Fleet Storage Provider Abstraction for Array Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Managing a fleet of storage arrays with different features and classes is cumbersome, requiring manual effort and back-and-forth communication between administrators, and scaling storage capacity does not correspond with increasing computational capacity, leading to bottlenecks.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a fleet-aware storage provider that uses a fleet service to abstract component details, allowing storage management operations without specifying individual storage array details, enabling seamless onboarding of new arrays and scaling storage capacity with computational capacity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual management methods are used for storage arrays, then administrators can manage each array individually, but the management process becomes cumbersome and requires extensive back-and-forth communication
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a fleet service as an intermediary layer between storage administrators and individual storage arrays. This fleet service receives requests for storage operations, determines the appropriate target storage array based on array details and current state, and executes the operations automatically, eliminating the need for administrators to manually specify array details or engage in back-and-forth communication.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by allowing the fleet service to automatically determine which storage array should receive a storage operation based on predefined criteria and current array states. The service autonomously selects target arrays and executes operations without requiring administrator intervention or communication, making the management process self-serveing and significantly reducing administrative time.
2Quantity of substance
If storage capacity is increased independently of computational capacity, then storage needs can be met, but bottlenecks occur due to mismatched scaling
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic scaling by enabling storage capacity to be adjusted in response to computational workload demands. The system continuously monitors computational capacity and automatically provisions or deprovisions storage arrays to maintain optimal matching between storage and computational resources, preventing bottlenecks and ensuring system efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs feedback mechanisms where the fleet service monitors the state of storage arrays and computational resources, and uses this information to make intelligent decisions about storage provisioning. The feedback loop ensures that storage capacity scaling is directly responsive to computational capacity changes, maintaining balance and preventing inefficiencies.
3Manufacturing precision
If detailed specifications are required for each storage array, then precise control is achieved, but the complexity of managing fleet details increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the management system into distinct layers: a high-level fleet service that handles abstract storage operations and a lower layer that manages individual array details. This segmentation allows administrators to work with simplified abstractions while the system internally handles the complexity of individual array specifications, maintaining precision without exposing complexity to users.
Solution Approach 2:
The fleet service is designed as a universal interface that can manage multiple types of storage arrays with different specifications through a single standardized interface. This multi-functional service handles diverse storage array types, capacities, and configurations without requiring administrators to learn or manage each array's specific details separately, reducing management complexity while maintaining operational precision.
Data Source
AI summary
In some examples, a fleet storage provider performs storage management operations for a fleet of storage arrays, the storage arrays in the fleet of storage arrays being of one or more storage types. In response to an addition, to the fleet of storage arrays, of a new storage array of a first storage type different from each storage type of the one or more storage types, a system identifies the new storage array as being associated with a first storage class of a plurality of different storage classes, and associates the new storage array with a fleet service that abstracts component details of the fleet of storage arrays to the fleet storage provider. In response to a request, the system provisions a storage volume on a selected storage array of the fleet of storage arrays, the provisioning performed by the fleet storage provider in cooperation with the fleet service.