Storage Area Management for Data Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current data protection methods in computer systems require significant storage capacity and can compromise service performance, especially when replication and mirroring functions are activated, and deactivating these functions may compromise system availability and incur high costs.
Innovation Solution
A computer system with a control unit that manages storage area arrangements and data control policies to optimize storage capacity usage while maintaining system availability, using a combination of data protection functions like Erasure Coding and deduplication, without changing middleware settings.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If replication function and mirroring function are activated to duplicate data for data protection, then system availability is improved, but storage capacity consumption increases significantly (four times as large as original data)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the data protection parameter from traditional replication/mirroring (requiring 4x storage capacity) to erasure coding with optimized redundancy ratios. By adjusting the erasure coding parameters (k,m values), the system achieves data protection with reduced storage overhead compared to full replication, directly addressing the storage capacity consumption issue while maintaining availability.
2Quantity of substance
If erasure coding function is activated alone to reduce storage capacity consumption, then storage efficiency is improved, but system availability against middleware failure cannot be guaranteed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges two data protection mechanisms: erasure coding at the storage layer and replication at the middleware layer. This combination allows the system to leverage the storage efficiency of erasure coding while simultaneously maintaining the availability guarantees of middleware replication, thus resolving the contradiction between storage efficiency and reliability against middleware failure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments data protection functions into two independent layers: storage layer (erasure coding) and middleware layer (replication). This segmentation allows each layer to optimize for its specific function - storage efficiency at the storage layer and availability guarantee at the middleware layer - without interfering with each other, thereby achieving both goals simultaneously.
3Quantity of substance
If data protection function of middleware is deactivated to reduce storage capacity consumption, then storage efficiency is improved, but cost of setting change increases hugely and availability guarantee is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables the storage system to self-provide data protection capabilities through erasure coding, reducing dependence on middleware data protection functions. This self-service approach allows the storage system to independently guarantee data availability through erasure coding, eliminating the need for costly middleware configuration changes while maintaining protection against storage failures.
4Reliability
If replication function and mirroring function are activated to duplicate data, then data protection capability is improved, but service performance and quality are compromised due to processing load
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the data protection mechanism from intensive replication/mirroring to more efficient erasure coding. By optimizing erasure coding parameters and using hardware acceleration, the system reduces the processing load associated with data protection while maintaining strong protection capabilities, thus improving service performance without sacrificing reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer system includes: a storage device; storage area management units that provide a storage area, based on the storage device to a data management unit having a data protection function for achieving availability of a system providing a service, and have a data control function for the storage area; and a control unit that manages arrangement of the storage area and a data control policy applied to the storage area. The control unit acquires setting information about the availability of the system providing the service and performance of the service and determines the data control policy applied to the storage area, based on the setting information. The storage area management units control the storage area, based on the data control policy.