Fault tolerant computer parallel data processing ring architecture and work rebalancing method under node failure conditions

In a computer system comprising a plurality of processing nodes and a plurality of more than two disk subsystems, a method for providing fault-tolerant data processing, the method comprising:

• (a) partitioning data storage into groups of predetermined numbers of data fragments;
• (b) interconnecting said plurality of disk subsystems with said plurality of nodes to form a topology where each node has a first neighbor connected in a first direction and a second neighbor connected in a second direction, such that each of said nodes is connected only to a single pair of disk subsystems, such that each of said disk subsystems is connected only to a single pair of nodes, and such that the data fragments being processed by any given one of said nodes during no-fault conditions are accessible by the given node's first neighbor;
• (c) experiencing a fault condition at a particular one of said nodes;
• and
• (d) smiling processing of the data fragments such that the data fragments that were being processed by said particular node are processed by said particular node's first neighbor without moving the data fragments between disk subsystems, and at least some of the data fragments that were being processed by said particular node's first neighbor are processed by said particular node's first neighbor's first neighbor, wherein data processing loads can be balanced over said nodes during both fault and no-fault conditions on both sides of said particular node.