Storage system

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each comprise an interface to an external equipment, and convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with the external equipment;
• and
• plural disk control units each comprising plural interfaces that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with a hard drive unit, a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the hard drive unit, and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural disk control units are connected to each other through a first interconnection;
• wherein the plural disk control units and the hard drive unit are connected to each other through a second interconnection;
• wherein the plural disk control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising at least two or more disk control units;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• the plural disk control units included in each of the plural control clusters, and
• wherein one of the plural disk control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural disk control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each comprise an interface to a hard drive unit, and convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with the hard drive unit;
• and
• plural channel control units each comprising plural interfaces that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with an external equipment, a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the hard drive unit, and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural channel control units are connected to each other through an interconnection;
• wherein the plural channel control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising two or more channel control units;
• wherein the cache memory of each of the plural channel control units within each of the plural control clusters stores only data to be used by the external equipment connected to each of the plural interfaces within each of the plural control clusters;
• control of the cache memory and management of a storage area of the hard drive unit are conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters, and
• wherein one of the plural channel control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural channel control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural channel control units each comprising plural interfaces that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with one of an external equipment and a hard drive unit, a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the one of the external equipment and the hard drive unit, and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural channel control units are connected to one another through an interconnection;
• wherein the plural channel control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising two or more channel control units;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters,
• wherein one of the plural channel control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural channel control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with one of an external equipment and a hard drive unit;
• and
• plural data caching control units each comprising a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the one of the external equipment and the hard drive unit and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural data caching control units are connected to each other through a first interconnection;
• wherein the plural data caching control units are connected to one another through a second interconnection;
• wherein the plural data caching control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising two or more data caching control units;
• wherein the plural data caching control units included in each of the plural control clusters are connected to one another;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• and
• wherein one of the plural data caching control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural data caching control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each comprise an interface to one of an external equipment and a hard drive unit, and convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with the one of the external equipment and the hard drive unit;
• and
• plural data caching control units each comprising a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the hard drive unit and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural data caching control units are connected to each other through an interconnection
• wherein the plural data caching control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising two or more data caching control units;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• one of the plural data caching control units store management information on the storage system;
• and
• one of the plural data caching control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural data caching control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each comprise an interface to an external equipment, and convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with the external equipment;
• and
• plural disk control units each comprising plural interfaces that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with a hard drive unit, a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the hard drive unit, and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural disk control units are connected to each other through a first interconnection;
• wherein the plural disk control units and the hard drive unit are connected to each other through a second interconnection;
• wherein the plural disk control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising at least two or more disk control units;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• the plural disk control units included in each of the plural control clusters are connected to one another;
• one of the plural disk control units store management information on the storage system;
• and
• one of the plural disk control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural disk control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each comprise an interface to a hard drive unit, and convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with the hard drive unit;
• and
• plural channel control units each comprising plural interfaces that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with an external equipment, a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the hard drive unit, and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural channel control units are connected to each other through an interconnection;
• wherein the plural channel control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising at least two or more channel control units;
• wherein the cache memory of each of the plural channel control units within each of the plural control clusters stores only data to be used by the external equipments connected to each of the plural interfaces within each of the plural control clusters;
• one of the plural channel control units store management information on the storage system;
• control of the cache memory and management of a storage area of the hard drive unit are conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• and
• one of the plural channel control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural channel control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising plural channel control units each comprising plural interfaces that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with one of an external equipment and a hard drive unit, a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the one of the external equipment and the hard drive unit, and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,

• wherein the plural channel control units are connected to one another through an interconnection;
• wherein the plural channel control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising at least two or more channel control units;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• one of the plural channel control units store management information on the storage system;
• and
• one of the plural channel control units having at least one processor and manages the plural control clusters as a single system, by the processor in the one of the plural channel control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural protocol transformation units that each convert, into a protocol within the storage system, a protocol for read and write for data exchanged with one of an external equipment and a hard drive unit;
• and
• plural data caching control units each comprising a cache memory that stores data read from/written to the one of the external equipment and the hard drive unit and a microprocessor that controls the cache memory,
• wherein the plural protocol transformation units and the plural data caching control units are connected to each other through a first interconnection;
• wherein the plural data caching control units are connected to one another through a second interconnection;
• wherein the plural data caching control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising at least two or more data caching control units;
• wherein the plural data caching control units included in each of the plural control clusters are connected to one another;
• control of the cache memory is conducted independently for each of the plural control clusters;
• one of the plural data caching control units stores management information on the storage system;
• and
• one of the plural data caching control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural protocol transformation units and the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one of the plural data caching control units, based on management information of the storage system.

A storage system, comprising:

• plural hard disk drives;
• and
• a controller,
• the controller comprising:
• plural channel control units that are each connected to an external equipment;
• a disk control unit that is connected to the hard disk drives;
• a cache memory that temporarily stores data stored in the hard disk drives;
• and
• an interconnection that connects the channel control units and the disk control unit,
• the channel control units each comprising:
• a control memory that stores control information on data transfer;
• and
• a processor that controls the data transfer,
• wherein the processor transfers data, which has been sent from the external equipment, from the channel control unit to the cache memory to store the data, reads data from the cache memory, transfers the data to the disk control unit, and instructs the disk control unit to write data to the hard disk drive;
• and
• wherein the disk control unit converts a data transfer protocol within the controller into a protocol that allows input/output with respect to the hard disk drive, and
• wherein the plural channel control units are divided into plural control clusters each comprising two or more channel control units, and wherein one of the plural channel control units having at least one processor and manages, as a single system, the plural control clusters, by the processor in the one plural channel control units, based on management information of the storage system.