes that are subject to communications restrictions by freezing and thawing a computational process in a virtual machine from writing data

Embodiments of the present invention provide efficient and cost-effective systems and methods for backing up and recovering a virtual machine and application data therein. Embodiments of the present invention can be used to satisfy near-zero RPOs by providing more recovery points for backups in virtual machine environments, while also providing increased granularity for recovery (i.e., single virtual disk, single file, etc.) and maintaining central management capabilities and back up efficiencies offered by virtual machine-level backups.

Back up and recovery in virtual machine environments

For restoring deduplicated data, a method maintains a chunk index on a client computing system coupled to a client data store. The chunk index tracks chunks within files remaining on the client data store after storage of the files to a deduplicated server data store coupled to a server computing system. The method determines whether a valid entry for a first chunk exists in the chunk index. In addition, the method retrieves the first chunk from the server data store responsive to determining the valid entry for the first chunk does not exist in the chunk index. The method further retrieves the first chunk from the client data store specified in the valid entry of the chunk index responsive to determining that the valid entry exists in the chunk index and the first chunk resides in a first file at a first offset.

Optimizing restores of deduplicated data

Provided are a computer program product, system, and method for identifying modified chunks in a data set for storage. Information is maintained on a data set of variable length chunks, including a digest of each chunk and information to locate the chunk in the data set. Modifications are received to at least one of the chunks in the data set. A determination is made of chunks including data affected by the modifications. The determined chunks including data affected by the modifications are processed to determine new chunks and for each determined new chunk and for each determined new chunk, new digest information of the new chunk. The new digest information on the at least one new chunk and information to locate the new chunk in the data set are added to the set information.

Identifying modified chunks in a data set for storage

One aspect of the present invention includes a configuration of a storage management system that enables the performance of deduplication activities at both the client (source) and at the server (target) locations. The location of deduplication operations can then be optimized based on system conditions or predefined policies. In one embodiment, seamless switching of deduplication activities between the client and the server is enabled by utilizing uniform deduplication process algorithms and accessing the same deduplication index (containing information on the hashed data chunks). Additionally, any data transformations on the chunks are performed subsequent to identification of the data chunks. Accordingly, with use of this storage configuration, the storage system can find and utilize matching chunks generated with either client- or server-side deduplication.

Integrated approach for deduplicating data in a distributed environment that involves a source and a target

Described are embodiments of an invention for identifying chunk boundaries for optimization of fingerprint-based deduplication in a computing environment. Storage objects that are backed up in a computing environment are often compound storage objects which include many individual storage objects. The computing device of the computing environment breaks the storage objects into chunks of data by determining a hash value on a range of data. The computing device creates an artificial chunk boundary when the end of data of the storage object is reached. When an artificial chunk boundary is created for the end of data of a storage object, the computing device stores a pseudo fingerprint for the artificial chunk boundary. If a hash value matches a fingerprint or a pseudo fingerprint, then the computing device determines that the range of data corresponds to a chunk and the computing system defines the chunk boundaries.

Optimization of fingerprint-based deduplication

Provided are computer program product, system, and method for restoring deduplicated data objects from sequential backup devices. A server stores data objects of extents having deduplicated data in the at least one sequential backup device. The server receives from a client a request for data objects. The server determines extents stored in the at least one sequential backup device for the requested data objects. The server or client sorts the extents according to an order in which they are stored in the at least one sequential backup device to generate a sort list. The server retrieves the extents from the at least one sequential backup device according to the order in the sort list to access the extents sequentially from the sequential backup device in the order in which they were stored. The server returns the retrieved extents to the client and the client reconstructs the requested data objects from the received extents.

Restoring deduplicated data objects from sequential backup devices

Provided are a computer program product, system, and method for encrypting data objects to back-up to a server. A client private key is intended to be maintained only by the client. A data object of chunks to store at the server is generated. A first portion of the chunks in the data object is encrypted with the client private key and the first portion of the chunks in the data object encrypted with the client private key are sent to the server to store. A second portion of the chunks in the data object not encrypted with the client private key are sent to the server to store.

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Mark L Yakushev