File aggregation in a switched file system
US8195760B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 16, 2008 |
| Grant date | Jun 5, 2012 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 23, 2028 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L69/329
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
In a switched file system, a file switching device is logically positioned between clients and file servers and communicates with the clients and the file servers using standard network file protocols. The file switching device appears as a server to the client devices and as a client to the file servers. The file switching device aggregates storage from multiple file servers into a global filesystem and presents a global namespace to the client devices. The file switching device typically supports a “native” mode for integrating legacy files into the global namespace and an “extended” mode for actively managing files across one or more file servers. Typically, native-mode files may be accessed directly or indirectly via the file switching device, while extended-mode files may be accessed only through the file switching device. The file switching device may manage file storage using various types of rules, e.g., for managing multiple storage tiers or for applying different types of encoding schemes to files. Rules may be applied to pre-existing files.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.