US 7,073,025 B2Granted

Disk array apparatus and control method for the same

AssigneeHitachi, Ltd.

InventorsTakeki Okamoto, Mikio Fukuoka

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Abstract

The present invention relates to provide a technology which can detect a disk drive with degradation in the performance even if the disk drive itself does not comprise a function to detect degradation in the performance and which can realize a disk array apparatus which meets a request of a customer by changing a detection level of the degradation in the performance. In the apparatus, a disk controller: generates logical storage areas used for writing or reading data and having redundancy to store data, using the storage areas in the plurality of disk drive; monitors the storing areas in which a request for writing/reading data into/from the plurality of disk drives forming the logical storage areas is stored; and specifies, among the plurality of disk drives forming the logical storage areas, a disk drive having a large number of repeated times and block the specified disk drive.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A disk array apparatus comprising:

a plurality of storage devices by which writing or reading data is executed in such a way that, when there is caused an error in writing or reading data into or from a storage area, writing or reading data is repeated again until completed and thereafter notifying that writing or reading data has been normally completed;
storage device control sections which include storing areas saving requests for write or read operations of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, control write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, and receive notification that the write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices is normally completed;
channel control sections which receive a request for write or read operation from a network outside the disk array apparatus itself;
a shared memory in which pieces of control information communicated by said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are stored;
a cache memory in which pieces of data for communication between said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are temporarily saved;
and
a connecting sections connected to said channel control sections, said storage device control sections, said shared memory, and said cache memory,
wherein said storage device control sections generate logical storage areas using said storage areas in said plurality of storage devices, said logical storage areas being used for writing or reading data and having redundancy to store data,
wherein said storage device control sections monitor said storing areas in which a request for writing or reading data into or from the plurality of storage devices forming the logical storage areas is stored,
wherein among said plurality of storage devices forming said logical storage areas, said storage device control sections specify a storage device, for which the number of repeated times for reading or writing data is large, and block said specified storage device,
wherein said plurality of storage devices have redundancy,
wherein said shared memory has areas which hold average response times for each of the plurality of storage devices, and
wherein said storage device control sections compare said average response times among said plurality of storage devices with the redundancy when the storage device with a larger number of repeated times for writing or reading data is specified, and specify the storage device with larger average response time as one to be blocked.

10 more elements

A disk array apparatus comprising:

a plurality of storage devices by which writing or reading data is executed in such a way that, when there is caused an error in writing or reading data into or from a storage area, writing or reading data is repeated again until completed and thereafter notifying that writing or reading data has been normally completed;
storage device control sections which include storing areas saving requests for write or read operations of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, control write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, and receive notification that the write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices is normally completed;
channel control sections which receive a request for write or read operation from a network outside the disk array apparatus itself;
a shared memory in which pieces of control information communicated by said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are stored;
a cache memory in which pieces of data for communication between said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are temporarily saved;
and
a connecting sections connected to said channel control sections, said storage device control sections, said shared memory, and said cache memory,
wherein said storage device control sections generate logical storage areas using said storage areas in said plurality of storage devices, said logical storage areas being used for writing or reading data and having redundancy to store data,
wherein said storage device control sections monitor said storing areas in which a request for writing or reading data into or from the plurality of storage devices forming the logical storage areas is stored,
wherein among said plurality of storage devices forming said logical storage areas, said storage device control sections specify a storage device, for which a number of repeated times is large, and block said specified storage device,
wherein said plurality of storage devices have redundancy, and
wherein said storage device control sections have areas which hold queue numbers for each of the plurality of storage devices, compare said queue numbers among said plurality of storage devices with the redundancy when the storage device with a larger number of repeated times for writing or reading data is specified, and specify the storage device with larger average response time as one to be blocked.

9 more elements

A disk array apparatus comprising:

a plurality of storage devices by which writing or reading data is executed in such a way that, when there is caused an error in writing or reading data into or from a storage area, writing or reading data is repeated again until completed and thereafter notifying that writing or reading data has been normally completed;
storage device control sections which include storing areas saving requests for write or read operations of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, control write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, and receive notification that the write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices is normally completed;
channel control sections which receive a request for write or read operation from a network outside the disk array apparatus itself;
a shared memory in which pieces of control information communicated by said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are stored;
a cache memory in which pieces of data for communication between said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are temporarily saved;
and
a connecting sections connected to said channel control sections, said storage device control sections, said shared memory, and said cache memory,
wherein said storage device control sections generate logical storage areas using said storage areas in said plurality of storage devices, said logical storage areas being used for writing or reading data and having redundancy to store data,
wherein said storage device control sections monitor said storing areas in which a request for writing or reading data into or from the plurality of storage devices forming the logical storage areas is stored,
wherein among said plurality of storage devices forming said logical storage areas, said storage device control sections specify a storage device, for which a number of repeated times is large, and block said specified storage device,
wherein said plurality of storage devices have redundancy,
wherein said disk array apparatus further comprises:
a management terminal connected to the connection section,
wherein said management terminal sets conditions for specifying, among said storage devices with the redundancy, the storage device with a larger number of repeated times for writing or reading data,
wherein one of the conditions is a differential multiple of an amount of a piece of write pending data in the cache memory to be written into said storage devices.

12 more elements

A disk array apparatus comprising:

a plurality of storage devices by which writing or reading data is executed in such a way that, when there is caused an error in writing or reading data into or from a storage area, writing or reading data is repeated again until completed and thereafter notifying that writing or reading data has been normally completed;
storage device control sections which include storing areas saving requests for write or read operations of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, control write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, and receive notification that the write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices is normally completed;
channel control sections which receive a request for write or read operation from a network outside the disk array apparatus itself;
a shared memory in which pieces of control information communicated by said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are stored;
a cache memory in which pieces of data for communication between said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are temporarily saved;
and
a connecting sections connected to said channel control sections, said storage device control sections, said shared memory, and said cache memory,
wherein said storage device control sections generate logical storage areas using said storage areas in said plurality of storage devices, said logical storage areas being used for writing or reading data and having redundancy to store data,
wherein said storage device control sections monitor said storing areas in which a request for writing or reading data into or from the plurality of storage devices forming the logical storage areas is stored,
wherein among said plurality of storage devices forming said logical storage areas, said storage device control sections specify a storage device, for which a number of repeated times is large, and block said specified storage device,
wherein said plurality of storage devices have redundancy,
wherein said disk array apparatus further comprises:
a management terminal connected to the connection section,
wherein said management terminal sets conditions for specifying, among said storage devices with the redundancy, the storage device with a larger number of repeated times for writing or reading data,
wherein one of the conditions is a differential multiple of an average response time for each of said plurality of storage devices.

12 more elements

A disk array apparatus comprising:

a plurality of storage devices by which writing or reading data is executed in such a way that, when there is caused an error in writing or reading data into or from a storage area, writing or reading data is repeated again until completed and thereafter notifying that writing or reading data has been normally completed;
storage device control sections which include storing areas saving requests for write or read operations of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, control write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices, and receive notification that the write or read operation of data into or from said plurality of storage devices is normally completed;
channel control sections which receive a request for write or read operation from a network outside the disk array apparatus itself;
a shared memory in which pieces of control information communicated by said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are stored;
a cache memory in which pieces of data for communication between said channel control sections and said storage device control sections are temporarily saved;
and
a connecting sections connected to said channel control sections, said storage device control sections, said shared memory, and said cache memory,
wherein said storage device control sections generate logical storage areas using said storage areas in said plurality of storage devices, said logical storage areas being used for writing or reading data and having redundancy to store data,
wherein said storage device control sections monitor said storing areas in which a request for writing or reading data into or from the plurality of storage devices forming the logical storage areas is stored,
wherein among said plurality of storage devices forming said logical storage areas, said storage device control sections specify a storage device, for which a number of repeated times is large, and block said specified storage device,
wherein said plurality of storage devices have redundancy,
wherein said disk array apparatus further comprises:
a management terminal connected to the connection section,
wherein said management terminal sets conditions for specifying, among said storage devices with the redundancy, the storage device with a larger number of repeated times for writing or reading data,
wherein one of the conditions is a differential multiple of a queue number for each of said plurality of storage devices.

12 more elements