Snapshot Lineage Configuration Data for Cloud Storage Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current information processing systems face challenges in efficiently managing and accessing snapshot lineages across both local and cloud storage, particularly in ensuring seamless data recovery and tiering across multiple storage arrays and platforms.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a snapshot and file tiering management service that generates configuration data to enable remote access to snapshot lineages copied to cloud storage, allowing for the selection and transfer of snapshot lineages between local and cloud storage, and provides APIs for snapshot management, archiving, and recovery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If snapshot lineages are copied to cloud storage for disaster recovery and cost reduction, then data accessibility and recovery capabilities are improved, but access complexity and configuration management become more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates configuration data that acts as a copy or representation of the cloud snapshot lineage access information. This configuration data can be transferred to additional processing devices, enabling them to access cloud snapshots without requiring direct complex cloud connectivity or deep understanding of cloud storage mechanisms. The configuration data serves as a portable access key that simplifies the copying and sharing of access rights.
Solution Approach 2:
The configuration data acts as an intermediary between the cloud storage system and additional processing devices. Instead of additional devices directly interfacing with complex cloud storage systems, they use the configuration data as a mediator that encapsulates all necessary access information, credentials, and metadata in a simplified format that can be easily transferred and utilized.
2Productivity
If snapshot lineages are distributed across multiple storage arrays and cloud platforms, then data availability and tiering efficiency are improved, but system complexity and management difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The configuration data structure is designed to be universal and platform-agnostic, capable of representing snapshot lineage information from different storage arrays and cloud platforms in a unified format. This allows the system to manage distributed snapshots across multiple storage environments without requiring device-specific management procedures, thereby improving data tiering efficiency while reducing management complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the complex task of managing distributed snapshot lineages into manageable components by creating configuration data that can be independently transferred, stored, and utilized by different processing devices. This segmentation allows each device to handle its own configuration data without requiring centralized coordination, simplifying the overall system management.
3Quantity of substance
If cloud storage is used for snapshot archiving, then storage costs are reduced and capacity is increased, but access speed and latency may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-configuring and pre-transferring configuration data to additional processing devices before actual data access is needed. This allows devices to have all necessary access information ready in advance, enabling faster data retrieval from cloud storage when needed, as no configuration setup or authentication negotiation is required at the moment of data access.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus comprises at least one processing device configured to select a snapshot lineage comprising one or more snapshots of a storage volume comprising data stored on one or more storage devices of a storage system, the snapshot lineage comprising at least one cloud snapshot lineage, the at least one cloud snapshot lineage comprising at least a subset of the one or more snapshots of the storage volume that have been copied to cloud storage of at least one cloud external to the storage system. The at least one processing device is also configured to generate configuration data for accessing the at least one cloud snapshot lineage. The at least one processing device is further configured to transfer the configuration data to at least one additional processing device to enable the at least one additional processing device to access the at least one cloud snapshot lineage.