Database Fragment Cloning for High Availability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current database backup and availability solutions are either time-consuming or complex, and existing systems face challenges in ensuring continuous data availability without significant downtime during failures and recovery processes.
Innovation Solution
The system employs database fragment cloning and management techniques, where a database object is divided into fragments, with primary and secondary cloned fragments, allowing for efficient updates and refreshes, enabling continuous availability and quick recovery by propagating updates and refreshing stale fragments without interrupting operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the entire database is copied periodically onto computer-readable media, then a backup copy is preserved, but the copying process is time-consuming and data activities between backup intervals are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The database is divided into multiple fragments, each maintained separately with its own backup copy. This segmentation allows incremental updates and reduces the time required for complete database backups, while ensuring that only necessary portions are copied at each interval.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains a queue of database activities that are captured and tracked between backup intervals. This preliminary tracking ensures that no data activities are lost, and the information is ready for immediate incorporation into the next backup cycle.
2Reliability
If multiple copies of the same database are maintained on different computing machines for failover backup, then database availability is ensured, but synchronizing multiple copies in real-time is complex and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The database is divided into fragments, and each fragment is replicated to secondary computing machines. This segmentation simplifies synchronization because only specific fragments need to be synchronized between machines, rather than the entire database, reducing both complexity and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
A queue mechanism serves as an intermediary between the primary database and secondary copies, managing the synchronization process. The queue tracks and coordinates updates across multiple machines, simplifying the synchronization architecture and reducing computational overhead.
3Reliability
If cloned fragments are maintained across multiple devices for high availability, then seamless failover is enabled, but maintaining operationally identical clones requires update propagation and synchronization
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where the primary database fragment monitors and tracks updates, automatically propagating changes to cloned fragments. This feedback loop ensures all clones remain operationally identical without requiring complex manual synchronization processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The primary database fragment automatically manages the synchronization of cloned fragments through self-service update propagation. The system autonomously maintains consistency across multiple devices without external intervention, reducing the complexity of synchronization management.
Data Source
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AI summary
Mechanisms and techniques for database fragment cloning and management are provided. A database object, such as a table or index, is divided into fragments. Each fragment is cloned to create cloned fragments, which operationally are identical to one another. One or more of the cloned fragments may be designated as a primary cloned fragment for performing database operations or as a secondary cloned fragment for serving as backup. Updates to each fragment are implemented on the primary cloned fragment and then propagated from the primary cloned fragment to the corresponding secondary cloned fragments. A cloned fragment can go offline; unavailable to be updated. When the cloned fragment returns online, it is refreshed with data included in the primary cloned fragment. While being refreshed, the cloned fragment may be updated. The cloned fragment is eligible to be designated as a primary cloned fragment when the refreshing process has been completed.