Pre-provisioned Logical Volumes for Automatic Server Deployment
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Solution Overview
Problem
The current process of deploying servers and provisioning storage resources requires frequent multi-phase communication between storage and server administrators, leading to inefficiencies and delays, which hinder the ability of server administrators to react to changing business needs in a data center.
Innovation Solution
The system allows for pre-provisioning of logical volumes with World Wide Names (WWNs) that can be used to authorize servers to access appropriate storage resources, enabling both administrators to perform their tasks independently without crossing domains, and allows for flexible and efficient provisioning and re-provisioning of servers and logical volumes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multi-phase communication between storage and server administrators is used to ensure security and domain expertise, then security and expertise preservation are improved, but deployment time and administrative efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-provisioning logical volumes with World Wide Names (WWNs) before server deployment. Storage administrators prepare and configure logical volumes in advance with proper security credentials and access rights. This allows server administrators to later assign these pre-configured volumes to servers without requiring storage administrator intervention, thereby maintaining security while dramatically reducing deployment time.
2Reliability
If domain separation between storage and server administrators is maintained to preserve expertise and security, then domain expertise and security are improved, but operational complexity and communication overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces World Wide Names (WWNs) as an intermediary mechanism that bridges the storage and server domains. WWNs serve as universal identifiers that allow pre-provisioned logical volumes to be assigned to servers without direct administrator interaction. This intermediary enables domain separation to be maintained while eliminating the need for complex multi-phase communication protocols between administrators.
3Manufacturing precision
If traditional server deployment processes are used to ensure proper storage provisioning, then storage configuration accuracy is improved, but provisioning speed and business responsiveness deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having storage administrators pre-configure logical volumes with correct specifications (capacity, performance characteristics, access rights) before servers are deployed. These pre-provisioned volumes are stored in a pool ready for assignment. When servers need storage, they can be quickly assigned from this pre-configured pool without requiring reconfiguration, thus maintaining accuracy while dramatically improving provisioning speed.
Data Source
AI summary
According to one embodiment, a server is automatically deployed using a pre-provisioned logical volume LV. A first world wide name WWN1 is associated 320 with a logical volume LV1 associated with a disk array controller 260. A second world wide name WWN1, which is assigned to a server S1, is received 335 at the disk array controller 260. If 340 the first world wide name WWN1 is the same as the second world wide name WWN1, the server S1 is enabled 350 to access the logical volume LV1. The first and second world wide names are not required to be assigned to any server S1, S2 at the time that the first world wide name is associated with the logical volume.