Dynamic Mirroring for Storage Node Failover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing storage network environments face challenges in ensuring data accessibility and availability, particularly during node failures or disasters, as data mirroring techniques often rely on synchronous methods that may not adequately protect against multiple node failures across different storage clusters.
Innovation Solution
Implementing dynamic mirroring techniques that establish local failover, primary disaster recovery, and auxiliary disaster recovery partnerships between storage nodes, allowing for the mirroring of data across clusters to ensure continuous access and improved data loss protection by creating auxiliary mirroring logical pipelines when primary partners fail.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If synchronous data mirroring is used between storage nodes, then data consistency is improved, but vulnerability to multiple node failures across different storage clusters increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic mirroring where the mirroring relationship can switch between synchronous and asynchronous modes based on the operational status of storage nodes. When primary disaster recovery nodes are unavailable, the system dynamically reconfigures to mirror data to auxiliary disaster recovery nodes, adapting to changing conditions to maintain data availability and consistency.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-establishes multiple disaster recovery partnerships including both primary and auxiliary disaster recovery nodes before failures occur. This preliminary configuration of multiple potential mirroring targets ensures that when failures happen, the system already has pre-configured backup paths ready to activate, reducing response time and maintaining data consistency.
2Reliability
If multiple disaster recovery partnerships are established, then protection against multiple node failures is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the disaster recovery system into distinct partnership types: local failover partnerships, primary disaster recovery partnerships, and auxiliary disaster recovery partnerships. Each partnership type handles specific failure scenarios, dividing the complex problem of multi-node failure protection into manageable, specialized components that can be independently managed and activated.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary layer of partnership management that abstracts the complexity of multiple mirroring relationships. This intermediary structure organizes and manages the various disaster recovery partnerships, providing a unified control mechanism that simplifies the overall system architecture while maintaining multiple protection layers.
3Reliability
If dynamic mirroring reconfiguration is implemented, then data availability during failures is improved, but mirroring setup time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary configuration of multiple disaster recovery partnerships and auxiliary mirroring targets before failures occur. By pre-establishing these relationships and having the infrastructure ready in advance, the system minimizes the time required to reconfigure mirroring when failures happen, as the basic framework is already in place and only needs activation rather than creation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic reconfiguration capabilities that allow the system to quickly switch between different mirroring arrangements based on real-time node availability. This dynamic approach enables rapid adaptation to failures by activating pre-configured auxiliary partnerships without requiring lengthy setup procedures, maintaining data availability while managing reconfiguration time.
Data Source
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AI summary
One or more techniques and/or systems are provided for dynamic mirroring. A first storage node and the second storage node within a first storage cluster may locally mirror data between one another based upon a local failover partnership. The first storage node and a third storage node within a second storage cluster may remotely mirror data between one another based upon a primary disaster recovery partnership. If the third storage node fails, then the first storage node may remotely mirror data to a fourth storage node within the second storage cluster based upon an auxiliary disaster recovery partnership. In this way, data loss protection for the first storage node may be improved, such that the fourth storage node provide clients with access to mirrored data from the first storage node in the event the second storage node and/or the third storage node are unavailable when the first storage node fails.