Prioritizing File Restoration in Storage Clusters
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing storage cluster systems lack the ability to prioritize and efficiently restore data protection levels for important files when a node failure occurs, leading to potential data loss and inefficient use of available storage space.
Innovation Solution
The system determines which files have degraded data protection levels and categorizes them as priority or non-priority based on external attributes such as user designation or access frequency. It then restores data protection levels for priority files before non-priority files, utilizing a priority table and a non-priority table to manage the restoration process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the system restores data protection levels for all files equally after a node failure, then all files receive uniform protection restoration, but important files may not receive timely protection and storage space is used inefficiently
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments files into priority and non-priority groups based on external attributes. The system creates separate restoration queues for each group, allowing differential restoration strategies. This segmentation enables the system to focus resources on critical files while maintaining eventual protection for all files, resolving the contradiction between uniform protection and restoration efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by restoring data protection levels differently for different files based on their specific attributes. Priority files receive immediate restoration with higher resource allocation, while non-priority files receive restoration later with standard resources. This localized approach to protection restoration optimizes both reliability for critical files and overall restoration efficiency.
2Reliability
If the system prioritizes restoration for important files, then data loss is prevented for critical files, but the system complexity increases due to file categorization and priority management
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by utilizing existing external attributes of files (such as user-defined tags, access patterns, or metadata) to automatically determine priority without requiring manual classification. The system autonomously categorizes files based on these pre-existing attributes, reducing the complexity of priority management while maintaining reliable protection for important files.
3Quantity of substance
If the system uses available storage space efficiently during restoration, then more files can be protected, but the time required to identify and prioritize files increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing priority classifications for files based on their external attributes before failures occur. When a node failure happens, the system can immediately retrieve these pre-determined priorities without performing time-consuming evaluations during the restoration process. This allows efficient utilization of storage space for restoration while minimizing the time required to identify priority files.
Data Source
AI summary
A system can determine that a node a storage cluster has failed, wherein respective data protection levels are maintained for respective files. The system can traverse the respective files, comprising, in response to determining that a data protection level for a file is degraded and that the file is a priority file, adding an identifier of the file to a priority table for restoration of data protection, or, in response to determining that the data protection level for the file of the respective files is degraded and that the file is not the priority file, adding the identifier of the file to a non-priority table for the restoration of data protection. The system can, after traversing the files, restore respective first data protection levels of respective first files represented by the priority table, and then restore respective second data protection levels of respective second files represented by the non-priority table.