Policy-Based Journaling for Continuous Data Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional continuous data protection (CDP) systems consume large amounts of storage and network bandwidth due to journaling every block of every file modified, making them inefficient for managing and recovering data.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a policy-based approach that selectively journals write requests based on characteristics such as file type, content, and metadata, allowing for flexible journaling frequency and medium selection to optimize storage and bandwidth usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If every block of every modified file is journaled in CDP-based backup systems, then complete data recovery capability is achieved, but storage consumption and network bandwidth usage increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating journaling treatment based on file characteristics. Different files or portions of files receive different journaling frequencies or levels based on their importance, size, or type. This allows critical files to be fully journaled while less critical files use reduced journaling, thereby maintaining data recovery capability for important data while reducing overall storage consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements partial action by selectively applying journaling only to certain files or file portions rather than all files uniformly. The system determines which files require full journaling based on policies that consider file importance, size, and recovery requirements. This partial journaling approach maintains adequate data recovery capability while significantly reducing the quantity of data that must be stored and transmitted.
2Reliability
If every block of every modified file is journaled in CDP-based backup systems, then complete data recovery capability is achieved, but network bandwidth consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating journaling treatment based on file characteristics. Different files or portions of files receive different journaling frequencies or levels based on their importance, size, or type. This allows critical files to be fully journaled while less critical files use reduced journaling, thereby maintaining data recovery capability for important data while reducing overall network bandwidth consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements partial action by selectively applying journaling only to certain files or file portions rather than all files uniformly. The system determines which files require full journaling based on policies that consider file importance, size, and recovery requirements. This partial journaling approach maintains adequate data recovery capability while significantly reducing the quantity of data that must be transmitted over the network.
3Quantity of substance
If selective journaling based on file characteristics is implemented, then storage and bandwidth efficiency is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by establishing journaling policies in advance based on file characteristics such as importance, size, and type. The system pre-determines which files require full journaling and which can use reduced journaling before actual backup operations begin. This preliminary classification simplifies the ongoing backup process by eliminating the need for complex real-time decisions during data protection operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the backup system to automatically classify and prioritize files based on their inherent characteristics without requiring manual intervention. The system autonomously determines journaling requirements for each file based on predefined criteria, thereby managing its own resource allocation and reducing the complexity of manual policy configuration and management.
Data Source
AI summary
Policy-based performance of continuous data protection on protected data. A write request targeted to a portion of the protected data is detected. In addition, a journaling policy data structure(s) is accessed. The journaling policy data structure represents policy for how frequently to journal write request to a backup medium and/or what backup medium to journal write requests to depending on one or more characteristics of write request targets. The journaling policy data structure is then used to determine whether the write request should be presently journaled and/or to identify the backup medium that the write request should be journaled to based on the one or more characteristics of the portion of the protected data targeted by the write request. The journaling policy may, but need not, be selected so as to preserve storage and/or network bandwidth associated with the journaling process.