International Business Machines Corporation

Shemer Schwarz

Haim Helman

Kariel E Sandler

Omri Palmon

Efraim Zeidner

Ofir Zohar

Ehood Garmiza

Kanael Arditti

Dror Cohen

Yaron Revah

Efri Zeidner

Gary Weiss

Disclosed is a data processing and/or storage system. The data processing and/or storage system includes at least two interfaces, wherein each of the at least two interfaces includes a non-dedicated communication port for communicating data to and form external data systems or clients based on a rule base.

System and method for mirroring data

Exemplary method, system, and computer program product embodiments for, within a data storage system performing data mirroring, performing load balancing pursuant to completing a read request. At least one of a preferred storage controller and preferred storage device to accommodate the read request is determined by performing one of selecting a request queue having a closest offset to an offset of the read request, selecting a request queue having a most requests within a predetermined distance of the offset of the read request, selecting a request queue having a closest median offset to the offset of the read request, selecting a request queue having a closest average offset to the offset of the read request, and selecting a request queue having a predetermined additional number of entries than another request queue. The selected request queue is associated with the preferred storage controller and the preferred storage device.

Load balancing of data reads in storage environments

A method for data storage includes representing logical volumes by respective sets of pointers to physical partitions in which data used by the logical volumes is stored. One or more of the logical volumes are defined as provisionally deleted. A subset of the provisionally-deleted logical volumes is selected such that each logical volume in the subset has one or more private physical partitions whose data is used exclusively by that logical volume. One or more of the private physical partitions of the logical volumes in the subset are released for reallocation to another logical volume.

Management of recycling bin for thinly-provisioned logical volumes

Embodiments of the present invention provide methods, apparatuses, systems, and computer software products for data storage. A corrupted node under a first meta-volume node in a hierarchical tree structure is deleted. The hierarchical tree structure further includes a source node under the first meta-volume node. The corrupted node and the source node each include a respective set of local pointers. The corrupted node and the source node represent respective copies of a logical volume. The source node is reconfigured to become a second meta-volume node having the same set of local pointers as the source node. A first new node is created under the second meta-volume node in the hierarchical tree structure to represent the corrupted node. A second new node is created under the second meta-volume node to represent the source node. The first and second new nodes are configured to have no local pointers.

Data storage with snapshot-to-snapshot recovery

Embodiments of the present invention provide methods, apparatuses, systems, and computer software products for data storage. A first copy of a logical volume is created. A second copy of the logical volume is created based on the first copy of the logical volume, such that the first and second copies are represented by respective first and second sets of pointers to physical storage locations in which data used by the copies is stored. Responsively to a corruption of at least part of the data that is used by the first copy. The first copy is restored from the second copy by replacing the first set with the pointers in the second set.

A method for operating a storage system, including storing data redundantly in the system and measuring respective queue lengths of input/output requests to operational elements of the system. The queue lengths are compared to an average queue length to determine respective performances of the operational elements of the storage system. In response to the average queue lengths and a permitted deviation from the average an under-performing operational element among the operational elements is identified. An indication of the under-performing operational element is provided to host interfaces in the storage system. One of the host interfaces receives requests for specified items of the data directed to the under-performing element, and in response to the indication, some of the requests are diverted from the under-performing operational element to one or more other operational elements of the storage system that are configured to provide the specified items of the data.

Performance of a storage system

A data storage apparatus includes a processor, a write cache in operable communication with the processor, an auxiliary storage device in operable communication with the write cache, and a temporary power source in electrical communication with each of the processor, write cache, and auxiliary storage device for supplying power in the event of a loss of primary, external power. The auxiliary storage device is dimensioned to have sufficient size for holding dirty pages cached in the write cache, and the temporary power source is configured with sufficient energy for, subsequent to the loss of the external power, powering the processor, the write cache, and the auxiliary storage device for an entire duration of a backup process.

Data vaulting in emergency shutdown

A method for data storage includes accepting write commands belonging to a storage operation invoked by a host computer, and caching the write commands in a volatile memory that is powered by external electrical power. A current execution status of the storage operation is also cached in the volatile memory. Responsively to an interruption of the external electrical power during the storage operation, the cached write commands and the cached execution status are backed up in a non-volatile memory. Upon resumption of the external electrical power, the backed up execution status is recovered, so as to resume the interrupted storage operation.

A method for data storage includes creating first and second copies of a logical volume, such that the first and second copies are represented by respective first and second sets of pointers to physical storage locations in which data used by the copies is stored. Responsively to a corruption of at least part of the data that is used by the first copy, the first copy is restored from the second copy by replacing the first set with the pointers in the second set.

A method for data storage includes accepting a management command by a first storage controller, which exchanges data for storage with at least a second storage controller over a dedicated communication connection using a dedicated storage protocol. The management command is addressed to a destination storage controller and contains an instruction to modify or report a data storage configuration in the destination storage controller. Upon determining that the destination storage controller is different from the first storage controller, the management command is forwarded over the dedicated communication connection from the first storage controller to the second storage controller using the dedicated storage protocol.

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Tel Aviv, Israel

Shemer Schwarz