Dynamic Storage Provisioning for SAN Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Storage Area Networks (SANs) face complexity and management challenges due to dispersed resources, leading to an unwieldy and complicated data storage environment, with manual provisioning being time-consuming and error-prone, resulting in inefficient use of storage resources and limited scalability.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a dynamic storage provisioning system that abstracts back-end storage for users, allowing for automatic and unified management of storage resources by selecting suitable virtual local area networks, zones, and initiators based on service level agreements, enabling centralized management and efficient allocation of storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual provisioning is used for storage requests, then storage administrators can approve or disapprove requests based on criteria, but the process is time-consuming and error-prone
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service provisioning by automatically processing storage requests through the storage manager, which autonomously evaluates requests against policies, selects appropriate storage resources, and provisions them without manual administrator intervention, thereby eliminating time consumption and human error
Solution Approach 2:
The manual mechanical process of administrator review and approval is replaced with an automated electronic system that uses policy-based rules engines and algorithms to automatically evaluate, decide, and execute provisioning requests, transforming a human-dependent process into an autonomous computational system
2Adaptability or versatility
If storage is distributed across SANs, then resource availability increases, but the environment becomes unwieldy and complicated to manage
Solution Approach 1:
The storage manager serves as a universal multi-functional platform that consolidates diverse storage resources from multiple SANs into a unified pool, providing single-point management capabilities including resource allocation, policy enforcement, and provisioning across heterogeneous storage systems, thereby maintaining resource availability while eliminating management complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The storage manager acts as an intermediary layer between users and the distributed SAN infrastructure, abstracting the complexity of multiple storage networks behind a unified interface that automatically handles resource selection, allocation, and management, allowing users to access distributed resources without dealing with the underlying complexity
3Productivity
If static provisioning is used, then storage requests are fulfilled, but storage resources are wasted and scalability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic provisioning where the storage manager continuously monitors storage pool status, resource utilization, and request patterns, automatically adjusting allocations in real-time based on current conditions and policy parameters, enabling both efficient resource utilization and flexible scalability as the system adapts to changing demands
Solution Approach 2:
The provisioning system incorporates feedback mechanisms where the storage manager receives information about storage usage, request patterns, and resource availability, processes this feedback against defined policies, and automatically adjusts provisioning decisions to optimize resource allocation efficiency while maintaining scalability through policy-based adaptation
Data Source
AI summary
In one aspect, a computer-implemented method includes receiving a storage request having a storage pool policy, a volume creation policy, and volume creation attributes; searching available storage in a dynamic storage pool and storage connectivity elements based upon the storage request; selecting front-end and back-end virtual local area networks (VLANs), zones, and virtual initiators (VIs) matching a service level agreement (SLA) for the storage request; determining a provisioning plan for the storage request including an array, array ports, the virtual targets (VTs), the VIs, the zones, the VLANs, virtual volume identity, and logical units by examining resources for the VTs and VIs including resource usage and input/output operations per second to select a VT/VI pair based on the SLA; masking and mapping the virtual volume to the array ports to the VIs; creating a back-end zone for connectivity between the virtual targets and host bus adaptor ports; and outputting the provisioning plan to a user for display.