Synthetic Full Backup via Block-Level Snapshot Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional database backup methods are inefficient and resource-intensive, particularly for very large production databases, as they require significant time and resources, leading to performance slowdowns and increased risk of backup failures.
Innovation Solution
The use of snapshot technologies for block-level analysis to create synthetic full backups, where only changed data blocks are moved to secondary storage, reducing network resource usage and enabling efficient restoration without native DBMS utilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional full database backups are performed by the DBMS, then the database is protected, but the backup process takes a relatively long time and causes performance slowdowns
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the database backup process into block-level operations, dividing the database into individual data blocks that can be independently tracked and backed up. This segmentation enables the system to identify and backup only changed blocks rather than the entire database, significantly reducing backup time while maintaining complete database protection
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by creating snapshots of the database at specific points in time before changes occur. These snapshots serve as baseline full backups, and subsequent incremental backups only capture changes since the snapshot, eliminating the need for time-consuming full database scans during regular backup operations
2Reliability
If traditional storage management systems perform backups, then backups are created, but the entire database storage volume is treated as an undivided whole, generating very large amounts of data to be moved across the network
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the database storage volume into discrete block-level units that can be individually identified, tracked, and managed. This block-level segmentation allows the storage management system to recognize which specific blocks have changed since the last backup, enabling selective backup of only those changed blocks rather than moving the entire database volume across the network
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by treating different data blocks with different backup priorities and methods based on their change status. Changed blocks are identified and backed up with higher priority, while unchanged blocks are referenced from previous backups, optimizing network bandwidth usage by transmitting only the necessary data portions
3Productivity
If database transaction logs are saved as incremental backups, then incremental protection is achieved, but the transaction logs are impenetrable to the storage management system and must be transported as unified wholes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the change tracking functionality from the transaction logs and implements it at the block level within the storage management system. By extracting this capability, the system can identify changed data blocks directly from the database structure without needing to parse or transport the entire transaction log, reducing transport complexity while maintaining incremental backup efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces block-level metadata as an intermediary between the transaction logs and the storage management system. This metadata layer provides change information in a format that the storage management system can easily process, eliminating the need to transport impenetrable transaction logs as unified wholes while preserving incremental backup capabilities
4Reliability
If full database backups are performed, then complete protection is achieved, but significant CPU, disk, and network resources are consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the backup operation into block-level units with change detection capabilities. This segmentation allows the system to identify and backup only the subset of blocks that have actually changed, dramatically reducing CPU processing requirements, disk I/O operations, and network bandwidth consumption compared to backing up the entire database, while still achieving complete protection of all modified data
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by performing backup operations only on changed data blocks rather than the entire database. This partial backup approach consumes significantly fewer resources in terms of CPU cycles, disk access, and network transmission, while the use of snapshots and incremental tracking ensures that complete protection is maintained for all data that requires backup
Data Source
AI summary
The illustrative storage management system uses snapshot technologies and performs block-level analysis thereof and to synthesize full backups of a database, regardless of the database management system (DBMS) and content of the database and without involving native DBMS utilities. Synthetic full copies are created efficiently and use network transport resources sparingly. Successive snapshots of the database may be hardware snapshots and/or software snapshots. The illustrative storage management system tracks which data blocks in the database change over time after a baseline full copy is saved to secondary storage. Only the changed blocks are subsequently moved to secondary storage as incremental backups and are indexed for future reference. A synthetic full backup of the database, at a given point in time, may be created by synthesizing the original full backup with changed blocks from any number of later incremental backups. The synthetic full backup comprises pointers to appropriate data blocks, ignoring intermediate changes, and pointing to the most current data block in secondary storage relative to the given point in time chosen for the synthetic full backup. The illustrative storage management system may restore the synthetic full backup without native DBMS utilities.