Multi-Class File System Restore Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current data storage systems face challenges in managing increasing storage needs efficiently, as they often result in high costs and noticeable time delays when accessing infrequently used data, due to the limitations of hierarchical storage management (HSM) systems, which migrate data to lower-cost storage but introduce significant access time delays and require offline restoration.
Innovation Solution
A multi-class file system that dynamically assigns and migrates data across different storage classes based on access frequency and business-oriented policies, allowing for transparent data management and reduced storage costs by using a hierarchy of storage classes with varying performance characteristics, enabling partial data restore and application access before complete data recovery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If data is migrated to lower-cost storage devices using HSM, then storage costs are reduced, but access time delays increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments data into different classes based on access patterns and migrates them to appropriate storage tiers. Frequently accessed data remains on fast storage while infrequently accessed data is migrated to cheaper, slower storage, resolving the contradiction by not treating all data uniformly
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts data placement based on changing access patterns. Data can be migrated between storage tiers as access characteristics change, allowing the system to optimize both cost and performance adaptively rather than statically
2Loss of energy
If HSM migrates files to offline storage, then storage costs decrease, but restore time increases substantially
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by maintaining a searchable index of migrated data and preparing restore operations in advance. When data needs to be restored, the system can quickly locate and restore only the necessary portions rather than requiring complete offline restoration
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts only the necessary data for restoration from the migrated storage tier rather than restoring entire datasets. This selective extraction approach significantly reduces restore time while maintaining cost benefits of offline storage
3Ease of operation
If HSM uses stubs to point to migrated files, then file access appears transparent, but actual access performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary layer (search index) between the application and migrated storage. This index mediates access requests by providing fast location information while maintaining transparency, allowing the system to achieve both transparency and improved performance
4Speed
If data is offloaded to reduce access time delays, then application performance improves, but storage costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by treating different data with different storage characteristics based on their access patterns. Each data class receives appropriate storage resources matched to its actual needs, optimizing both performance and cost rather than applying uniform storage policies
Data Source
AI summary
System and method for performing optimized restores of a multi-class file system. More actively accessed data may be assigned to higher storage classes and less actively accessed data may be assigned to lower storage classes in the multi-class file system. In a restore, the higher storage class(es) including more actively accessed data may be restored first. The multi-class file system may then be brought online for access by application(s). The lower storage class(es) may then be restored. In one embodiment, if a request for data that have not been restored is received, the file system may obtain an estimated time until restore of the requested data from the restore mechanism. The file system may then notify the application of the estimated time until restore. The application may notify a user of the estimated time, and may generate another request for the data after the estimated time has elapsed.