Patent · US Expired

Backup by ID-suppressed instant virtual copy then physical backup copy with ID reintroduced

US6557089B1 · kind B1 · utility

237Cited by
11References
18Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateNov 28, 2000
Grant dateApr 29, 2003
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 16, 2021

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10S707/99955
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A backup copy of a source data volume is created by first performing an instant virtual copy with source volume identifier (ID) suspended, then creating a physical tape backup copy from the instant virtual copy with the source volume ID being reintroduced. This creates an exact duplicate of the source volume with minimal impact on access to the source volume. Moreover, the resultant backup copy is less costly and error prone because it is created by a machine-automated process rather than various commands issued by a system administrator. In addition, by differentiating the volume IDs during intermediate copy steps, the invention is more fault tolerant since failure of the storage subsystem will not result in source and a temporary copy having confusingly indistinguishable volume IDs.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.