Dynamic SAN Component Monitoring via Feedback Utility
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current storage area network (SAN) performance monitoring is hindered by the complexity of SAN components and the high volume of monitoring data, making it difficult to identify relevant bottlenecks and underutilization, and requiring constant updates due to dynamic SAN configurations.
Innovation Solution
A system with a storage management module, storage monitoring module, and feedback monitoring utility that dynamically determines and adjusts the set of SAN components to be monitored based on threshold violations, using connectivity data structures to identify connected components and modify the monitoring set, applying analysis criteria to historical data for effective problem identification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If all SAN components are monitored to ensure complete coverage, then detection precision is improved, but device complexity and data volume increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the SAN components into two groups: actively monitored components and non-monitored components. The system dynamically determines which components to monitor based on current performance needs, dividing the entire SAN infrastructure into monitored and non-monitored segments to reduce overall complexity while maintaining detection precision for critical areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating monitoring resources on specific critical SAN components rather than uniformly monitoring all components. The system identifies and focuses monitoring efforts on components that are most likely to cause or indicate performance problems, allocating monitoring precision locally where it is most needed.
2Measurement precision
If monitoring data volume is increased to improve analysis accuracy, then detection precision is improved, but loss of time increases due to difficulty in analyzing high volumes of data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the relevant monitoring data from the SAN components that are actively monitored, rather than collecting and analyzing all possible data. By taking out only the critical performance indicators from the monitored components, the system maintains detection precision while significantly reducing the time required for data analysis.
3Measurement precision
If monitoring is performed at low level (firmware, port, hardware device) to capture detailed performance data, then detection precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficulty in identifying cause and effect relationships
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the monitoring of multiple SAN components into a coordinated system where the feedback monitoring utility tracks relationships between connected components. By combining monitoring data from related components and analyzing their interactions, the system maintains low-level detection precision while improving ease of operation through unified analysis of cause and effect relationships.
4Device complexity
If manual definition of SAN component monitoring set is performed to reduce monitoring scope, then device complexity is reduced, but reliability deteriorates due to concern that relevant components may be missed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic monitoring set determination process where the feedback monitoring utility automatically adjusts which SAN components are monitored based on current performance conditions and threshold violations. This dynamic approach reduces device complexity by not manually defining static monitoring sets, while simultaneously improving reliability by ensuring the correct components are monitored at the right times based on actual system behavior.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs feedback mechanisms where the monitoring system continuously observes SAN component performance and uses this information to dynamically adjust the monitoring set. The feedback loop ensures that components becoming problematic are automatically added to the monitoring set, while components that are performing well can be removed, maintaining both simplicity and reliability.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for dynamically determining a set of Storage Area Network (SAN) components for performance monitoring. The computer program product monitors SAN components of a predefined set of SAN components according to a monitor data structure associated with each SAN component. At least one attribute of the set of SAN components is changed in response to a threshold violation by a SAN component in the set. The SAN components of the changed set are monitored according to the monitor data structure for each SAN component within the changed set as part of a monitoring feedback loop.