1. Field of the Invention
This invention is related in general to data storage systems. In particular, the invention consists of an offline configuration simulator to model and manage a simulated data storage system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A data storage system may be a complex collection of information servers, processing devices, redundant arrays of independent/inexpensive disks (“RAIDs”), magneto-optical drives, tape cartridges, and automated devices for loading memory storage devices into data readers, forming a library of digital information. A primary information server is referred to as a host and all other components are considered attachments.
Adding attachments to the host can be a complicated and time-consuming process. For example, adding a new RAID may require that each hard-disk drive be formatted, the collection of hard-disk drives striped, and the resulting cumulative memory space being split into one or more logical volumes. In this manner, each hard-disk drive has an associated physical address while each volume has an associated logical address. The host must be configured with both the physical and logical addresses of its attachments.
A traditional data-storage configuration system 10 is illustrated in
The storage management interface 14 includes a management application programming interface (“API”) 24, a configuration data model 26, and functional code 28. The configuration data model 26 is a digital representation of the physical layout of the DUT 16. The management API 24 is a collection of software method calls that responds to configuration commands 30 issued by the clients 12 to retrieve information from the configuration data model 26 and perform configuration activities on the DUT 16 utilizing the functional code 28.
An exemplary configuration activity begins with the physical attachment of a hard-disk drive 22A by a service technician. The service technician may then issue a configuration command 30 through the client 12 invoking a format method within the management API 24. The format method retrieves the physical address of the hard-disk drive from the configuration data model and utilizes the functional code 28 to erase and prepare the hard-disk drive 22A. Once the hard-disk drive 22A has been formatted, it may be partitioned, added to a RAID 22B, and divided into logical volumes. Because logical devices such as volumes have addresses different from the physical addresses maintained in the configuration data model 26, the virtual layout of a data storage system 18 is referred to as it logical configuration 32. This logical configuration may be maintained in the storage management interface 14.
Configuration of a data storage system 18 may be a complicated and time-consuming process. For example, adding RAIDS to the data storage system 18 will require that each hard-disk drive be formatted, partitioned, and striped. If the data storage system 18 is configured improperly, an error message 34 may be generated by the DUT 16 requiring the user to start the configuration process over. It would be desirable to have a method for configuring a data storage system that can address configuration errors without having to redo time-intensive tasks such as disk formatting.
In order to reduce the amount of time spent re-doing system configuration activities, a user must spend considerable time planning the data-storage system configuration. Additionally, experimentation with system configurations is usually prohibited by the associated time and expense. It would be desirable to have a method of configuring a data storage system that does not require extensive planning and allows for experimentation to determine an optimal configuration.
Another drawback associated with traditional data-storage system configuration is that physical hardware (host/attachments) must be present before configuration may begin. This means that a time-intensive system configuration cannot begin until all the components are present. Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a method for configuring a data storage system before all the components are present, allowing for quicker installation of the system once the parts arrive.
One approach to meeting these needs involves configuring a simulated data-storage system, as illustrated in
One problem with the ISA 40 is that the business configuration component 44 is usually not accessible by other management applications. This forces third-party storage management applications to continue to utilize the traditional data-storage configuration system 10. Another issue with the ISA 40 is that the simulated configuration data model 46 is not identical to the configuration data model 26 of the traditional data-storage configuration system 10, requiring extensive translation between the two data models. This makes it difficult to import a physical configuration from the DUT 16. Additionally, the ISA 40 has no mechanism for importing the logical configuration 32. This requires that all simulated configurations begin with a clean configuration, i.e., having no established logical devices. Data storage systems that have been previously configured must have their logical configurations erased.
One aspect of the ISA 40 requires that simulated configurations be saved to digital files. The traditional format of the digital files, XML, precludes multiple users from simultaneously configuring the same data storage system. Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a system for simulating a configuration of a data storage system that allows access by multiple users and third-part storage management applications. Additionally, it would be desirable for this simulated configuration system to utilize a common configuration data model and allow importation and editing of an existing logical configuration.
The invention disclosed herein utilizes an offline configuration system to model and manage a simulated data storage system. Multiple clients may simultaneously configure the data storage system via a storage management interface. The storage management interface includes a management API with extensions for handling offline configuration commands. A user may implement either a traditional online configuration or may invoke an offline configuration processor to simulate a configuration. Both online and offline configurations utilize a common configuration data model to eliminate the need for translations between the two.
Offline configurations may be placed in an office configuration repository for later use or comparison with other simulated configurations. Once the simulated data storage system is properly configured, the simulated configuration is applied to the real data storage system in much the same manner as an online configuration. However, the simulated configuration may be applied in an automated manner, as well. In this manner, third-part storage management applications written for online configurations may be applied to offline configurations as well. Additionally, an existing logical configuration of the data storage system can be imported into the offline configuration system for further modification. This allows an existing configuration to be modified without having to start anew.
Various other purposes and advantages of the invention will become clear from its description in the specification that follows and from the novel features particularly pointed out in the appended claims. Therefore, to the accomplishment of the objectives described above, this invention comprises the features hereinafter illustrated in the drawings, fully described in the detailed description of the preferred embodiments and particularly pointed out in the claims. However, such drawings and description disclose just a few of the various ways in which the invention may be practiced.
This invention is based on the idea of simulating a configuration of a data storage system. The invention disclosed herein may be implemented as a method, apparatus or article of manufacture using standard programming or engineering techniques to produce software, firmware, hardware, or any combination thereof. The term “article of manufacture” as used herein refers to code or logic implemented in hardware or computer readable media such as optical storage devices, and volatile or non-volatile memory devices. Such hardware may include, but is not limited to, field programmable gate arrays (“FPGAs”), application-specific integrated circuits (“ASICs”), complex programmable logic devices (“CPLDs”), programmable logic arrays (“PLAs”), microprocessors, or other similar processing devices.
Referring to figures, wherein like parts are designated with the same reference numerals and symbols,
The storage management interface 114 includes a management application programming interface (“API”) 124, a common configuration data model 126, and expanded functional code 128. The common configuration data model 126 and expanded functional code 128 are utilized for both online and offline configurations. The management API 124 includes method call extensions 124A for handling offline configuration commands. Offline configuration commands 130 set a flag 132 in the management API 124. This flag 132 is used by the management API 124 to determine whether traditional method calls are use, or whether method call extension 124A are used. By using an expanded version of the traditional management API 24 (
Offline configuration simulations are executed in the offline configuration processor 134. The offline configuration processor is a computing device such as a field-programmable gate array (“FPGA”), an application-specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), or a programmable logic device (“PLD”). Information regarding the physical structure of the data storage system 118 is retrieved from the common configuration data model via the management API 124. An interesting aspect of this invention is that the common configuration data model can be adjusted to indicated anticipated physical hardware, allowing system configuration before all the hardware is physically connected.
One of the purposes of configuration simulation is to detect and correct error conditions in a timely manner. Additionally, configuration simulation allows a user to test several disparate system configurations before setline on an optimal solution. Each instance of an offline configuration may be saved to the offline configuration repository 136, including a data storage device such as a floppy-disk, a hard-disk, a tape cartridge, or a magneto-optical disk. In this embodiment of the invention, the offline configurations are saved in an object-relational data structure 139. This allows multiple users to implement the offline configuration system 110 for the same data storage system 118. Once an offline configuration has been decided on, it can be applied to the data storage system in the same manner as an online configuration.
Another aspect of the invention is a storage configuration loader 138 for capturing the logical configuration 140 of the data storage system 118. This feature allows a simulated configuration to begin from data storage system's existing logical state, rather than requiring a clean system.
Those skilled in the art of making memory management systems may develop other embodiments of the present invention. However, the terms and expressions which have been employed in the foregoing specification are used therein as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, it being recognized that the scope of the invention is defined and limited only by the claims which follow.