Dynamic Backup Expiration Policy for Storage Optimization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing data backup systems face inefficiencies due to the accumulation of numerous versions of files, leading to excessive storage costs and management complexities, as they fail to effectively determine when older versions can be deleted, resulting in premature or late deletion of unnecessary backups.
Innovation Solution
Implementing policies and rules that assign expiration times to backup versions based on their creation times and the creation times of successive versions, allowing for automatic deletion of outdated versions and reducing the number of stored versions over time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If continuous backups are performed to ensure data recovery, then data reliability is improved, but storage costs and data management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by transitioning from fixed retention policies to dynamic expiration policies that adjust backup retention based on multiple factors including file age, version importance, and storage capacity. This allows the system to maintain sufficient backups for recovery while automatically expiring less critical older versions, thereby reducing the total number of stored backups without compromising reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements discarding and recovering by selectively expiring backup versions that are less likely to be needed for recovery while preserving more recent and potentially critical versions. The system recovers storage space by removing expired backups and can restore previously deleted versions if needed, balancing data protection with storage efficiency.
2Reliability
If all backup versions are retained to prevent data loss, then data reliability is improved, but storage costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the parameter of backup retention from static to dynamic by implementing expiration policies that evaluate multiple factors including file modification history, backup frequency, and storage constraints. This allows the system to preserve critical data while automatically expiring redundant or less important backup versions, reducing storage costs without sacrificing essential data preservation.
Solution Approach 2:
The backup system performs self-service by automatically evaluating and expiring backup versions based on predefined policies without requiring manual intervention. The system monitors its own storage usage and backup inventory, making autonomous decisions about which backups to retain and which to expire, thereby optimizing storage costs while maintaining data reliability.
3Productivity
If expiration policies are applied to reduce storage, then storage efficiency is improved, but risk of premature deletion increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the expiration policy continuously monitors backup status, storage capacity, and file access patterns. Before expiring a backup version, the system evaluates multiple criteria including whether newer versions exist, storage thresholds, and potential recovery needs. This feedback loop ensures that expiration decisions are made safely and that critical backups are preserved, maintaining reliability while improving storage efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by evaluating multiple factors before actually expiring a backup version. It checks whether the backup is the only copy, whether storage thresholds are exceeded, and whether the file has been recently modified. This preliminary evaluation prevents premature deletion of critical backups while still enabling efficient expiration of redundant versions, balancing storage efficiency with backup safety.
Data Source
AI summary
In one example, a method includes receiving a most recent backup version of client data, marking the most recent backup version to indicate that the most recent backup version has no expiration time, determining a currency span of an earlier backup version that is the backup version whose creation time is next most recent after a creation time of the most recent backup version, identifying all curtains in the currency span, each of the curtains being associated with a respective rule concerning a life of the earlier backup version, applying each of the rules to the earlier backup version, and whichever rule whose application results in the latest expiration time for the earlier backup version is the controlling rule, and assigning an expiration time to the earlier backup version according to the controlling rule.