Database Sandbox Virtualization for Data Integrity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional sandbox systems for testing applications are slow, resource-intensive, and prone to errors due to the need to duplicate and maintain transactional consistency of large datasets, which can be time-consuming and costly in terms of computational resources and storage.
Innovation Solution
The system creates sandboxes by using immutable storage and virtualization, allowing authorized users to access production data without duplication, ensuring data integrity and accuracy through point-in-time snapshots, and enabling quick sandbox creation with reduced resource usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate copies of customer data are made for sandbox testing, then data integrity and accuracy are maintained, but creation time and computational resource consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses virtualization to create a virtual copy of the production database schema and structure in the sandbox environment, rather than copying actual data. This virtual copying approach maintains data integrity through schema validation while dramatically reducing creation time and computational resources required for sandbox setup.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a virtualization layer as an intermediary between the production database and the sandbox environment. This virtualization layer enables the sandbox to access production data through virtual connections without creating physical copies, thereby maintaining data integrity while eliminating the time-consuming data duplication process.
2Reliability
If separate copies of customer data are made for sandbox testing, then data accuracy is ensured, but storage resources and computational resources are consumed substantially
Solution Approach 1:
The patent copies only the virtual schema and structure of the production database rather than copying actual data records. This approach ensures data accuracy by maintaining schema validation and data type integrity while consuming minimal storage resources since no physical data duplication occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtualization layer acts as an intermediary that provides accurate data access without requiring substantial storage resources. It enables the sandbox to query production data through virtual connections, maintaining data accuracy while avoiding the storage overhead of copying entire datasets.
3Stability of the object's composition
If data is copied in single transaction, then transactional consistency is achieved, but it is not practical for large datasets and requires substantial processor resources
Solution Approach 1:
The patent copies the database schema and structure virtually rather than copying data records in single transactions. This approach achieves transactional consistency through schema validation while avoiding the processor resource intensity of copying large datasets in single transactions.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtualization layer serves as an intermediary that handles data access and consistency management. It provides transactional consistency through virtual connection management and schema validation while reducing the processor resource requirements compared to direct data copying operations.
4Productivity
If production data is used for sandbox testing, then testing speed is improved, but production data corruption occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The virtualization layer acts as a protective intermediary between the sandbox testing environment and production data. It enables fast testing by allowing direct access to production data through virtual connections while preventing data corruption through isolation mechanisms that protect production records from sandbox modifications.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods are provided for creating a sandbox for an original tenant at a point in time, the original tenant having original tenant data stored in an immutable storage associated with an original tenant identifier, the original tenant data as of the sandbox creation point in time being a virtual snapshot of the original tenant data accessible by a sandbox tenant, where the sandbox tenant data can be changed without changing the original tenant data, and the original tenant data can be changed without changing the sandbox tenant data. A sandbox tenant is created by associating a sandbox tenant identifier with the virtual snapshot of the original tenant data and with sandbox tenant data created by the sandbox tenant subsequent to the sandbox creation point in time. In some implementations, the original tenant is an original sandbox tenant, and the sandbox tenant is at least one new sandbox tenant.