Object Store Federation with Unified Namespace and Single-Hop Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing object storage systems lack a unified namespace, scalability, and high availability, leading to inefficiencies in cross-federation traffic and limited scalability across data centers.
Innovation Solution
A federation architecture that creates a single uniform namespace across multiple object store instances, allowing clients to access buckets and objects with a single hop, and ensures high availability through a distributed consensus protocol backed by a global metadata service.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a unified namespace is implemented across multiple object store instances, then accessibility and ease of operation are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A global metadata service is introduced as an intermediary component that manages the unified namespace across multiple object store instances. This service maintains mapping information between global namespace identifiers and local object store identifiers, allowing clients to access objects across federated stores through a single namespace without directly managing the complexity of multiple distributed systems. The intermediary absorbs the complexity of cross-federation routing and resolution.
2Adaptability or versatility
If object storage systems are federated across multiple data centers, then scalability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The object storage system is segmented into independent object store instances that can be distributed across multiple data centers, each maintaining its own local metadata. The global metadata service segments the namespace management function from the actual data storage, allowing the system to scale by adding new object store instances without requiring centralized management of all metadata. This segmentation enables independent scaling of storage capacity and metadata management.
3Loss of energy
If cross-federation traffic is reduced through unified namespace, then loss of energy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The global metadata service performs preliminary resolution of global namespace identifiers to local object store identifiers before data access operations. By pre-establishing and caching these mappings, the system avoids unnecessary cross-federation traffic during data access, as clients can directly access local object stores once the global namespace is resolved. This preliminary action reduces redundant network communication across federation boundaries.
Data Source
AI summary
In some aspects, an apparatus includes a processor and a memory. The memory can include programmed instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the apparatus to receive a request to create a bucket. The memory can also include programmed instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the apparatus to, in response to receiving the request to create the bucket, write, to a first object store, a first mapping that maps an identifier of global metadata to an identifier of a second object store where the bucket is to be created, write, to the second object store, a second mapping that maps the identifier of global metadata to local metadata, and replicate, to the second object store, the first mapping.