Media server with single chip storage controller

A method for controlling access to a plurality of storage devices, the method comprising:

• receiving a user request to retrieve data from the plurality of storage devices;
• identifying an unresponsive storage device;
• transmitting a signal for reconstructing data associated with the unresponsive storage device;
• and
• reconstructing the data associated with the unresponsive storage device;
• wherein, the identifying, transmitting, and reconstructing of the data associated with the unresponsive storage device occur in real-time via hardware mechanisms.

17 In a storage controller system including a plurality of storage devices controlled by a storage controller having a first logic gate, a second logic gate, a counter coupled to the first logic gate and the second logic gate, and a comparator coupled to the counter, a method for controlling access to a plurality of storage devices, the method comprising:

• receiving from the plurality of storage devices a first signal at the first logic gate;
• outputting at the first logic gate a second signal based on the first signal;
• receiving from the plurality of storage devices the first signal at the second logic gate;
• and outputting at the second logic gate a third signal based on the first signal;
• incrementing a value of the counter or not based on the second signal and the third signal;
• transmitting the value of the counter to the comparator;
• comparing the value of the counter against a threshold value;
• and
• reconstructing or not data associated with an unresponsive storage device based on the comparison.

The method of claim 17, wherein the reconstructing comprises:

• reading a portion of data from the plurality of storage devices;
• reconstructing an erroneous portion of the data;
• and
• writing the reconstructed data to the plurality of storage devices, wherein the reading and reconstructing occurs during time T and the writing occurs during time T+1, where T>0.