Non-Volatile Block Storage Feedback for Wear Reduction

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing non-volatile block storage devices lack feedback mechanisms to processing devices about their health and input/output patterns, leading to inefficient usage and potential damage from excessive writes.

Innovation Solution

A method where a non-volatile block storage device provides feedback to the storage subsystem component of an operating system, allowing it to adapt its behavior and reduce negative impacts by adjusting access patterns, queuing methods, and other parameters based on performance and environmental information.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If wear leveling is used to spread out erasures across logical block addresses, then the durability of non-volatile block storage devices is improved, but the processing device lacks feedback about device health and input/output patterns leading to inefficient usage

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedurability of non-volatile block storage deviceVSAvoidefficiency of input/output operations
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the storage manager component receives information about the health status, performance metrics, and input/output patterns of the non-volatile block storage device. This feedback enables the storage manager to dynamically adjust input/output operations to optimize both device durability and operational efficiency, resolving the contradiction between reliability and productivity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Device complexity

If the storage subsystem component treats the non-volatile block storage device as a black box with minimal adaptive actions, then the device complexity is reduced, but the ability to adapt to current status of the storage device is limited

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecomplexity of storage subsystem componentVSAvoidadaptability to current status of storage device
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The storage manager component is enhanced with feedback capabilities that provide information about device health and performance without requiring complex black-box modeling. This allows the system to adapt storage operations based on real device status while maintaining manageable complexity through structured information gathering and response mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP2454668B1Feedback reporting from non-volatile block storage device to processing device
Publication Date: 2018.10.17 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC
  • EP2454668B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2454668B1 patent drawingFigure 2~3
  • EP2454668B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

Methods and devices are provided for adapting an I/O pattern, with respect to a processing device using a non-volatile block storage device based on feedback from the non-volatile block storage device. The feedback may include information indicating a status of the non-volatile block storage device. In response to receiving the feedback, a storage subsystem, included in an operating system executing on processing device, may change a behavior with respect to the non-volatile block storage device in order to avoid, or reduce, a negative impact to the non-volatile block storage device or to enhance an aspect of the non-volatile block storage device. The feedback may include performance information and/or operating environmental information of the non-volatile block storage device. When the non-volatile block storage device is not capable of providing the feedback, the processing device may request information about the non-volatile block storage device from a database service.