Metadata-View File System Centralized Indexing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current data file systems face challenges in managing large amounts of data due to inefficient metadata extraction and indexing, leading to resource wastage, limited user and application-defined metadata, restricted metadata access, and lack of optimized file access mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a Metadata-View File System (MVFS) that internally stores index data and metadata in a database, presenting it as a metadata file system for user and application access, allowing organization and access of files through metadata-based views without duplicating files, and using pointers to optimize storage and processing efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If each device in the network has its own indexing system and performs its own data file system scanning and metadata storing, then each device can independently access its metadata, but storage resources and processing resources are wasted due to inability to share metadata among clients
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the indexing systems of multiple devices into a centralized indexing system. A master device performs the indexing operation once and stores the metadata in a shared database that all client devices can access. This eliminates the need for each device to maintain separate index data, thereby reducing storage and processing resource waste while maintaining metadata accessibility for all devices in the network.
Solution Approach 2:
The centralized metadata database serves as a universal resource that all client devices can access. Instead of each device having its own dedicated metadata storage, the system creates a multi-functional metadata repository that supports indexing and access operations for multiple devices simultaneously, improving resource utilization across the network.
2Ease of operation
If metadata is accessed via a dedicated API, then metadata can be accessed by applications implementing the API, but access to metadata and thus to files of the data file system is restricted to applications implementing the dedicated API
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the metadata database universally accessible to all applications through a standard file system interface. Instead of requiring applications to implement a dedicated API, the system mounts the metadata database as a virtual file system that any application can access using standard file operations, thereby significantly improving application access flexibility while maintaining controlled access through the file system's inherent permissions.
3Quantity of substance
If a huge number of files are stored in a large data file system, then the system can store vast amounts of data, but the system quickly becomes difficult to manage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts metadata from the actual file data and stores it separately in a centralized database. This separation allows the system to manage the metadata (filenames, paths, attributes, relationships) independently from the vast amounts of actual file data. Users can search, navigate, and manage files through the metadata interface without dealing with the underlying data storage complexity, thereby maintaining ease of operation even with huge numbers of files.
Solution Approach 2:
The metadata database acts as an intermediary layer between users and the actual file storage system. Instead of users directly interacting with the vast file system, they interact with the organized metadata that provides a simplified view and access paths to the underlying data, making the system more manageable despite its scale.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to the field of accessing data stored in a file system and more particularly, to the optimization of accessing data of a file system. To this effect, the invention proposes a method of accessing files of a data file system according metadata related to the files, and a device for implementing the method.