Computer Model for Storage Environment Simulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complexity of storage environments due to numerous hardware and software components makes it difficult for architects to predict and manage storage workloads, lacking guidance for design and management.
Innovation Solution
A computer model simulates storage environments at various times by recording and projecting states using configuration and performance tables, applying simulated workloads to identify impacts, and employing extrapolation techniques to predict future behavior.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a storage environment includes numerous hardware and software components with various interconnections, then the storage environment can provide comprehensive storage functionality, but the management and design become particularly complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a virtual copy of the storage environment through a computer model that replicates the complex hardware and software components, interconnections, and operational states. This virtual model allows architects to simulate, analyze, and predict storage environment behavior without working directly with the actual complex system, thereby reducing management and design complexity while maintaining comprehensive storage functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The computer model serves as an intermediary between the actual storage environment and the architects. It translates complex real-world storage configurations into a manageable virtual representation, enabling analysis and prediction without direct engagement with the complexity of the original system. The model mediates between the need for comprehensive functionality and the need for manageable design processes.
2Productivity
If workloads are added to server systems in a storage environment, then the storage capacity and functionality are enhanced, but the storage workloads become particularly difficult to predict
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by using the computer model to simulate and predict storage workloads before they actually occur. Architects can load test the virtual model with projected workloads to anticipate performance characteristics, identify potential issues, and plan capacity needs in advance, rather than reacting to actual workload patterns after they manifest.
Solution Approach 2:
The computer model incorporates feedback mechanisms that allow it to learn from actual storage environment performance data and adjust its predictions accordingly. By continuously comparing simulated workload outcomes with actual measurements, the model refines its prediction accuracy, enabling more precise forecasting of storage workload behavior as capacity is expanded.
Data Source
AI summary
Example embodiments provide various techniques for modeling a storage environment at various times. A computer model can be composed to simulate a storage environment at various time periods. In an example, the computer model may simulate the storage environment in the past. As the storage environment is running, it continuously stores its existing state. This existing state can be accessed and a simulated workload may be applied to this previous state to identify an impact of the simulated workload on the existing state. A computer model may also simulate the storage environment in the future. Here, the future state of the storage environment may be projected from the existing state. Various extrapolation techniques may be used to project the future state of the storage environment.