Dispersed Storage Set Expansion Using IDA-Width Multiples
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional RAID systems face challenges with data loss due to disk failures, increased maintenance costs, and security issues related to data redundancy and co-location, especially in the context of cloud storage, which can be exacerbated by natural disasters or power outages.
Innovation Solution
A dispersed storage network (DSN) utilizing dispersed storage error encoding and decoding, managed by a DSN managing unit and integrity processing unit, distributes data across multiple geographically disparate storage units, allowing for error correction and secure storage without the need for redundant copies, using encoding functions like Cauchy Reed-Solomon to create and manage encoded data slices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If RAID systems store redundant copies of data across multiple disks, then data availability is improved, but security risks increase due to multiple accessible copies and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments data into multiple encoded slices distributed across different storage units using dispersal algorithms. Instead of storing complete redundant copies, the system divides data into fragments that collectively reconstruct the original information, reducing security exposure while maintaining availability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces encoded data slices as intermediaries between the original data and storage units. These encoded slices act as a protective layer, ensuring that no single storage unit contains sufficient information to compromise security, yet any required number of slices can reconstruct the original data
2Quantity of substance
If more disks are added to RAID arrays, then storage capacity increases, but the probability of disk failure rises and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic allocation of encoded data slices across storage units, allowing the system to adaptively manage storage resources. As storage units are added or removed, the system dynamically redistributes slices to maintain optimal reliability and capacity utilization without fixed RAID configurations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental parameter of data representation from complete copies to encoded slices with configurable redundancy levels. This allows flexible adjustment of the number of storage units and slices per unit to achieve desired capacity and reliability targets without the rigid constraints of traditional RAID
3Reliability
If data is copied to multiple RAID devices to reduce data loss risk, then reliability improves, but security issues arise from increased access points
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential information content from complete data copies and stores only the necessary encoded slices across storage units. This extraction approach maintains data reconstructability while removing redundant information that would otherwise create additional security vulnerabilities
4Productivity
If RAID devices are co-located for resource efficiency, then device utilization improves, but complete data loss risk increases due to natural disasters or power outages
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by strategically distributing encoded data slices across storage units with different geographic or environmental risk profiles. Critical slices can be placed in locations with lower disaster risk, while maintaining overall system efficiency through intelligent allocation rather than uniform distribution
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for use in a dispersed storage network (DSN) to deploy and grow a set of dispersed storage (DS) units for use in the DSN memory. In an example of operation, a DS client module assigns one or more additional DS units to a storage set to form a new storage set, where data is encoded in the DSN utilizing a dispersed storage error encoding function in accordance with an information dispersal algorithm (IDA) width. For each encoded data slice stored in the existing storage set, the DS client module utilizes a distributed agreement protocol function to select a storage unit of the new storage set for storage of the encoded data slice.