Method, apparatus and computer program product for determining response times of data storage systems

An apparatus, comprising:

• memory;
• and
• processing circuitry coupled to the memory, the memory storing instructions which, when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to:
• define a data storage system being designed;
• define a first workload for the data storage system, wherein the first workload includes a first IOPS (input-output operations per second) requirement and respective percentages of read and write IO (input-output) requests, the first workload being defined by at least one of:
• a simulated real-world workload, historical customer information, default application information, and customer input;
• apply the first workload to the data storage system, thus defining a IO request queue length;
• and
• determine a response time for handling an IO request at the data storage system, wherein the said determination is based on the IO request queue length, the respective percentages of read and write IO requests, a service time relating to servicing of an IO request by a data storage device of the data storage system, a read cache hit response time and a write cache hit response time associated with a cache of the data storage system;
• wherein the IO request queue length is defined as a numerical value;
• and
• wherein applying the first workload to the data storage system, thus defining a IO request queue length, comprises:
• generating a first value corresponding to a ratio of the first IOPS requirement to a total potential IOPS associated with one or more data storage devices of the data storage system;
• and
• determining a second value corresponding to a ratio of the first value to one minus the first value, wherein the second value describes the IQ request queue length.

A computer program product including a set of non-transitory, computer-readable media having instructions which, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform a method, the method comprising:

• defining a data storage system being designed;
• defining a first workload for the data storage system, wherein the first workload includes a first IOPS (input-output operations per second) requirement and respective percentages of read and write IO (input-output) requests, the first workload being defined by at least one of:
• a simulated real-world workload, historical customer information, default application information, and customer input;
• applying the first workload to the data storage system, thus defining a IO request queue length;
• and
• determining a response time for handling an IO request at the data storage system, wherein the said determination is based on the IO request queue length, the respective percentages of read and write IO requests, a service time relating to servicing of an IO request by a data storage device of the data storage system, a read cache hit response time and a write cache hit response time associated with a cache of the data storage system;
• wherein the IO request queue length is defined as a numerical value;
• and
• wherein applying the first workload to the data storage system, thus defining a IO request queue length, comprises:
• generating a first value corresponding to a ratio of the first IOPS requirement to a total potential IOPS associated with one or more data storage devices of the data storage system;
• and
• determining a second value corresponding to a ratio of the first value to one minus the first value, wherein the second value describes the IO request queue length.