Single Instancing Storage System for Reducing Data Redundancy
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional storage systems face inefficiencies due to the large size of secondary copies, which increases storage costs and recovery time, as they store redundant information across multiple computer systems, slowing down data restoration processes.
Innovation Solution
A system implementing single instancing, which identifies and eliminates redundant data objects by storing only unique instances and metadata for additional instances, reducing storage requirements and speeding up storage operations by using techniques such as hashing and stub files for sequential media.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional backup systems create secondary copies of all files, then data protection reliability is improved, but storage space consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple backup copies of identical files into a single stored instance. The system identifies duplicate files across multiple backup sets and stores only one copy, while maintaining references to the original location. This combining approach reduces storage space consumption while preserving data protection reliability, as the system can still restore data from the single stored instance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses metadata copying instead of full file copying. Rather than creating complete secondary copies of all files, the system creates lightweight metadata entries that reference the original file locations. This allows the system to maintain backup records with minimal storage overhead while preserving the ability to restore data when needed.
2Quantity of substance
If secondary copies are stored on sequential media, then storage cost is reduced, but data recovery speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary organization of backup data on sequential media by storing metadata and references in an optimized sequence. The system prepares the backup structure in advance by creating index files and reference tables that enable faster retrieval, even though the underlying media is sequential. This preliminary action reduces the impact of sequential access limitations during actual data recovery operations.
3Reliability
If all files are backed up individually, then data protection completeness is improved, but storage operation time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the backup process into two distinct phases: a fast metadata identification phase and a selective data transfer phase. The system first quickly scans files and generates metadata identifiers without copying actual data. Then, it processes only unique files in the second phase. This segmentation dramatically reduces storage operation time while maintaining complete data protection coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by performing complete metadata analysis on all files without performing complete data copying on all files. The system does full identification work to ensure completeness, but only executes the time-consuming data transfer operation on the subset of unique files that actually need to be stored, rather than redundantly copying all files.
4Adaptability or versatility
If redundant information is stored, then restoration flexibility is improved, but locating and restoring specific information becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces metadata as an intermediary layer between the stored backup data and the restoration process. The metadata contains organized references, file identifiers, and location information that enable the system to locate specific files efficiently without searching through all stored data. This intermediary structure maintains restoration flexibility while dramatically simplifying the process of finding and restoring specific information.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for reducing storage requirements and speeding up storage operations by reducing the storage of redundant data includes receiving a request that identifies one or more data objects to which to apply a storage operation. For each data object, the storage system determines if the data object contains data that matches another data object to which the storage operation was previously applied. If the data objects do not match, then the storage system performs the storage operation in a usual manner. However, if the data objects do match, then the storage system may avoid performing the storage operation.