Storage Controller Deduplication Tiering
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
In tiered storage systems, deduplication techniques struggle to optimize performance as they do not accurately reflect access statistics of physical chunks, leading to suboptimal relocation of data between high-speed and low-speed storage devices.
Innovation Solution
A storage controller with deduplication and tiering capabilities that manages logical and physical chunks, using access statistics to dynamically relocate data between high-speed and low-speed storage devices, ensuring accurate reflection of access patterns and optimizing performance by preventing duplication and reallocating data based on I/O counts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If deduplication is executed chunk by chunk smaller than extent, then storage capacity utilization is improved, but access statistic accuracy for relocation decision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the storage system into logical chunks (for deduplication) and physical extents (for storage allocation), with a mapping relationship between them. This allows deduplication to operate at the chunk level while relocation decisions are made at the extent level based on accurate access statistics
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a mapping table as an intermediary structure that maps logical chunk identifiers to physical extent identifiers. This mapping table enables the system to track access statistics at the extent level while maintaining deduplication at the chunk level, resolving the contradiction between storage efficiency and measurement accuracy
2Productivity
If physical extent allocation is dynamically changed based on access statistics, then performance of logical disk is improved, but complexity of storage management increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic allocation of physical extents to logical extents based on access statistics. The storage controller continuously monitors access patterns and automatically relocates data between high-speed and low-speed storage devices, optimizing performance without manual intervention
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs feedback mechanisms where access statistics are continuously collected and used to trigger relocation decisions. When access statistics indicate that a logical extent should be moved between storage tiers, the system automatically executes the relocation and updates the mapping table, creating a closed-loop control system
Data Source
AI summary
According to one embodiment, a deduplication controller in a tiered storage system excludes data duplication physical chunk by physical chunk. Based on the input/output statistics of logical chunks, a tiering controller in the system acquires the input/output statistics of physical chunks, each of which is allocated to one or more of the logical chunks. Based on the input/output statistics of the physical chunks, the tiering controller further executes at least an operation of relocating the data of a physical chunk in a first storage device to a physical chunk in a second storage device that is lower in access speed, or an operation of relocating the data of a physical chunk in the second storage device to a physical chunk in the first storage device.