Network Appliance, Inc.

Netapp, Inc.

Yinfung Fong

Jeffrey S Kimmel

Mohan Srinivasan

Sahn Lam

Ling Zheng

Stephen Lee Manley

A system and method for calculating and storing block fingerprints for data deduplication. A fingerprint extraction layer generates a fingerprint of a predefined size, e.g., 64 bits, for each data block stored by a storage system. Each fingerprint is stored in a fingerprint record, and the fingerprint records are, in turn, stored in a fingerprint database for access by the data deduplication module. The data deduplication module may periodically compare the fingerprints to identify duplicate fingerprints, which, in turn, indicate duplicate data blocks.

System and method for retrieving and using block fingerprints for data deduplication

The invention provides a method and system for performing a dump operation that preserves partial results of an aborted or interrupted dump, and allows restarting the dump from near where it was stopped. Thus, tapes from the original dump, plus tapes from the restarted dump, can be combined to provide a consistent subset of a filesystem. In a preferred embodiment, the dump operation is performed on a consistent recorded snapshot of the filesystem, so that the subset of the filesystem recorded on the tapes is itself consistent. As an emergent consequence, the dump operation is freely interruptable, restartable, and provides a set of tapes that maintain a consistent subset of the filesystem that is transparent to tape-restore operations and other operations to be performed on the filesystem as it was recorded on tape.

Restartable dump that produces a consistent filesystem on tapes

A technique enhances a write data path within a storage operating system executing on a storage system. As used herein, the write data path defines program logic used by a file system of the storage operating system to process write requests directed to data served by the file system. The technique enhances the write data path of the storage system by providing a 'zero copy' write data path embodied as a function of the storage operating system that eliminates a copy operation for a write request received at the storage system. The eliminated operation is a data copy operation from a list of input buffers to buffers used by the file system.

Zero copy write datapath

An application implemented on a server in a network of storage servers can be provided to manage the data replication relationships implemented between the storage servers of the network. In one embodiment, this server can be designated the manager server, and can include a network adapter to connect the manager server to a network, the network including a plurality of storage servers, the plurality of storage servers implementing a plurality of data replication relationships, and a storage facility to contain a data structure representing the plurality of data replication relationships to enable a user to centrally manage the plurality of data replication relationships.

Managing data replication relationships

An application implemented on a server in a network of storage servers can be provided to manage the data replication relationships implemented between the storage servers of the network. In one embodiment, this server can be designated the manager server, and can provide replication relationships to enable a user to centrally manage the plurality of data replication relationships. In one embodiment, the manager server includes a network adapter to connect the manager server to a network, a storage facility to contain a data structure configured to represent the plurality of data replication relationships, and a processor to automatically input the plurality of data replication relationships into the data structure, to automatically generate a plurality of replication policies, and to apply at least one of the plurality of replication policies to each data replication relationship.

Managing data replication policies

A method and apparatus to recover a set of data from a full backup and an incremental or differential backup are described. This includes a source directory that was modified between the full backup and the incremental or differential backup. The full backup is restored, including the source directory, and a new directory is created to replace the restored directory when the incremental or differential backup is applied to the restored full backup. Content for an entry from the modified source directory in the incremental or differential backup is created in the new directory if the corresponding content is present in the incremental or differential backup. If the content for the entry is not present in the incremental or differential backup, then the entry in the new directory is linked to corresponding content in the restored directory from the full backup.

Growing community of inventors

Campbell, CA, United States of America

Yinfung Fong