Archive Manager Tree Traversal for Compliance Scan Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing data management systems face challenges in efficiently managing expiration times of archived objects, particularly in reducing the time and resources needed for compliance scans, which are resource and time-consuming due to the need to traverse entire tree data structures.
Innovation Solution
The proposed technique involves maintaining multiple tree data structures that enable an archive manager to determine which archived objects from previous archives are referenced by subsequent archives, thereby reducing the portion of the tree data structure that needs to be traversed during compliance scans.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the entire tree data structure is traversed during compliance scans to check expiration times of archived objects, then complete compliance verification is achieved, but the time and resources required for the scan increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the tree data structure into multiple segments or portions, allowing compliance scans to traverse only relevant segments rather than the entire structure. This segmentation enables the system to focus on specific portions of the tree that contain archived objects subject to expiration, thereby reducing scan time while maintaining verification completeness for applicable objects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and stores metadata about archived objects including their expiration times and references in a separate structure or as annotations on tree nodes. This extraction allows the compliance scan to quickly check expiration information without traversing the entire tree structure, as the critical compliance data is readily accessible alongside the traversal path.
2Reliability
If the entire tree data structure is traversed during compliance scans to check expiration times of archived objects, then complete compliance verification is achieved, but the computational resources required for the scan increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the tree traversal into smaller, targeted portions based on archive references and expiration metadata, the computational workload is divided and reduced. The system processes only the necessary segments containing archived objects that require compliance verification, rather than exhaustively traversing the entire tree structure, thereby reducing energy consumption and computational resource usage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary actions by pre-calculating and storing expiration times, archive references, and metadata during the archive creation and update processes. This preliminary preparation ensures that during compliance scans, the system can quickly access pre-computed information without performing extensive real-time calculations, thus reducing computational resources required during the actual scan operation.
3Reliability
If data lock period is extended to ensure data security, then data protection against ransomware and deletion is improved, but the availability of archived objects for access and modification decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different data lock periods and expiration times to different archived objects or portions of the archive based on their specific compliance requirements and reference relationships. Instead of uniformly locking entire archives, the system selectively applies restrictions only where necessary, allowing other archived objects to remain accessible. This local differentiation maintains data protection for critical objects while preserving accessibility for others.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic data lock periods that automatically adjust based on expiration times and reference relationships between archives. When archived objects are no longer referenced by subsequent archives or when their retention period expires, the data lock is automatically removed or reduced, transitioning from a locked to an accessible state. This dynamic adjustment ensures continuous protection during the lock period while restoring accessibility when protection is no longer required.
Data Source
AI summary
One or more objects associated with a source storage is determined to be archived to a remote storage. A corresponding minimum expiration time is stored in nodes of a tree data structure associated with an archive that represents the archived data associated with the source storage. At least a portion of the tree data structure associated with the archive is traversed to identify one or more nodes associated with one or more archived objects having a corresponding expiration time expiring before an expiration time associated with the archive.