Abstract: System and method for performing backups of a multi-class file system are described. In one embodiment, more recently modified data may be assigned and/or migrated to higher storage classes and less recently modified data may be migrated at time intervals to lower storage classes in the multi-class file system. Backups of each of the storage classes may be performed at time intervals. In one embodiment, the backups may be image-based backups of the storage devices in the storage classes. In one embodiment, the lower storage classes may include one or more read-only storage classes including less-recently modified data that are backed up less frequently than higher storage classes including more-recently modified data. In one embodiment, files migrated to lower storage class(es) may be compressed.

Abstract: A Storage Mapping Driver (SMD) that provides a system and method for determining the application host storage locations of file data so that the file data can be later backed up directly from its storage media. The application host location of the file data is sent to the backup host either just prior to a backup or as the information is obtained. In this way the backup host is capable of backing up the files without reference to systems on the application host such as the file system manager and the volume manager. The SMD invokes the file system manager and/or the volume manager to read a file to be backed up in order to obtain a file map. If the host system does not have a file system manager and/or a volume manager, a backup file system manager is provided, which is invoked by the SMD to read a file to obtain a file map for use during a backup.

Abstract: A method may involve: an application executing on a host initiating a write to a stripe in a storage volume; in response, the host requesting permission from a coordinator to perform the write to a set of data (e.g., a stripe or other group of data from which redundant information is calculated according to a RAID protocol) in a storage volume; prior to receiving permission to write to the storage volume from the coordinator, the host initiating storage of write data associated with the write to an associated one of a plurality of logs; the host waiting before performing the write to the storage volume; and, if one or more additional writes targeting the same set of data (e.g., the same stripe) are initiated while waiting, the host combining redundant information (e.g., parity) calculations for the writes into a single redundant information calculation.

Abstract: In a system in which read data tracking and caching is used to recover from data corruption, a first request to read data from a primary data mirror is received from a computer system. Data is read from the primary data mirror in response to receiving the first request. Additionally data from a mirrored copy of the primary data mirror is read. Data read from the primary data mirror is returned to the computer system. Data read from the mirrored copy is stored into a memory device. If a second request is received from the computer system to read the same data of the first request, data stored in the memory device may be returned in response thereto.

Abstract: A method, computer program product, computer system and system that enable symmetrical data change tracking with respect to a set of data and a copy of the set of data, referred to as a snapshot or a second set of data. The data and the copy may be independently updated after the two sides are “split.” A join may be performed of the two sides of the split to resynchronize the data. For the first set of data, an accumulator map tracks changes to the first set of data and a volume map tracks changes to the first set of data with respect to a second set of data. For the second set of data (the snapshot), a second accumulator map tracks changes to the second set of data and a second volume map tracks changes to the second set of data with respect to the first set of data.

Abstract: One or more computer systems, a carrier medium, and a method are provided for backing up virtual machines. The backup may occur, e.g., to a backup medium or to a disaster recovery site, in various embodiments. In one embodiment, an apparatus includes a computer system configured to execute at least a first virtual machine, wherein the computer system is configured to: (i) capture a state of the first virtual machine, the state corresponding to a point in time in the execution of the first virtual machine; and (ii) copy at least a portion of the state to a destination separate from a storage device to which the first virtual machine is suspendable. A carrier medium may include instructions which, when executed, cause the above operation on the computer system. The method may comprise the above highlighted operations.

Abstract: In one embodiment of the method, first and second data volumes are created. Thereafter, a first data portion of the first data volume is overwritten with a first data portion of the second data volume. A second data portion of the first data volume is overwritten with a second data portion of the second data volume. In one embodiment, the first and second data portions of the first data volume are overwritten with the first and second data portions of the second data volume, respectively, in response to a command to restore or synchronize the data contents of the first data volume to the data contents of the second data volume. A virtual point-in-time (PIT) copy of the first data volume is created after overwriting the first data portion but before overwriting the second data portion.

Abstract: A method of using a dynamic computing environment to facilitate a sales preparation of a first software is provided. The method comprises configuring the dynamic computing environment for a first hardware, a first software environment and a first network configuration, preparing for sales of the first software using the first hardware, the first software environment, and the first network configuration of the dynamic computing environment, configuring the dynamic computing environment for a second hardware, a second software environment, and a second network configuration; and preparing for sales of the first software using the second hardware, the second software environment, and the second network configuration of the dynamic computing environment. A method of using dynamic computing environments to facilitate a sales demonstration by a sales team and an evaluation by a customer is also provided.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for tracking in-progress writes to a data volume and a copy thereof using a multi-column bit map. The method can be implemented in a computer system and, in one embodiment, includes creating a data volume in a first memory, and creating a copy of the data volume in a second memory. In response to the computer system receiving a request to write first data to the data volume, the computer system switches the state of first and second bits of a map entry in a memory device, wherein the state of the first and second bits are switched using a single write access to the memory device.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for completing a backup job that was interrupted during a backup process, including identifying the job that was interrupted during the backup process, using the interrupted job to build a list of one or more volumes that still need to be backed up, generating a disk-based catalog containing a partially backed up volume from the list of volumes that still need to be backed up, retrieving a container object from one or more volumes stored in a client computer, determining whether the container object is listed in the disk-based catalog, determining whether the container object is partially backed up if the container object is listed in the disk based catalog, and writing the data contained in the container object to one or more storage devices if the container object is partially backed up or is not listed in the disk based catalog.

Abstract: The present invention discloses user interface for creating a dynamic computing environment using allocateable resources. The interface enables the fast, efficient selection and configuration of processing resources for the computing environment. The resources are fully selectable and allocable by a system architect. In a first embodiment, a primary company, Design2Deploy, Inc.® provides the ability for a customer or system architect to design a system by allocating resources and specifying how the resources are to be used. The system architect may create a computing environment from a remotely-accessible user interface such as a web page on the Internet. Thus, the system architect can create, modify and operate the environment from anywhere in the world.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an apparatus or computer executable method of detecting and repairing corrupt data in a RAID data storage system. In one embodiment, parity and checksum data are stored in the RAID data storage system for each stripe that stores data. The parity data is used to determine whether data in the corresponding stripe is corrupt. If stripe data is determined to be corrupt, the checksum data is used to correct the corruption.

Abstract: A system for managing boot-up of target machines. In a preferred embodiment, a server computer acts as a managing computer. A target machine notifies the server that the target machine has been powered-up. The server allocates an IP address and sends a response to the target machine. The target machine download boot-up software from the server computer. The target machine then downloads discovery software from the server computer for purposes of determining information about the configuration and resources of the target machine. Standard protocols and mechanisms such as DHCP, BOOTP, TFTP and others can be used. The system works with different types of manufacturers' processors and platforms.

Abstract: A system uses a protocol stack on a card external to a motherboard in a target computer system. A processor on the motherboard is able to make use of the external protocol stack during boot-up of the computer, or at any other time, so that it is not necessary to load the protocol stack into the motherboard's memory. This saves time, memory, and disk space and permits an external, managing, computer system to communicate with a computer just after power-up without loading and configuring a protocol stack so that the managing computer system can control the boot-up of the target computer system. The extra memory saved, especially, is important in running many MS-DOS applications, such as firmware flash utilities. A preferred embodiment of the invention uses a UDP/Internet Protocol (UDP/IP) stack resident in a Preboot Execution Environment (PXE) on, e.g, a network card. The approach described herein can be applied to other utilities, protocol stacks or resources (hardware and software) on other cards.

Abstract: A system for run-time analysis of software programs using traces comprises a software program including two or more trace points, a trace control channel, a trace channel and a runtime tracer. The trace control channel includes an identification of one or more selected trace points of the two or more trace points. The runtime tracer is configured to concurrently execute a first and a second instance of the software program. Each instance of the first and second instances is configured to interact with the trace control channel to save trace information corresponding to the one or more selected trace points in the trace channel.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product to enable other nodes in a cluster to resume operations of a failed node. These operations include storage management services that allow configuration changes to be made dynamically to storage resources. Resource configuration data are synchronized on a set of nodes in a cluster immediately when a resource configuration change is made. If a node that has made a resource configuration change fails, the resource configuration change is available for use by other nodes in the set, each of which can resume operations of the failed node.

Abstract: A method involves generating a block-level write operation, which causes a value to be written to a primary volume, and generating information indicative of whether any of the block-level write operation should be transferred to a secondary site during replication of data in the primary volume. The information can indicate that all, part, or none of the block-level write operation should be transferred to the secondary site. If the information indicates that less than all of the block-level write operation should be transferred to a secondary site, the information can also indicate that logical information associated with the block-level write operation should be transferred to the secondary site instead of transferring the value being written by the block-level write operation.

Abstract: Systems, methods, apparatus and software can make use separated I/O processors and strategy processors in performing virtual device I/O operations. I/O processors operating on cluster nodes, storage appliance ports, or other devices can receive I/O operation requests directed to virtual devices, e.g., volumes or virtual logical units. Information about the request is forwarded to a strategy processor, operating independently or as part of larger volume management software where corresponding physical device I/O operations are determined. The physical device I/O operations are sent back to the I/O processor which executes the operations and/or passes the operation on to the appropriate storage device.

Abstract: A memory manager comprises a memory allocator and a garbage collector. The memory allocator is configured to allocate memory for objects within a heap on behalf of a process, generate a heap map comprising a plurality of heap map entries, wherein each heap map entry of the plurality of heap map entries includes an address of an object allocated within the heap, and provide the heap map to the garbage collector. The garbage collector is configured to generate a mark list identifying one or more objects within the heap using the heap map, wherein the addresses of the one or more objects correspond to data values specified within an address space of the process, and to free a given object previously allocated in the heap if the mark list indicates that an address of the given object does not correspond to a data value specified within the address space.

Abstract: A filter driver for implementing disk space quotas is described. Quota limits on disk space taken up by files in the file system are established for users and directories, and an internal database is established to track quotas against actual disk space utilization. A driver in accordance with the invention uses kernel resources of the operating system to prevent execution of file system I/O operations which would violate any established quota. In doing so, the driver executes a logic in kernel mode which serializes file allocation operations and also serializes access to the internal database. The first step in this logic is to intercept file system I/O requests before they reach the file system driver. Then the driver determines propectively—before the I/O request is completed—whether any quota would be exceeded by completion of the I/O request. If a quota would be exceeded, completion of the I/O request is blocked and an error status is issued.