Storage Management System for Physical Virtual Block Consolidation
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-availability storage systems face inefficiencies due to partially filled Physical Large Blocks (PLBs) in storage systems, making it difficult to consolidate and optimize storage space effectively.
Innovation Solution
A method to track the utilization of PLBs and Virtual Large Blocks (VLBs) within a storage platform, allowing for the consolidation of lower-utilized PLBs into higher-utilized ones based on VLB utilization information, through reassociation of VLBs, thereby optimizing storage space usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If VLBs are utilized to virtualize storage space within PLBs, then storage flexibility is improved, but consolidation of partially utilized PLBs becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments storage management into two distinct layers: PLB-level management for physical consolidation and VLB-level management for virtualization. This segmentation allows PLBs to be consolidated based on physical utilization while VLBs maintain their virtual mapping relationships, resolving the conflict between flexibility and consolidation difficulty
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a storage management system that acts as an intermediary between the physical PLB layer and the virtual VLB layer. This intermediary tracks utilization at both levels and coordinates reassociation operations, enabling consolidation of partially utilized PLBs while maintaining VLB virtualization through controlled remapping
2Productivity
If PLBs are consolidated to improve storage efficiency, then space utilization is improved, but data access complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
By separating PLB consolidation operations from VLB access operations, the system can consolidate PLBs at the physical level while maintaining simple VLB-to-PLB mapping at the virtual level. The segmentation allows efficiency improvement through consolidation without proportionally increasing access complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The storage management system implements feedback mechanisms that track VLB utilization information and use it to guide PLB consolidation decisions. This feedback ensures that consolidation operations maintain or improve overall storage efficiency while the system manages the complexity of reassociating VLBs to new PLBs
Data Source
AI summary
A method, computer program product, and computing system for tracking the utilization of a plurality of PLBs within a storage platform to generate PLB utilization information, wherein each PLB is associated with one or more VLBs; and tracking the utilization of the one or more VLBs associated with each of the plurality of PLBs within the storage platform to generate VLB utilization information.