Storage Software Updates Based on Class File Usage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Storage management software updates can be disruptive due to the wide variety of storage system configurations, as they often require halting the software and rebooting, and may include updating unused features, leading to unnecessary disruptions.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus for creating customized updates by identifying which features are used by individual instances of storage management software and excluding non-matching features from the updates, thereby reducing disruptions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If general updates are applied to all storage management software instances, then all features are updated uniformly, but unnecessary features are updated causing disruptions to systems that do not use those features
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the update process by creating customized updates for each storage management server instance based on its specific feature usage patterns. Instead of applying a single general update to all instances, the system divides updates into instance-specific packages that contain only the features actually used by each server, thereby eliminating unnecessary disruptions while maintaining update reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by tailoring the update content to match the specific characteristics of each storage management server instance. By monitoring and analyzing which features each instance actually uses, the system creates locally-optimized updates that contain only the relevant features for that specific instance, avoiding the application of unnecessary updates that would cause disruptions.
2Reliability
If all features are updated in every update package, then comprehensive updates are provided, but update package size and installation time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary features from the complete update package and creates customized updates containing solely those features that are actually used by each storage management server instance. This extraction process removes unnecessary features, significantly reducing update package size and installation time while maintaining feature completeness for the specific instance's needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by providing updates that contain only the subset of features needed by each specific instance rather than the complete set of all possible features. This partial update approach reduces installation time and resources while ensuring that all necessary features are updated, avoiding the excess of including unused features in the update package.
3Adaptability or versatility
If storage management software is updated frequently, then software remains current with latest features, but disruptions occur more often
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the update frequency impact by creating customized updates that are tailored to each instance's actual feature usage. This segmentation allows for more frequent updates without increasing disruptions, because each instance receives only the relevant updates it needs, minimizing the operational impact while keeping the software current with latest features.
Data Source
AI summary
Customized updates are generated for instances of storage management software running on storage management servers in different storage systems. The filenames of class files used by each instance of the storage management software are stored in respective databases associated with those storage management software instances. Thread dumps are created and searched for class files of the storage management software to create a baseline. The baseline is updated by comparing class files used in response to UI actions and REST API calls and storing names of class files that are not already in the database. To update an instance of the storage management software, the class files of a general update are compared with the filenames in the database associated with the instance and non-matching files are omitted from the customized update foe that instance.