Virtual Hard Disk Block-Level Management in Cloud Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing systems for managing virtual hard disks in cloud computing/storage environments are inefficient and costly due to the need for frequent downloading and uploading of snapshots, which involves extensive data transfer and processing.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilize cloud object identifiers to manage virtual hard disks by storing data blocks as separate cloud objects, allowing for the creation of updated cloud allocation tables that only include changed data blocks, which are then merged and uploaded, eliminating the need for extensive data transfer.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If virtual hard disks are stored as complete snapshots in cloud environment, then data integrity and recovery capability are improved, but storage cost and data transfer time increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the virtual hard disk into multiple data blocks and stores them as separate cloud objects. Instead of managing complete snapshots, the system stores only individual data blocks that have changed, significantly reducing the amount of data that needs to be transferred and stored while maintaining the ability to reconstruct complete snapshots when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and stores only the changed data blocks from the virtual hard disk snapshots in the cloud environment. By separating the unchanged portions (which can be referenced from parent snapshots) from the changed portions (which are stored as individual cloud objects), the system reduces storage requirements and data transfer time while preserving data integrity.
2Reliability
If complete virtual hard disk snapshots are downloaded and uploaded for merging, then data consistency is maintained, but processing time and network bandwidth consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the virtual hard disk into data blocks and creates separate cloud allocation tables for each block. When merging snapshots, the system processes and merges only the changed data blocks and their corresponding allocation table entries, rather than downloading and processing entire virtual hard disk images. This segmentation enables parallel processing and significantly reduces processing time while maintaining data consistency through the allocation table merging mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs partial processing by only downloading, merging, and uploading the changed data blocks and their allocation table entries rather than complete snapshots. This partial action approach maintains data consistency for the portions that are processed while avoiding the overhead of processing unchanged data, thereby improving processing speed without sacrificing reliability.
3Device complexity
If virtual hard disks are managed as monolithic files, then system complexity is reduced, but flexibility and efficiency in managing changes decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the virtual hard disk management system into multiple data blocks, each with its own cloud allocation table. This segmentation provides flexibility in managing changes at the block level, allowing individual blocks to be modified, stored, and transferred independently. The allocation tables serve as indexes that enable efficient tracking and management of changes without requiring complex monolithic file operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a new dimension to virtual hard disk management by creating cloud allocation tables that map data blocks to cloud objects. This additional layer of abstraction enables flexible and efficient change management by allowing the system to track, store, and retrieve individual data blocks independently, transforming the management approach from monolithic file operations to block-level operations with enhanced adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
A system, method, and computer-readable storage medium for managing virtual hard disks in a cloud computing/storage environment are provided. The method includes associating, using a virtual hard disk (VHD) management system of a server device, a plurality of data blocks of a virtual hard disk stored at a cloud vendor to a corresponding plurality of cloud objects. A plurality of cloud object identifiers associated with the plurality of cloud objects in a first cloud allocation table are stored. Changes to one or more data blocks are determined. Corresponding new cloud allocation tables for every data block in the plurality of data blocks that has changed are formed, the new cloud allocation tables having corresponding new cloud object identifiers. The first and the new cloud allocation tables are downloaded and merged to form an updated cloud allocation table. The updated cloud allocation table is uploaded to the cloud vendor.