Distributed Read Forwarding for Error-Coded Storage Slices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing data storage systems face issues with memory device failures, particularly in commercial-grade devices using physical movement, leading to data loss and security concerns, and redundant array of independent discs (RAID) solutions increase maintenance and efficiency overheads.
Innovation Solution
A distributed storage network (DSN) system that utilizes error-coded data slices stored across geographically diverse units, ensuring data integrity and security through forward error correction and redundancy, managed by a DS managing unit and processed by a DS processing unit.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If RAID solutions are used to protect against memory device failures, then data reliability is improved, but maintenance overhead and system complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments data into multiple data slices and disperses them across different storage units in a distributed network. This eliminates the need for traditional RAID arrays by distributing data redundancy across geographically diverse storage nodes, reducing maintenance overhead while maintaining reliability through error correction codes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces error correction codes as an intermediary mechanism that enables reliable data reconstruction from dispersed slices without requiring exact replica copies. This mediator layer allows the system to achieve RAID-like reliability with simplified architecture and reduced maintenance complexity.
2Reliability
If data is replicated across multiple storage units, then data security and reliability are improved, but storage efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of data representation by applying error correction coding transformations. Instead of storing exact replica copies of data, the system stores encoded slices where the encoding parameters enable reliable reconstruction with fewer redundant bytes, improving storage efficiency while maintaining security.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates virtual copies of data in the form of encoded slices distributed across multiple units, rather than physical replica copies. These encoded slices consume less storage space than traditional replication while providing equivalent or superior reliability through the mathematical properties of error correction codes.
3Reliability
If geographically diverse storage units are used, then system reliability is improved, but communication latency increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by pre-distributing data slices to geographically diverse storage units and pre-establishing error correction relationships. When data retrieval is needed, the system can quickly reconstruct data from available slices without requiring coordination across all storage units, reducing communication latency while maintaining the reliability benefits of geographic diversity.
Data Source
AI summary
A storage unit of a directory-less storage network is operable to receive a read request regarding a data segment of a data object, wherein the data segment was error encoded into a set of encoded data slices. A read response regarding an encoded data slice of the set of encoded data slices that is stored by the storage unit is outputted. Another storage unit of the directory-less storage network to which the read request is to be forwarded is identified, and the read request is forwarded to the other storage unit.