US 8,943,286 B1Granted

Storage system

AssigneeHitachi, Ltd.

InventorsYutaka Watanabe, Hideo Saito, Tomohiro Kawaguchi

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A storage system includes a first storage apparatus including a first logical volume and a second storage apparatus including a second logical volume. The first and second logical volumes are set as a High Availability pair and associated with a virtual volume. When receiving a write request to the virtual volume, the storage system manages storage area in the first logical volume regarding to the write request as storage area during data duplication, writes data in duplicate, in order from the first logical volume to the second logical volume. When receiving a read request to the virtual volume, the first storage apparatus waits for completion of the data duplication and reads data from the first logical volume if the storage area is during the data duplication, and the first storage apparatus reads data from the first logical volume if the storage area is not during the data duplication.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A storage system comprising:

a first storage apparatus, including a first logical volume, coupled to a host computer;
and
a second storage apparatus, including a second logical volume, coupled to the host computer and the first storage apparatus,
wherein the first logical volume and the second logical volume are operated as a high availability (HA) pair in which data in the first logical volume is duplicated in the second logical volume, a virtual storage identifier is associated with both the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus, and a virtual volume identifier is associated with both the first logical volume and the second logical volume, so that the first storage apparatus or the second storage apparatus is capable to receive an access request to a virtual volume identified by the virtual storage identifier and the virtual volume identifier,
wherein, when either the first storage apparatus or the second storage apparatus receives a write request to the virtual volume from the host computer, the storage system is configured to:
lock a storage area, regarding the write request, in the first logical volume of the HA pair for writing data in the virtual volume;
write data, regarding the write request, in the first logical volume and write data, regarding the write request in the second logical volume after completion of writing data in the first logical volume;
and
release the lock of the storage area of the first logical volume after writing data in both the first logical volume and the second logical volume;
wherein, when the first storage apparatus receives a read request to the virtual volume from the host computer, the first storage apparatus is configured to:
determine whether a first storage area of the first logical volume regarding the read request is locked;
when the first storage area is locked, wait for release of the lock of the first storage area, read data regarding the read request from the first storage area of the first logical volume, and return a response to the host computer;
and
when the first storage area is not locked, read data regarding the read request from the first storage area of the first logical volume, and return a response to the host computer;
and
wherein, when the second storage apparatus receives a read request to the virtual volume from the host computer, the second storage apparatus is configured to:
read data regarding the read request from a second storage area of the second logical volume without determining whether the second storage area regarding the read request is locked, and return a response to the host computer.

14 more elements

A method for controlling a storage system, the storage system including:

a first storage apparatus, including a first logical volume, coupled to a host computer;
and
a second storage apparatus, including a second logical volume, coupled to the host computer and the first storage apparatus, the method comprising:
associating, when the first logical volume and the second logical volume operate as a high availability (HA) pair in which data in the first logical volume is duplicated in the second logical volume, a virtual storage identifier with both the first storage apparatus and the second storage apparatus and a virtual volume identifier with both the first logical volume and the second logical volume, so that the first storage apparatus or the second storage apparatus is capable to receive an access request to the virtual volume identified by the virtual storage identifier and the virtual volume identifier;
when either the first storage apparatus or the second storage apparatus receives a write request to the virtual volume from the host computer:
locking a storage area, regarding the write request, in the first logical volume of the HA pair for writing data in the virtual volume;
writing data, regarding the write request, in the first logical volume and writing data, regarding the write request in the second logical volume after completion of writing data in the first logical volume;
and
releasing the lock of the storage area of the first logical volume after writing data in both the first logical volume and the second logical volume;
when the first storage apparatus receives a read request to the virtual volume from the host computer:
determining whether a first storage area regarding the read request is locked;
waiting, when the first storage area is locked, for release of the lock of the first storage area;
reading data regarding the read request from the first storage area of the first logical volume;
and
returning a response to the host computer;
and
when the second storage apparatus receives a read request to the virtual volume from the host computer, the method further comprising:
reading data regarding the read request from a second storage area of the second logical volume without determining whether the second storage area regarding the read request is locked;
and
returning a response to the host computer.

17 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/330,182Filed 14 Jul 2014 · continuation
Priority: 21 Apr 2014
Granted: 27 Jan 2015
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification12 codes

G06F 3/0604
Specifically adapted to achieve a particular effect: improving or facilitating administration, e.g. storage management
G06F 3/0605
Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. storage management: by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
G06F 3/0647
Horizontal data movement in storage systems, i.e. moving data in between storage devices or systems: migration mechanisms
G06F 3/0665
Virtualisation aspects: at area level, e.g. provisioning of virtual or logical volumes