Patents by Inventor Masayasu Asano

Masayasu Asano has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20140025888
    Abstract: In a storage system 1, a storage apparatus A having a first pool 1430 including segments as unit storage areas and a storage apparatus B having a second pool 1430 having the same configuration are communicably connected to each other. In the storage system, an external volume identifier is associated with a logical volume 1420 included in the first pool 1430, the external volume identifier being used by a controller 1500 in the storage apparatus B to identify and manage the logical volume 1420 as an external volume 1425 that is a virtual volume in the storage apparatus B. Moreover, a volume identifier 5110 of the logical volume 1420 included in the first pool 1430 is rewritten into the external volume identifier in order to enable the storage apparatus B to utilize the logical volume 1420 created from the first pool 1430.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 25, 2013
    Publication date: January 23, 2014
    Applicant: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yuki NAGANUMA, Hirokazu IKEDA, Nobuhiro MAKI, Masayasu ASANO, Shinichiro KANNO
  • Publication number: 20130311743
    Abstract: A physical storage area that is allocated to an unused area of a virtual volume is removed. A management unit sends a request to a server computer to make every piece of data stored in a first logical volume migrate to a second logical volume. The server reads all the data out of the first logical volume and writes the data in the second logical volume. A storage system that includes the first logical volume and the second logical volume allocates a physical storage area to an area of the second logical volume where the data is to be written, and writes the data in the allocated physical storage area. The storage system then deletes the first logical volume.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2013
    Publication date: November 21, 2013
    Applicant: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayasu ASANO, Koichi MURAYAMA
  • Publication number: 20130311740
    Abstract: An example of the invention is a method of data migration from a source volume including storage areas of a plurality of source storage tiers different in performance capability to a destination volume including storage areas of a plurality of destination storage tiers different in performance capability, data relocation being performed among the plurality of source storage tiers in accordance with accesses to the source volume during the data migration. The method includes: starting the data migration between volumes from the source volume to the destination volume; acquiring information on a data arrangement in the source volume determined based on an access history to the source volume during the data migration between volumes from the source volume to the destination volume; and determining a data arrangement in the destination volume during the data migration between volumes based on the data arrangement indicated by the acquired information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 17, 2012
    Publication date: November 21, 2013
    Applicant: HITACHI, LTD.
    Inventors: Kentaro Watanabe, Takashi Tameshige, Masayasu Asano, Mutsumi Hosoya, Hideo Saito
  • Patent number: 8589616
    Abstract: A management system is coupled to a storage system group including a scale-out storage system (a virtual storage system). The management system has storage management information, which includes information denoting, for each storage system, whether or not a storage system is a component of a virtual storage system. The management system, based on the storage management information, determines whether or not a first storage system is a component of a virtual storage system, and in a case where the result of this determination is affirmative, identifies, based on the storage management information, a second storage system, which is a storage system other than the virtual storage system that includes the first storage system, and allows a user to perform a specific operation only with respect to this second storage system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kyoko Miwa, Junichi Hara, Masayasu Asano
  • Patent number: 8572346
    Abstract: In a storage system 1, a storage apparatus A having a first pool 1430 including segments as unit storage areas and a storage apparatus B having a second pool 1430 having the same configuration are communicably connected to each other. In the storage system, an external volume identifier is associated with a logical volume 1420 included in the first pool 1430, the external volume identifier being used by a controller 1500 in the storage apparatus B to identify and manage the logical volume 1420 as an external volume 1425 that is a virtual volume in the storage apparatus B. Moreover, a volume identifier 5110 of the logical volume 1420 included in the first pool 1430 is rewritten into the external volume identifier in order to enable the storage apparatus B to utilize the logical volume 1420 created from the first pool 1430.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Yuki Naganuma, Hirokazu Ikeda, Nobuhiro Maki, Masayasu Asano, Shinichiro Kanno
  • Patent number: 8543786
    Abstract: A computer system of the present invention selects and executes an appropriate action in a case where capacity of a pool that provides a real storage area to a virtual logical volume is insufficient. A management computer determines, based on a utilization status of each pool, whether or not there exists a prescribed pool that requires pool size expansion. The management computer, in a case where the prescribed pool is detected, selects at least any one of a volume addition method for adding an unused real volume to the prescribed pool and a data migration method for migrating data of the virtual logical volume to another pool other than the prescribed pool, and expands a pool size of the prescribed pool in accordance with the selected method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kenichi Kihara, Masayasu Asano, Junichi Hara
  • Patent number: 8533421
    Abstract: A management computer monitors an allocated capacity of a source virtual volume and an allocated capacity of a virtual pool having a storage area allocated to a destination virtual volume in a storage, judges whether the allocated capacity of the source virtual volume can be covered in the virtual pool or not, and informs the user of a result that data migration fails when the allocated capacity of the source virtual volume cannot be covered. When the allocated capacity of the source virtual volume cannot be covered, the management computer uses another storage area to increase the capacity of the virtual pool. Accordingly, when data migration is performed between the virtual volumes, capacities of physical areas allocated to the source virtual volume and the destination virtual volume can be grasped so that the data migration can be performed accurately between the source virtual volume and the destination virtual volume.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayasu Asano, Tetsuya Maruyama, Masayuki Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8527700
    Abstract: A management computer manages the pool application information that indicates a pool application for a pool and the application condition information that indicates the condition for the pool application. The management computer calculates an excess storage capacity based on a pool usage status for the pool. The management computer specifies a pool application for the pool and the condition for the pool application based on the pool application information and the application condition information. The management computer judges whether the specified condition is satisfied even in the case in which a storage area having a storage capacity equivalent to or less than the calculated excess storage capacity is deleted from the pool. In the case in which the result of the judgment is positive, the management computer defines a capacity equivalent to or less than the excess storage capacity as an unused capacity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayasu Asano, Nobuhiro Maki
  • Patent number: 8521984
    Abstract: A physical storage area that is allocated to an unused area of a virtual volume is removed. A management unit sends a request to a server computer to make every piece of data stored in a first logical volume migrate to a second logical volume. The server reads all the data out of the first logical volume and writes the data in the second logical volume. A storage system that includes the first logical volume and the second logical volume allocates a physical storage area to an area of the second logical volume where the data is to be written, and writes the data in the allocated physical storage area. The storage system then deletes the first logical volume.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayasu Asano, Koichi Murayama
  • Patent number: 8495294
    Abstract: A management system, which manages a plurality of storage systems, in a case where belonging to a storage system having a first function constitutes a condition for allocating a plurality of volumes to a host device, retrieves the storage system having the first function from among the plurality of storage systems, selects one or more unallocated logical volumes included in the retrieved storage system, acquires a logical volume capacity included in the selected logical volumes and notifies an output device of the acquired capacity as the capacity allocatable to the host device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Koichi Murayama, Masayasu Asano
  • Publication number: 20130145092
    Abstract: A storage system manages a pool to which multiple VVOLs (virtual logical volumes conforming to thin provisioning) are associated, assigns a real area (RA) from any tier in an available tier pattern associated with a write-destination VVOL to a write-destination virtual area (VA), and carries out a reassignment process for migrating data inside this RA to an RA of a different tier than the tier having this RA based on the access status of the RA assigned to the VA. A management system assumes that a specified tier has been removed from the available tier pattern of a target VVOL, predicts the performance of the target VVOL and all the other VVOL associated with the pool to which the target VVOL is associated, determines whether or not there is a VVOL for which the predicted performance is lower than a required performance, and when such a VVOL does not exist, instructs the storage system to remove the specified tier from the available tier pattern of the target VVOL.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 13, 2011
    Publication date: June 6, 2013
    Inventors: Kyoko Miwa, Tsukasa Shibayama, Masayasu Asano
  • Patent number: 8452923
    Abstract: A storage system including a first storage apparatus having at least one volume to be provided to a host computer, a second storage apparatus connected to the first storage apparatus and having a second volume having a pair relationship with a first volume, and a management apparatus. The management apparatus includes a user interface for setting an attribute of functions related to at least one volume of the first storage apparatus and at least one volume of the second storage apparatus. The management apparatus compares an attribute of a first function related to the first volume and an attribute of a second function related to the second volume, and sets the attribute of the second function to be consistent with the attribute of the first function. The management apparatus there commands restoration of the first volume or the second volume to a state before the set the attribute operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 28, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirotaka Nakagawa, Masayasu Asano, Yuichi Taguchi, Masayuki Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8447937
    Abstract: A data migrating method including calculating, in a case where data stored in a volume is migrated to another volume, a required period of time for migrating the data based on a size of data to be migrated and volume configuration information on the volume in which the migrated data is stored and the volume to which the data is to be migrated, determining a start time at which the data migration starts to generate a volume migration plan, setting a priority of the generated volume migration plan, prioritizing, in a case where a periods of time during which the generated volume migration plan is executed and a period of time during which an existing volume migration plan is executed are overlapped with each other, and changing the start time of at least one of those volume migration plans having a lower priority.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Tetsuya Maruyama, Yuichi Taguchi, Masayasu Asano, Masayuki Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8417887
    Abstract: A storage system for controlling attributes for data stored in virtual storage areas includes a logical storage area management unit 1140 that manages the linking of virtual storage areas and attributes such as encryption attributes to logical storage area groups. When receiving a command to change an attribute of a virtual storage area or virtual volume, the logical storage area management unit determines the presence or absence of a unit logical storage area in a logical storage area group or pool linked to a different attribute and that is not yet allocated to a virtual storage area. The logical storage area management unit links a unit logical storage area determined to be present to a virtual storage area, reads data stored in the unit logical storage area linked to a virtual storage area subjected to an attribute change, and stores the read data in accordance with the different attribute.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Kyoko Miwa, Nobuyuki Osaki, Masayasu Asano
  • Patent number: 8412908
    Abstract: A storage system allocates a data storage area in response to an access request from a first computer if the capacity of a first physical storage device configuring a first logical storage area, provided to the first computer, is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold. The storage system associates the first logical storage area with another physical storage device, which is different from the first physical storage device associated with a second logical storage area provided to the first computer and a second computer, and allocates a data storage area from the another physical storage device if the capacity of the first physical storage device associated with the first logical storage area exceeds the predetermined threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masayuki Yamamoto, Takayuki Nagai, Masayasu Asano, Yasunori Kaneda
  • Patent number: 8392679
    Abstract: The present invention stores application management information indicating respective applications constituting a federated application environment, which is a group constituted by a plurality of associatively operated applications. By referencing this application management information, a plurality of applications constituting this federated application environment are specified. A plurality of first logical volumes allocated to the specified plurality of applications, and a plurality of second logical volumes constituting the backup targets for data stored in the plurality of first logical volumes, are assigned to the same volume group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Wataru Okada, Masayasu Asano
  • Patent number: 8386432
    Abstract: Provided is a computer system which is capable of backup operation with a minimum count of volumes in a remote copy environment when a disaster or the like causes a storage system to stop working normally. The computer system has a host computer, a first storage system, a second storage system, and a management computer. The first storage system contains a data volume which stores data requested by an application to be written. The second storage system contains a mirrored volume to which data stored in the data volume is copied. The computer system is characterized by being configured to receive an input of a policy about backup processing executed in backup volumes and set a configuration of the first storage system and a configuration of the second storage system under the received policy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Wataru Okada, Masayasu Asano
  • Patent number: 8352766
    Abstract: Arrangements having multiple second storage systems which each include a restore control unit for controlling restoration processing, in which a data element in a journal stored in a journal storage area is written into a secondary logical volume, and a storage device control unit for controlling a storage device in the second storage system. The restore control unit is provided with a function for suspending the restoration processing. A first value indicating the usage condition of the journal storage area in the second storage system is obtained, and the restore control unit suspends the restoration processing in accordance with the obtained first value. The storage device control unit then executes power saving on a storage device relating to the secondary logical volume.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Tetsuya Maruyama, Masayasu Asano, Nobumitsu Takaoka, Masayuki Yamamoto
  • Publication number: 20120331248
    Abstract: An embodiment of this invention is a storage management system including a processor and a storage device to manage a storage system having one or more copy functions. The processor locates data designated to determine a backup method. The storage device stores copy function management information on the one or more copy functions of the storage system. The processor refers to the copy function management information to ascertain the unit of copy operation of each of the one or more copy functions. The processor determines a candidate for a copy function of the storage system to be used to back up the designated data depending on the data configuration in a volume holding the designated data and the unit of copy operation of the candidate for the copy function.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 23, 2011
    Publication date: December 27, 2012
    Inventors: Misako Kono, Nobuhiro Maki, Masayasu Asano, Junichi Hara
  • Patent number: 8341425
    Abstract: Provided is a storage device which partitions data from a host into multiple partitioned data and distributes, encrypts and stores them together with a parity to and in multiple memory mediums. This storage device executes processing of restoring the partitioned data or the parity stored in a memory medium to be subject to encryption re-key based on decrypted data of the partitioned data or the parity stored in each memory medium other than the memory medium to be subject to encryption re-key among the multiple memory mediums, storing the restored partitioned data or the parity in a backup memory medium while encrypting the restored partitioned data or the parity with a new encryption key, and thereafter interchanging the backup memory medium and the memory medium to be subject to encryption re-key so that the backup memory medium will be a memory medium configuring the parity group and the memory medium to be subject to encryption re-key will be the backup memory medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirotaka Nakagawa, Masayasu Asano, Takeki Okamoto, Nobuyuki Osaki