Delayed Ordered Write Destage Pipeline for Real-Time Ransomware Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing computing systems lack effective mechanisms for real-time detection and protection against ransomware attacks, particularly in ensuring data consistency and integrity during write operations.
Innovation Solution
Implementing delayed ordered write destage operations through a write destage pipeline that captures and processes host IO write operations in successive capture and apply cycles, incorporating anomaly detection to identify and prevent anomalous writes associated with ransomware.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If immediate write destage operations are implemented, then data consistency is maintained, but real-time ransomware detection capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing anomaly detection on write operations during the capture cycle, before the destage operation occurs. This allows the system to identify potential ransomware activity in advance and prevent it from being written to persistent storage, thereby maintaining data consistency while enabling detection.
2Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If delayed write destage operations are implemented for anomaly detection, then ransomware detection capability is improved, but data consistency may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by using the results of anomaly detection to control whether destage operations proceed. If anomalous write patterns indicative of ransomware are detected, the system provides feedback to prevent the destage operation, thereby protecting data consistency. This closed-loop control mechanism resolves the contradiction between delayed detection and data integrity.
3Productivity
If all write operations are destaged immediately, then processing speed is maximized, but data protection against ransomware is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary anomaly detection mechanism between the capture cycle and destage operation. This intermediary layer analyzes write operations for ransomware indicators without significantly impacting processing speed, as the detection occurs during the capture cycle rather than adding a separate processing step. This resolves the contradiction by enabling protection while maintaining productivity.
4Measurement precision
If anomaly detection is performed on all write operations, then detection accuracy is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by implementing anomaly detection with specific focus on ransomware-related patterns rather than analyzing all aspects of write operations equally. The detection mechanism examines specific characteristics such as write rates, target files, and patterns that are locally optimized for ransomware detection, thereby improving detection accuracy without proportionally increasing overall system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Host IO write operations on a given storage group are grouped into cycles of a write destage pipeline for the storage group. Host writes are collected during a capture cycle, while host writes from a previous capture cycle are analyzed and destaged during an apply cycle. After the previous apply cycle has completed, a cycle switch occurs and the current capture cycle becomes the new apply cycle. Anomaly detection is implemented before any IO write operations are destaged during the apply cycle, and if an anomaly is detected the write destage is stopped. The entire apply cycle is either destaged to disk, or is discarded, depending on whether the anomaly is confirmed. By maintaining the order of writes across different cycles, which act as consistency points, it is possible to implement ransomware protection in real time on host write operations, while using ordered write destage to maintain data consistency.