Hierarchical Organization Directory for Policy Data Inheritance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing file systems face challenges in storing and retrieving policy and configuration data across different operating systems and devices, as applications may not be able to access the uppermost level of a sub-directory's policy and configuration data, leading to inconsistencies and limitations in data retrieval.
Innovation Solution
A device and OS-independent hierarchical organization directory is created under the root directory in the file system, with user directories and policy/configuration data stored within, allowing for inheritance models and transactional semantics to ensure data durability and consistency across devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If policy and configuration data are stored in a hierarchical database external to the file system, then data can be stored and retrieved, but applications cannot access the uppermost level of sub-directory policy data, leading to retrieval limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the policy and configuration data storage directly into the file system namespace by creating a hierarchical organization directory structure. This integration allows applications to access policy data at any directory level by traversing the hierarchical path, eliminating the external database access limitation while maintaining organized data structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a new dimensional approach by organizing policy data in a hierarchical directory structure with inheritance capabilities. Applications can now access policy data from multiple levels (parent directories, root directory) in addition to the current directory, adding a vertical dimension to data accessibility that resolves the retrieval limitation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a hierarchical organization directory is created in the file system namespace, then applications can access policy data from any directory level, but the device and OS independence requirement increases complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal hierarchical organization directory structure that functions across different devices and operating systems. By using standard file system namespace conventions and inheritance models, the structure provides device and OS independence, allowing the same policy data to be accessed universally regardless of the underlying platform.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the file system namespace into distinct hierarchical organization directories that can be independently managed and accessed. This segmentation allows each directory level to maintain its own policy data while inheriting from parent levels, providing flexibility for different devices and OS configurations without increasing overall complexity.
3Reliability
If policy data inheritance is implemented across hierarchical directories, then data consistency is improved, but the complexity of managing and retrieving data increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-establishing the hierarchical organization directory structure with defined inheritance relationships before data is stored. This pre-configured structure automatically ensures data consistency across all directory levels, eliminating the need for complex runtime consistency checks and management operations.
Data Source
AI summary
In one example, a system is described in which a storage device, communicatively coupled to a processor, includes a file system management module. This file system management module may create a hierarchical organization directory that is a device and an operating system independent under a root directory in a namespace of a file system. Further, the file system management module may create a user directory under the hierarchical organization directory. Furthermore, the file system management module may create policy and configuration data for the user directory. In addition, the file system management module may store the policy and configuration data created for the user directory in the hierarchical organization directory.