Abstract: A filer converts a traditional volume to a flexible volume by: creating an aggregate on storage devices other than the storage devices of the traditional volume; on the aggregate, creating a flexible volume large enough to store metadata describing files residing on the traditional volume; on the flexible volume, creating metadata structures that describe the files of the traditional volume, except that the metadata indicates that data blocks and indirect blocks are absent and must be fetched from another location. As the filer handles I/O requests directed to the flexible volume, the filer calculates physical volume block number (PVBN) addresses where the requested blocks would be located in the aggregate and replaces the absent pointers with the calculated addresses. After the absent pointers have been replaced, the filer adds the storage devices of the traditional volume.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus to filter autosupport data are presented. In one embodiment, the method includes filtering autosupport data from a storage appliance using criteria provided by a user, with relational integrity of the autosupport data protected. The method may further include exporting the filtered autosupport data to a public network to be uploaded to a portal server over the public network.

Abstract: In an RBAC system, a capability is defined as including an operation and an object on which the operation is to be performed. The capability is assigned to a role, which is in turn assigned to a user. Whether a user's request to perform an operation on an object should be authorized is determined based on whether a capability to perform the operation on the object is assigned to a role which is in turn assigned to the user. Further, the authorization is determined based on the evaluation of the constraint(s) attached to the role. If the evaluation result of the constraint(s) disallows the user to assume the role, the user is prohibited from performing the operation on the object even the user has such capability.

Abstract: The battery apparatus introduced here provides a tool for reliably measuring the run time to empty of a battery used in a network storage server for protection of data during a failure mode. The battery run time to empty can be determined by a management controller based on battery information generated by a controller and received at the management controller. The information received at the management controller includes run time to empty, voltage, current and current battery capacity.

Abstract: Environmental sensors are distributed in a computer system to sense environmental conditions, and the sensors are polled at polling intervals which are adjusted in response to changing environmental conditions, thus allowing deteriorating or improving conditions to be recognized and monitored more or less closely as desired.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for managing of common storage in a storage system is disclosed. In one embodiment, a storage system receives a request to set a space reservation for a volume associated with a logical aggregation of physical storage. In response, the storage system sets the space reservation to indicate that the logical aggregation of physical storage is to provide a specified amount of space to the volume. In one embodiment, space within the logical aggregation of physical storage is automatically reclaimed to set a delayed space reservation if the amount of unused space within the logical aggregation of physical storage is insufficient to set the space reservation. In one embodiment, the volume is either a space-reclaimable volume or a non-space-reclaimable volume. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: A method of operating a storage system includes moving a block of data stored in the storage system to a new location in the storage system, such as for purposes of defragmentation. After the block has been moved to the new location, the storage system receives a request requiring access to the block. The storage system uses metadata appended to an identified block to detect that the block may have been relocated. The metadata can further be used to distinguish a block that has been relocated from a lost write.

Abstract: A technique for partially offloading, from a main cache in a storage server, the storage of cache tags for data blocks in a victim cache of the storage server, is described. The technique includes storing, in the main cache, a first subset of the cache tag information for each of the data blocks, and storing, in a victim cache of the storage server, a second subset of the cache tag information for each of the data blocks. This technique avoids the need to store the second subset of the cache tag information in the main cache.

Abstract: The invention provides a method and system for scheduling tasks in an MP system, and provides parallel execution of those tasks while implicitly synchronizing access to resources used by that system. Tasks in the system are each assigned to a scheduling domain, thus associating those tasks with a set of resources controlled by that domain. A scheduler operating at each processor implicitly synchronizes those resources controlled by each domain, by scheduling only one task for each domain to execute concurrently in the system. Because each instance of the scheduler selects which task is next run independently of its processor, each domain can migrate from one processor to another; thus, each domain can have a task executing on any processor, so long as no domain has two tasks executing concurrently in the system. Thus, domains are not bound to any particular processor. Hence the method and system are symmetric.

Abstract: A clustered storage server detects an offline condition in another storage server in the cluster and executes a cluster takeover procedure which includes taking control of the storage system associated with the offline storage server, and merging a local control-of-service policy with a control-of-service policy associated with the offline storage server.

Abstract: An automated information lifecycle management (ILM) system for network storage automatically searches a network storage system to identify data items stored therein. The network storage system includes multiple data storage facilities of different types coupled to a network. The ILM system automatically classifies each of the data items into a category of multiple data categories, and automatically optimizes each of the data items to a particular data storage facility of the multiple data storage facilities, according to the category into which the data item was classified. The ILM system may also automatically discover and detect storage devices added to the network and assign them to the proper storage class, for storing data of the corresponding category. The ILM system further may automatically determine or predict when additional storage capacity is needed for any particular class of storage and may alert a user accordingly and/or free up additional storage capacity.

Abstract: In an RBAC system, a capability is defined as including an operation and an object on which the operation is to be performed. The capability is assigned to a role, which is in turn assigned to a user. Then the user will have the authorization to perform the operation on the object. Rather than specifying the object by predetermining the identity of the object, an expression (e.g., a regular expression, a query, etc.) may be specified in place of the predetermined object. In response to a request initiated by a user, the expression is then evaluated to determine the identity of the object(s) on which the operation may be performed.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus to perform fast log replay have been disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes preloading a buffer with data based on a catalog in response to a failure of a storage server and replaying a log as the buffer is being preloaded, wherein replaying the log comprises re-executing a set of modifying operations previously logged in a local non-volatile storage device in the storage server using the data preloaded.

Abstract: A network storage server has a non-volatile mass storage facility, a main cache and a victim cache. A technique of efficient, non-blocking storage of data in the victim cache includes, responding to a caller process by, without blocking the caller process, selecting a first storage unit for eviction from the main cache, destaging the first storage unit for storage in the victim cache without copying the first storage unit, and identifying a second storage unit to the caller process as available to be overwritten in the main cache.

Abstract: A mechanism by which a server system executing a host application monitors utilization of a fractionally reserved space on a volume storing application data. The server system executes space reservation policies to ensure that the host application is not halted due to inability to create snapshots on the volume. In one implementation, the server system alerts a system administrator if the rate of change in the size of data snapshots exceeds a specified threshold and initiates deletion of backup datasets stored on the volume if the size of a data snapshot exceeds the available space on the volume.

Abstract: A method for storage of user mapping data associated with users of data stored by storage servers includes operating multiple storage servers, each configured to provide a set of clients with access to data stored in a set of mass storage devices, and using one or more directory servers, which may be coupled to the storage servers via a network. The directory server stores and provides access to user account information associated with a second operating system based on user account information associated with a first operating system, when the user account information associated with the second operating system is needed to access data stored in accordance with the second operating system.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for automatically load balancing one or more workload groups to a set of available physical resources of a data storage system, and generating a layout planning recommendation of the set of available physical resources that supports the one or more workload groups based on the load balancing.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention include a memory device, such as a removable expanded memory card, having a host bus interface that allows a host to access a memory of the device. The memory device also includes memory scrubbing circuitry to read data stored at addresses in the memory and to identify single-bit errors and multiple-bit errors in the data read from the memory.

Abstract: The following description includes a method and a system of detecting bit errors in a multi-core processor. When a subatomic particle, or other matter, impacts the processing cores of the processor, bit flips may occur. To detect these bit flips and thereby prevent erroneous results, operations performed by one core are inversely performed by another core. By comparing the results of the original operation and the inverse operation, embodiments of the invention can detect errors in binary data. If an error is detected, then the operations are performed again. Alternatively, multiple cores do not perform inverse operations, but instead perform identical operations in parallel. The results from the parallel operations are compared and if the results are not identical, then the operations are repeated.

Abstract: The present invention is a method and system for efficiently converting an alternating current (AC) supply to a direct current (DC) output. A power supply in accordance with the present invention may employ variable frequency constant on-time converters whereby switching losses of the converters are approximately proportional with a switching frequency, causing the power supply to be more efficient at light loads. Additionally, a power supply in accordance with the present invention may include multiple-phase converters in which each phase is designed for operation at a fraction of the total maximum load for the power supply.