Backup Image Header Lifecycle Policy Enforcement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing backup storage systems face challenges in maintaining and enforcing lifecycle policies across multiple domains, as lifecycle policy information is traditionally lost when backup images are transferred between distinct domains, leading to inconsistent policy application and manual administrator intervention.
Innovation Solution
Integrating lifecycle policy information into the backup image itself, allowing it to be transferred and enforced across multiple domains, enabling automatic handling and management of backup data based on specified policies, including retention, propagation, and notification conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If backup images are transferred between distinct domains, then backup data can be preserved and accessed across domains, but lifecycle policy information is lost leading to inconsistent policy application
Solution Approach 1:
The lifecycle policy information is nested within the backup image itself, embedded in the header section. This allows the policy information to travel with the backup image across domain boundaries without being lost, resolving the contradiction between cross-domain transfer capability and policy information preservation
Solution Approach 2:
The backup image header acts as an intermediary carrier that transports lifecycle policy information from the source domain to the destination domain. This mediator ensures policy information is not lost during cross-domain transfer while maintaining the backup functionality
2Reliability
If lifecycle policy information is stored in domain-local backup catalogs, then policies can be enforced within a domain, but policies cannot be enforced when backup images are transferred to domains without access to the original catalog
Solution Approach 1:
Lifecycle policy information is embedded in the backup image header before the image is transferred to another domain. This preliminary action ensures that the receiving domain has all necessary policy information to enforce policies consistently, without needing access to the original domain's backup catalog
Solution Approach 2:
The backup image header serves multiple functions: it contains metadata about the backup data and simultaneously carries lifecycle policy information. This multi-functionality allows a single structure to support both backup operations and cross-domain policy enforcement
3Ease of operation
If manual administrator intervention is used to manage backup policies across domains, then policies can be applied, but system complexity and operational overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The backup image itself carries its own lifecycle policy information in the header, enabling the system to automatically enforce policies without requiring manual administrator intervention. The policy information is self-contained and can be processed automatically by the backup system
Data Source
AI summary
A first backup storage system within a receiving domain receives information from an originating domain distinct from the receiving domain. The first backup storage system includes at least one storage device and the information includes backup data and corresponding lifecycle policy information for the backup data. The first backup storage system automatically performs an operation relating to the backup data, where the operation is specified by the received lifecycle policy information. In some embodiments, the lifecycle policy information may be received by the receiving domain within a header located within the backup data.