Virtualized File Server Metadata Fixing for Disaster Recovery

The patent segments the virtualization architecture into distinct components: File Server Virtual Machines (FSVMs) that manage file operations, Controller/Service Virtual Machines (CVMs) that manage storage access, and physical storage devices. This segmentation allows each component to specialize in specific functions, improving both resource utilization and access reliability by reducing interference between different virtual machines while maintaining efficient resource sharing.

The patent introduces CVMs as intermediary components between FSVMs and physical storage devices. These CVMs manage the complexity of distributed data access by providing a standardized interface for storage operations across multiple host machines. The CVMs handle data distribution, replication, and failover logic, thereby improving availability while abstracting the underlying system complexity from upper-layer applications.

The patent enables local storage access by allowing virtual machines to access storage resources on their local host machines rather than requiring all access to go through centralized network storage. This local quality approach improves storage access speed by eliminating network latency for local operations while the virtualization layer maintains centralized resource management policies to handle the complexity of coordinating both local and remote storage access across the distributed system.