Incremental Backup Snapshot Agent for Virtual Machines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Virtualization technologies pose challenges in data management due to higher workload consolidation and the need for instant, granular recovery in virtualized infrastructures, where traditional data management methods are inadequate for efficient snapshotting and backup of virtual machines.
Innovation Solution
An integrated data management and storage system that captures snapshots of virtual machines over time, using a snapshot agent to identify and transfer changed data blocks, and employs cryptographic signatures to optimize incremental backups, reducing data transfer and storage requirements, while allowing for near-instantaneous recovery of virtual machines.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional data management methods are used for virtual machines, then data can be stored and backed up, but data transfer and storage requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments data backup into incremental units, where only changed data blocks are captured and transferred. The system divides the virtual machine data into blocks, identifies changed blocks since the last backup, and transfers only those segments, thereby reducing overall data transfer and storage requirements while maintaining complete backup capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of data representation by using cryptographic signatures (hash values) instead of transferring actual data blocks. The signature agent computes signatures for changed data blocks and transfers only these signatures along with metadata, fundamentally changing what is transmitted from raw data to compressed representation, thus reducing data quantity
2Productivity
If virtualization consolidates workloads, then resource utilization improves, but data management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a signature agent as an intermediary component that sits between the virtual machine data and the backup system. This agent automatically identifies changed data blocks, computes their cryptographic signatures, and manages the incremental backup process, thereby simplifying data management complexity while enabling efficient resource utilization through virtualization
Solution Approach 2:
The signature agent operates autonomously to self-manage the incremental backup process. It automatically detects changed data blocks, computes signatures, and prepares data for transfer without requiring manual intervention, thus reducing data management complexity while supporting consolidated virtualized workloads
3Quantity of substance
If incremental backups capture only changed blocks, then data transfer reduces, but identification of changed blocks becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses cryptographic signatures as a form of 'data fingerprinting' or 'color change' mechanism. Each data block is transformed into a unique signature (hash value) that acts as its identifier. By comparing signatures of current blocks with previous backups, the system easily identifies changed blocks without complex analysis, reducing the difficulty of detection while minimizing data transfer volume
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems for efficiently capturing snapshots of a computing application or environment over time and transferring the snapshots to an integrated data management and storage system are described. A snapshot agent may detect that one or more electronic files associated with the computing application or environment are greater than a threshold file size and in response perform an incremental backup optimization in which the snapshot agent may identify files that have been touched since a previous snapshot by accessing file system metadata (e.g., last modified timestamps) or utilizing a tracking agent to detect potential file changes that have occurred since the previous snapshot was captured. The snapshot agent may then generate fingerprints for data blocks of the touched files, which may reduce the total number of fingerprints needing to be generated to identify the changed data blocks corresponding with a current snapshot to be transferred.