Systems and methods for providing a distributed file system incorporating a virtual hot spare
US7146524B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 25, 2002 |
| Grant date | Dec 5, 2006 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 25, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F2211/104
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The intelligent distributed file system enables the storing of file data among a plurality of smart storage units which are accessed as a single file system. The intelligent distributed file system utilizes a metadata data structure to track and manage detailed information about each file, including, for example, the device and block locations of the file's data blocks, to permit different levels of replication and/or redundancy within a single file system, to facilitate the change of redundancy parameters, to provide high-level protection for metadata, to replicate and move data in real-time, and to permit the creation of virtual hot spares among the smart storage units without the need to idle any single smart storage unit in the intelligent distributed file system.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.