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US 2004/0172501 A1Published application
Metadata allocation method in a storage system
AssigneeHitachi, Ltd.
InventorsToshiyuki Ukai, Yoshifumi Takamoto
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
In a computer system which improves reliability by switching over hosts 101 and 102 between which logical volumes are shared when a fault occurs, metadata present on physical volumes 104 and necessary to constitute the logical volumes 104 is consolidated and allocated in a fewer number of physical volumes than the number of the physical volumes. It is thereby possible to accelerate the reading of metadata and the switchover of the shared logical volumes.
Claims8
A metadata allocation method in a computer system, the computer system comprising:
- one or more computers;
- and a plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, an OS of the computer having:
- a function of consolidating the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices so as to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage device as a logical storage device;
- and a function of allocating metadata in a first region on the physical or logical secondary storage device in order to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, the method comprising a step of:
- allocating in a second region a copy of the metadata for managing the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, said second region satisfying a predetermined condition on a fewer number of the physical or logical secondary storage devices than the number of the physical or logical secondary storage regions each having the first region.
2 more elements
A metadata allocation method in a computer system, the computer system comprising:
- a plurality of computers;
- and a plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, an OS of the computer having:
- a function of consolidating the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices so as to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage device as a logical storage device;
- and a function of allocating metadata in a first region on the physical or logical secondary storage device in order to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, the method comprising a step of:
- allocating in a second region a copy of the metadata for managing the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, said second region satisfying a predetermined condition on a fewer number of the physical or logical secondary storage devices than the number of the physical or logical secondary storage regions each having the first region,
- wherein the plurality of computers share the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, and in the case where the first computer among the plurality of computers turns into an abnormal status, the copy of the metadata allocated in the second regions is read when the second computer succeeds a processing of the first computer.
3 more elements
A metadata allocation method in a computer system, the computer system comprising:
- one or more computers;
- and a plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, an OS of the computer having:
- a function of consolidating the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices so as to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage device as a logical storage device;
- and a function of allocating metadata in a region on the physical or logical secondary storage device in order to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, wherein
- the region is set to reside in a cache memory of the secondary storage device.
2 more elements
A program for allowing a computer system comprising:
- one or more computers;
- and a plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, an OS of the computer having:
- a function of consolidating the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices so as to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage device as a logical storage device;
- and a function of allocating metadata in a first region on the physical or logical secondary storage device in order to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, to execute a procedure for allocating in a second region a copy of the metadata for managing the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, said second region satisfying a predetermined condition on a fewer number of the physical or logical secondary storage devices than the number of the physical or logical secondary storage regions each having the first region.
1 more element
A program for allowing a computer system comprising:
- a plurality of computers;
- and a plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, an OS of the computer having:
- a function of consolidating the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices so as to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage device as a logical storage device;
- and a function of allocating metadata in a first region on the physical or logical secondary storage device in order to manage the consolidated physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, to execute a procedure for allocating in a second region a copy of the metadata for managing the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices as the logical storage device, said second region satisfying a predetermined condition on a fewer number of the physical or logical secondary storage devices than the number of the physical or logical secondary storage regions each having the first region,
- wherein the plurality of computers share the plurality of physical or logical secondary storage devices, and in the case where the first computer among the plurality of computers turns into an abnormal status, the copy of the metadata allocated in the second regions is read when the second computer succeeds a processing of the first computer.
2 more elements
A disk drive comprising one or more physical secondary storage devices, wherein
- the disk drive has a function of consolidating the physical secondary storage devices to provide one or more logical secondary storage devices, and comprises a cache memory in which a predetermined region of the one or more logical secondary storage devices is made to reside.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.