Centralized Tape Management for Database Block-Level Backups
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current centralized tape management for databases is inefficient due to fragmented administration, suboptimal hardware utilization, and high administrative burdens, leading to performance overheads and increased costs in maintaining backup schedules across multiple databases.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a centralized availability machine that manages differential incremental updates at the database block level, automatically generates utilization schedules for tape libraries, and optimizes resource allocation to minimize idle time and overprovisioning, while allowing for manual overrides for specific configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If tape management software is installed separately on each database for shared tape library configuration, then each database can have its own backup schedule, but administration becomes fragmented and backup coordination between multiple databases is difficult or impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent consolidates tape management software into a single centralized instance that manages backups for multiple databases, eliminating the need for separate software installations on each database system. This unified approach allows centralized coordination of backup schedules across all databases while reducing administrative overhead through a single management interface.
2Reliability
If tape backup operations are scheduled during idle database time periods to minimize performance impacts, then production database performance is protected, but the tape library must be over-provisioned to avoid contention and complete backups within scheduled time windows
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic backup scheduling that automatically adjusts backup timing and resource allocation based on real-time database workload conditions. The centralized tape management software monitors database activity patterns and flexibly schedules backup operations to utilize idle periods without requiring over-provisioning of tape library capacity, as backups can be dynamically postponed or parallelized based on available resources.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms that monitor both database performance metrics and tape library utilization in real-time. This feedback loop enables the centralized management software to optimize backup scheduling by learning from historical patterns and adjusting schedules to achieve efficient resource utilization without compromising production database performance or requiring excessive hardware capacity.
3Ease of operation
If manual planning and management of tape backup schedules is performed for each individual database, then backup coordination can be attempted, but it requires heavy and continuous administrative burden and accurate weighing of competing backup workload demands is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The centralized tape management software automatically performs backup scheduling, coordination, and optimization without requiring manual intervention for each database. The system self-adjusts backup schedules based on database priorities, available resources, and performance requirements, eliminating the need for administrators to manually weigh competing demands while maintaining efficient backup operations across all databases.
4Adaptability or versatility
If general purpose tape management software operates at the file system level, then it can manage backups broadly, but actual changes to the database may only be captured at the file or file allocation unit level, leading to extraneous backups of unchanged data and suboptimal database restore procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the operational level of the tape management software from file system level to database block level. By operating at the block level, the software can identify and backup only the specific database blocks that have actually changed, rather than backing up entire files or file allocation units. This parameter change from file-level to block-level operations eliminates extraneous backups of unchanged data and improves restore efficiency, while maintaining compatibility through the centralized management architecture.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, apparatus, and system for centralized tape management are provided for databases. A centralized availability machine or disk and tape backup server maintains working backup data for a plurality of database management systems (DBMSs) based on receiving, from each of the plurality of DBMSs, differential incremental updates. The updates may be at the database block level, with an index maintained to identify different versions of the blocks for snapshot recovery. The availability machine then determines a utilization schedule for distributing the working backup data to a plurality of tapes using a plurality of tape drives, and stores the working backup data as archived backup data on the plurality of tapes according to the utilization schedule. By placing each DBMS within a protection policy that indicates criteria to meet business goals with respect to tape backups, the utilization schedule can automatically schedule tape backup jobs with optimized hardware resource assignments.