Thin-Provisioned Backup via Allocation Map Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional backup systems fail to efficiently utilize thin-provisioning solutions, leading to unnecessary impact on input/output performance by reading all data from thin-provisioned volumes regardless of allocated storage space, resulting in wasted resources and performance issues.
Innovation Solution
Systems and methods that identify allocated storage space in thin-provisioned environments, invoking read operations only for those portions of the volume that have been allocated, and creating backups by obtaining and storing information from the thin-provisioned storage system, thereby conserving I/O bandwidth and improving performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional backup systems read all data from thin-provisioned volumes, then complete backup coverage is achieved, but I/O performance deteriorates due to unnecessary reading of unallocated space
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the allocated portions of data from the thin-provisioned volume for backup operations. By using allocation maps to identify which portions of the volume have actual data, the system reads only those specific portions rather than the entire volume, thereby maintaining backup coverage for actual data while eliminating unnecessary I/O operations on unallocated space.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by performing backup operations only on the portion of the volume that contains allocated data, rather than the entire volume. The allocation map enables the backup system to determine the exact boundaries of allocated portions and execute read operations only within those boundaries, reducing I/O workload while ensuring all actual data is backed up.
2Productivity
If thin-provisioning allocates storage space on an as-needed basis, then storage efficiency is improved, but backup system compatibility deteriorates due to lack of awareness of allocated portions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an allocation map as an intermediary data structure that bridges the thin-provisioning storage system and the backup system. This allocation map contains metadata about which portions of the volume have allocated storage space, allowing the backup system to understand and work with thin-provisioned volumes without requiring deep integration with the thin-provisioning mechanism itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary action by obtaining the allocation map from the thin-provisioned storage system before executing backup operations. This pre-acquired information about allocated portions enables the backup system to plan and execute efficient read operations, adapting to thin-provisioning environments without requiring real-time communication during the backup process.
Data Source
AI summary
An exemplary method for efficiently backing up data in thin-provisioned environments may include: 1) identifying a volume to be backed up, 2) identifying a thin-provisioned storage system that contains storage space allocated to the volume, 3) obtaining information from the thin-provisioned storage system that identifies portions of the volume for which storage space has been allocated on the thin-provisioned storage system, and then 4) creating a backup of the volume by invoking read operations only for those portions of the volume for which storage space has been allocated on the thin-provisioned storage system. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.