Storage System I/O Thread Segmentation for Cloud Response Delays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional storage systems experience degradation in I/O performance due to time-outs in I/O responses from cloud storage, leading to a standby state where other I/O requests cannot be accepted.
Innovation Solution
A storage system with a processor that manages I/O processing threads and response standby processing threads, where the processor transmits I/O requests to cloud storage, performs standby processing, and transfers resources to response standby threads to handle delayed responses, ensuring continued I/O processing without new requests until the response is received.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the host reissues I/O requests to deter time-out, then the time-out of I/O response is prevented, but the I/O performance degrades because other I/O requests cannot be accepted and the system enters standby state
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the I/O processing into multiple independent threads: I/O processing threads that handle new I/O requests and response standby processing threads that handle delayed I/O responses. This segmentation allows the system to prevent time-outs for specific I/O requests without blocking other I/O requests, thereby maintaining overall I/O performance while ensuring reliability for individual operations.
2Reliability
If the system waits for I/O response from cloud storage, then the correct I/O response is received, but the system enters standby state and cannot accept new I/O requests
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables continuous I/O processing by creating response standby processing threads that take over when I/O responses are delayed. While one thread waits for the delayed response, other I/O processing threads continue to accept and process new I/O requests without interruption. This ensures both reliable receipt of the original I/O response and continuous system productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent prepares response standby processing threads in advance that can immediately take over when an I/O response is delayed. These pre-positioned threads have the necessary I/O resources (buffers, information) already allocated and ready, allowing them to immediately continue waiting for the response without requiring the original thread to be blocked, thus preventing system-wide standby states.
Data Source
AI summary
Regarding cloud storage, a time-out of an I/O response to an I/O request from a host is deterred. A storage node 1 executes an I/O processing thread 101 for retaining an I/O resource to be used for processing relating to an I/O request and an I/O response to the I/O request, and a response standby processing thread. The I/O processing thread: transmits an I/O request to cloud storage in response to a request from a host; and moves the I/O resource to the response standby processing thread if not having received the I/O response from the cloud storage before an elapse of first time-out time. The response standby processing thread transmits a response confirmation to demand the I/O response from the cloud storage by using the I/O resource moved from the I/O processing thread and performs standby processing on the I/O response in place of the I/O processing thread.