Geographic Constraint-Aware File Replication Storage Selection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current Enterprise Content Management (ECM) systems face challenges in replicating files across geographical locations while adhering to legal restrictions and ensuring sufficient replication for data protection, particularly for sensitive information like Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Sensitive Personal Information (SPI), as existing technologies lack efficient mechanisms to automatically manage geographical and replication constraints.
Innovation Solution
A computer program product and method that determines available remote storages in a network to replicate files based on geographical and replication constraints, selecting suitable storages to ensure compliance with legal boundaries and maintaining a minimum number of replications, with the ability to automatically configure additional storages when necessary to meet these requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If files are replicated to multiple geographical locations for disaster recovery and availability, then system resilience is improved, but compliance with geographical restrictions on sensitive data becomes difficult to enforce
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by evaluating geographical constraints and selecting compliant remote storages before replication occurs. The content manager checks document class constraints and determines eligible remote storages that satisfy geographical requirements prior to initiating file replication, ensuring compliance is built into the replication process from the start rather than enforced afterward.
2Adaptability or versatility
If manual management of replication constraints is used, then flexibility in handling geographical restrictions is improved, but operational efficiency and automation decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service by enabling the content manager to automatically evaluate document class constraints, determine eligible remote storages, and execute compliant replication without manual intervention. The system serves itself by autonomously managing the complex logic of geographical constraint evaluation and replication decision-making, eliminating the need for manual constraint management while maintaining flexibility.
3Reliability
If the minimum number of replications is enforced within restricted geographical locations, then data protection requirements are satisfied, but availability of compliant remote storages may be insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies partial action by replicating files to the minimum number of remote storages required to satisfy document class constraints within eligible geographical locations. Rather than attempting to replicate to all possible locations, the system performs replication to the extent necessary to meet compliance requirements, accepting that the number of replication targets may be limited by geographical restrictions.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a computer program product, system, and method for determining available remote storages in a network to use to replicate a file based on a geographical requirement with respect the file. A determination is made as whether available remote storages satisfy constraints associated with a document class of the file. The constraints include a geographical location at which to replicate the file and a minimum number of replications to create for the file. At least one remote storage of the available remote storages is selected that satisfies the constraints to store at least one copy of the file. The file is replicated to the selected at least one remote storage.