Method and system for deferred read in lazy-write disk cache systems

A data processing system for improving the efficiency of disk storage input/output performance, said data processing system comprising:

• a sector-based disk storage system;
• memory means;
• means for temporarily writing new data to be stored within said disk storage system within selected bytes in one or more cache memory blocks within said memory means, each cache memory block associated with at least one sector of said disk storage system;
• a status table associated with said one or more cache memory blocks;
• means for recording an indication of the writing of each byte of new data within each cache memory block within said status table;
• means for writing said new data within said one or more cache memory blocks into said disk storage system at a selected subsequent time;
• and
• means for reading from said disk storage system existing data within each sector associated with a cache memory block having new data written therein at said selected subsequent time and prior to writing said new data into said disk storage system wherein data within a sector of said disk storage system may be updated.