Method for controlling data write to virtual logical volume conforming to thin provisioning, and storage apparatus

A storage apparatus which is coupled to a host, comprising:

• a plurality of physical storage device groups having different performances;
• and
• a controller, which is coupled to the plurality of types of physical storage device groups,
• wherein each physical storage device group is configured from one or more physical storage devices,
• there are a plurality of media, each of which has a different performance and is configured from two or more real areas on the basis of the plurality of physical storage device groups,
• the controller manages a virtual volume, which is a virtual logical volume that conforms to Thin Provisioning, and is a logical volume configured from a plurality of virtual areas and used by a plurality of applications, and
• the controller executes steps of:
• (A) receives, from the host, a write request comprising write-destination information for identifying a virtual area of a write destination in the virtual volume;
• (B) determines whether or not the write-destination virtual area identified based on the write-destination information is an unallocated virtual area;
• and
• (C) in a case where the result of the determination of step (B) is affirmative, selects, from among the plurality of media, each of which has a different performance and is configured from two or more real areas, an initial allocation medium that corresponds to write-source identification information of a write-source host which is a source of the write request, and allocates a real area from the selected medium to the write-destination virtual area,
• wherein initial allocation policy information is provided, which is information denoting which of the plurality of media is to be the initial allocation medium that is a source of initially allocated real areas according to the write request from the write-source host having the write-source identification information,
• the initial allocation policy information is updated based on input from an administrator, and
• in step (C), the initial allocation medium, which corresponds to the write-source identification information of the write source of the write request and corresponds to the write request to the write-destination virtual area, is identified from the initial allocation policy information.

A storage medium that stores a computer program for causing a computer to execute the steps of:

• (A) selecting, from among a plurality of media each of which has a different performance and is configured from two or more real areas, an initial medium which is a medium to be a source of a real area that is initially allocated to a virtual volume, which is a virtual logical volume that conforms to Thin Provisioning, and is a logical volume configured from a plurality of virtual areas and used by a plurality of applications;
• and
• (B) causing a storage apparatus comprising the virtual volume to set the selected first initial allocation policy information including a value that denotes an initial medium and write-source identification information associated with the value, in second initial allocation policy information of this storage apparatus,
• (C) whereby in a case where the storage apparatus receives, from a host, a write request comprising write-destination information for identifying a write-destination virtual area, and determines that this write-destination virtual area is an unallocated virtual area, the storage apparatus can select, from among the plurality of media, each of which has a different performance and is configured from two or more real areas, and based on the second initial allocation policy information, an initial medium corresponding to write-source identification information of a write-source host which is a source of the write request, and can allocate a real area from the selected initial medium to the write-destination virtual area,
• wherein initial allocation policy information is provided, which is information denoting which of the plurality of media is to be the initial medium that is a source of initially allocated real areas according to the write request from a write source with write-source identification information,
• the initial allocation policy information is updated based on input from an administrator, and
• in step (C), the initial medium, which corresponds to the write-source identification information of the write source of the write request and corresponds to the write request to the write-destination virtual area, is identified from the initial allocation policy information.