Storage Control Device Detecting Potential Faults
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing storage control technologies find it difficult to detect storage devices in a potential fault state where response timeouts or medium errors have not occurred but the operation is slowing down, as they rely on statistical point addition processing that only detects severe errors like response timeouts and media errors, making it hard to distinguish between busy state degradation and potential fault state degradation.
Innovation Solution
A storage control device that acquires performance information on load status and response time from storage devices, detects devices with a load below a certain threshold and response time above another threshold, allowing for early detection of potential faults even without response timeouts or media errors, and executes redundant copy on such devices to prevent performance degradation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If statistical point addition processing is used to detect storage device faults, then severe errors like response timeouts and media errors can be detected, but potential fault states with slowing down operations cannot be detected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the detection parameters from binary error states (response timeout, medium error) to continuous performance metrics (response time, load status). By monitoring response time as a continuous parameter and comparing it against threshold values, the system can detect potential fault states before severe errors occur, resolving the contradiction between reliability and measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary detection of potential faults by monitoring response time and load status before actual failures occur. The system performs redundant copy operations in advance on storage devices showing signs of slowing down, preventing severe errors from happening in the first place.
2Measurement precision
If response time threshold is set low to detect potential faults early, then early detection is achieved, but false detection of busy state degradation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the detection criteria into multiple independent parameters: response time, load status, and their relationship. By requiring both conditions to be met (low load status AND high response time), the system avoids false positives while maintaining early detection capability for actual faults.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses feedback from monitoring load status to validate response time measurements. The system continuously monitors both parameters and only triggers redundant copy when the feedback from load status confirms that high response time is not due to busy state, thereby reducing false positives.
3Reliability
If redundant copy is executed frequently to prevent performance degradation, then data integrity is improved, but system overhead and processing time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs redundant copy operations in advance on storage devices showing potential faults, preventing data loss before it occurs. This preliminary action ensures data integrity while minimizing the need for reactive recovery operations that would take longer to execute.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage control device monitors its own storage devices and automatically executes redundant copy operations without external intervention. The system serves itself by detecting potential faults and initiating recovery processes autonomously, reducing the need for manual intervention and minimizing overall processing time.
Data Source
AI summary
A storage control device includes circuitry configured to acquire status information indicating a load status and a response status of each of one or more storage devices from the one or more storage devices which are accessed in response to a request transmitted from a host device, detect a first storage device having a load no more than a first threshold value and a response time no less than a second threshold value from the one or more storage devices on the basis of the acquired status information, and execute redundant copy of the detected first storage device.