Method and apparatus for replicating the punch command

A system for implementing a punch command to free storage in a replication environment, the system comprising:

• one or more processors;
• a data protection appliance at a production site;
• a data protection appliance at a replication site;
• and
• computer-executable logic in memory comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, perform the operations of:
• intercepting a punch command by a splitter at a production site;
• sending the punch command from the splitter at the production site to a data protection appliance at the production site to free data from storage at the production site;
• determining whether the data protection appliance at the production site supports the punch command, and;
• if the data protection appliance at the production site supports the punch command, processing the punch command by the data protection appliance at the production site to free data from the storage at the production site;
• if the data protection appliance at the production site does not support the punch command, notifying the splitter by the data protection appliance at the production site which, in turns, sends a write zero command to write zeros to a portion of the storage at the production site indicated by the punch command;
• sending the punch command from the data protection appliance at the production site to a data protection appliance at a replication site regardless of whether the data protection appliance at the replication site supports the punch command;
• receiving, at the data protection appliance at a replication, the punch command sent from the data protection appliance at the production site;
• writing the punch command by the data protection appliance at a replication site to a journal at the replication site;
• applying, by the data protection appliance at the replication site, the punch command to storage at the replication site, the punch command applied by the data protection appliance at the replication site in response to the punch command received from the data protection appliance at the production site by determining whether the data protection appliance at the replication site supports the punch command, and;
• if the data protection appliance at the replication site supports the punch command, processing the punch command by the data protection appliance at the replication site by sending the punch command to the storage at the replication site to free data from the storage at the replication site, and
• if the data protection appliance at the replication site does not support the punch command, sending a write zero command to write zeros to a portion of the storage at the replication site indicated by the punch command;
• and
• writing data being freed or written as zeros from the storage at the replication site to an undo stream of the journal at the replication site.

A computer program product having a non-transitory computer readable storage medium operable to store computer program logic embodied in computer program code encoded thereon for implementing a punch command to free storage in a replication environment including a production site and a replication site, the computer program product comprising:

• computer program code for intercepting a punch command by a splitter at a production site;
• computer program code for sending the punch command from the splitter at the production site to a data protection appliance at the production site to free data from storage at the production site;
• computer program code for determining whether the data protection appliance at the production site supports the punch command, and:
• if the data protection appliance at the production site supports the punch command, processing the punch command by the data protection appliance at the production site to free data from the storage at the production site;
• if the data protection appliance at the production site does not support the punch command, notifying the splitter by the data protection appliance at the production site which, in turn, sends a write zero command to write zeros to a portion of the storage at the production site indicated by the punch command;
• computer program code for sending the punch command from the data protection appliance at the production site to a data protection appliance at a replication site regardless of whether the data protection appliance at the replication site supports the punch command;
• computer program code for receiving, at the data protection appliance at the replication site, the punch command sent from the data protection appliance at the production site;
• computer program code for writing the punch command by the data protection appliance at the replication site to a journal at the replication site;
• computer program code for applying, by the data protection appliance at the replication site, the punch command to storage at the replication site, the punch command applied by the data protection appliance at the replication site in response to the punch command received from the data protection appliance at the production site by determining whether the data protection appliance at the replication site supports the punch command, and:
• if the data protection appliance at the replication site supports the punch command, processing the punch command by the data protection appliance at the replication site by sending the punch command to the storage at the replication site to free data from the storage at the replication site;
• if the data protection appliance at the replication site does not support the punch command, sending a write zero command to write zeros to a portion of the storage at the replication site indicated by the punch command;
• and
• computer program code for writing data being freed or written as zeros from the storage at the replication site to an undo stream of the journal at the replication site.