Host Cluster Mapping for Storage Configuration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Managing and configuring large-scale data storage systems with hundreds or thousands of hosts and logical volumes is complex, time-consuming, and error-prone, as administrators must manually perform numerous one-to-one mapping operations for access permissions and re-mapping hosts to alternative logical volumes upon corruption.
Innovation Solution
Defining a host cluster with a unique identifier allows multiple hosts to be mapped or configured simultaneously using single instructions, simplifying the process through a storage controller that supports management commands addressing the cluster as a single entity, reducing the complexity and error probability of manual operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If administrators manually perform one-to-one mapping operations for each host to logical volumes, then access permissions can be configured, but the process becomes complex and time-consuming when dealing with hundreds or thousands of hosts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple individual host mapping operations into a single cluster-level mapping operation. By defining a host cluster as a group of hosts that share common access permissions to logical volumes, the system allows administrators to configure access rights for entire clusters simultaneously, dramatically reducing the time required to manage hundreds or thousands of hosts while maintaining proper access control reliability
2Ease of operation
If administrators manually configure each host individually, then precise control over host-access permissions is achieved, but the complexity of management increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reduces management complexity by merging individual host configurations into cluster-level configurations. The host cluster definition allows multiple hosts to be managed as a single entity for access permission purposes, simplifying administrative operations while maintaining the ability to apply specific permissions to entire groups of hosts that share common access patterns
3Reliability
If hosts need to be re-mapped to alternative logical volumes upon corruption, then data redundancy and availability are maintained, but the reconfiguration process is error-prone and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent improves reconfiguration accuracy by enabling cluster-level re-mapping operations. When logical volume corruption occurs, administrators can re-map entire host clusters to alternative logical volumes or snapshots in a single operation, reducing the risk of errors that would occur with manual one-to-one reconfiguration and ensuring consistent recovery across all hosts in the cluster
Data Source
AI summary
A method for data storage includes defining a host cluster within a group of host computers, which access a storage system that includes multiple logical volumes. The host cluster includes two or more of the host computers. Responsively to a single mapping instruction, each of the host computers in the host cluster is mapped to access the logical volumes in the set. In another disclosed method, a single control instruction, which specifies the host cluster and a configuration operation to be applied to the host computers in the host cluster, is accepted. Responsively to the single control instruction, the configuration operation is applied to each of the host computers in the host cluster. The configuration operation may comprise assigning a specified level of service to each host computer in one of the first subset of the host computers and the second subset of the host computers.