Abstract: A system displays a set of alerts in an alert view. Each alert indicates a problem associated with a managed resource operating in a storage area network. The system receives a selection of an alert from the alert view, and performs an analysis of managed resource data associated with the managed resource experiencing the alert to identify performance details concerning the alert in relation to the managed resource data. The system then presents the performance details associated with the alert in a performance view. The performance view includes a topology region identifying a location of the managed resource experiencing the alert within the storage area network, and a graph region identifying the alert in relation to managed resource data for the managed resource experiencing the alert.

Abstract: A virtual domain management system is provided which associates application, physical and virtual domains to enable propagation of events, symptoms and other information across the domains. The virtual domain manager collects events and symptom information across multiple domains by correlating domain topology models. Using a causality matrix and codebook technology the virtual domain manager uses the information to perform root cause and impact analysis across domains. Information from the analysis may be fed back into the domains to enhance domain management.

Abstract: Disclosed are ways of providing a highly flexible high availability storage system. Disk drive carriers for insertion into enclosures in a storage system include several disk drives. The enclosures accept carriers that include drives of different sizes, and drives compatible with different storage technologies, for instance Fibre Channel, SATA, or SAS. Drives oriented in their carriers in a manner that allows them to be connected to a common medium via identical flex circuits that are configured based on the orientation of the drives. Redundant controllers include redundant serial buses for transferring management information to the carriers. The carriers include a controller for monitoring the multiple serial buses and producing storage technology specific management commands for the disk drives.

Abstract: A technique controls a network switch having a set of ports. The technique involves configuring the network switch to provide an initial set of communications paths between the ports. The initial set of communications paths defines an initial communications path topology within the network switch. The technique further involves receiving a configuration command which identifies a particular operating mode of the data storage system after configuring the network switch to provide the initial set of communications paths within the network switch. The technique further involves reconfiguring the network switch to provide a new set of communications paths between the ports in response to the configuration command. The new set of communications paths (i) defines a new communications path topology within the network switch, the new communications path topology being different than the initial communications path topology, and (ii) supports the particular operating mode of the data storage system.

Abstract: An email archive system and associated techniques are described. Archived emails may be stored locally on a user's client computer in a local archive store. The email archive system and associated techniques may interact with an email message system and an email client application.

Abstract: A compliance lifecycle management system is provided that addresses policy management issues at each stage of policy maturity throughout a policy lifetime. The compliance lifecycle management system provides functionality for policy control at initialization by enabling specification and creation of policies including identifying redundant and sub/super sets of policies across domains. As an infrastructure and its associated policies mature and change, the compliance lifecycle management system monitors compliance to dynamic policies to check for policy conflicts. The compliance management process may further be used to simulate the introduction of policies into the infrastructure to view the resultant impact that a new or updated policies may have on a network. With such an arrangement, policy management practices become more responsive, predictable and efficient.

Abstract: A cooling system includes a fan unit having a terminal receiving a signal representative of a commanded fan speed and a terminal for receiving a signal representative of actual fan speed. A system controller is responsive to temperature and the actual fan speed, for producing control signals for fan to adjust fan speed in accordance with the temperature and the actual fan speed, for producing the control signals in one of a plurality of different predetermined two-wire communication protocols. The system includes a fan controller and a two-line communication bus coupling the control signals between the system controller and the fan controller. The fan controller detects the one of the plurality of predetermined two-wire communication protocols on the two-wire communication bus and provides, in accordance with such detection, one terminal of the fan unit with the commanded fan speed and transmits the signal representative of the actual fan speed to the system controller via the communication bus.

Abstract: A snapshot copy facility maintains information indicating block ownership and sharing between successive versions by delegating block reference counts to parent-child relationships between the file system blocks, as indicated by block pointers in inodes and indirect blocks. When a child block becomes shared between a parent block of the production file and a parent block of a snapshot copy, the delegated reference count is split among the parent blocks. This method is compatible with a conventional data de-duplication facility, and avoids a need to update block reference counts in block metadata of child blocks of a shared indirect block upon splitting the shared indirect block when writing to a production file.

Abstract: This invention is a system and method for managing allocation of storage resources in a storage network, the storage network including physical data storage on a plurality of storage arrays that are in the storage network, and the network is in communication with one or more hosts and the network further includes a storage network management system, communicatively coupled to the storage arrays via the network, the storage management system includes a storage virtualizer capable of intercepting and virtualizing an IO stream from the one or more hosts and which storage network management system further includes a storage and switch controller in communication with the storage virtualizer for storage network management.

Abstract: Establishing a plurality of storage areas includes associating each of a first plurality of storage areas of a first type that contain sections of data with corresponding ones of second plurality of storage areas of a second type having pointers to alternative sections of data storage areas of the first type, where initially none of the second plurality of storage areas is available for accessing data corresponding thereto, and, after associating all of the first and second plurality of storage areas, activating the second plurality of storage areas to make the second plurality of storage areas available for accessing data. Exclusive access may be enabled for all of the first plurality of storage areas prior to activating the second plurality of storage areas or to each storage area one at a time.

Abstract: A technique for securing information involves encrypting raw data into encrypted data based on an initial key. The technique further involves generating a set of key shares from the initial key via application of error correction code encoding. Each key share has a size which is independent of a size of the initial key. The technique further involves electronically storing each key share on a respective memory device of a set of memory devices (e.g., RFID tags). The initial key is reconstructable from a predetermined number of the key shares read from their respective memory devices to enable decryption of the encrypted data.

Abstract: Searching stored content is disclosed. A first mapping is created from an object to one or more stored relational database tables. A second mapping is created from the object to an indexer schema. One or both of the following is done: 1) using the first mapping to translate a search request expressed in an abstract query language to a first query language associated with the relational database; and 2) using the second mapping to translate the search request to a second query language associated with the indexer schema.

Abstract: A method, device and computer product suitable for determining the source of failing to achieve a desired level of service quality in communication between at least two components in a distributed system is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of developing a model of the distributed system, the model including at least configuration non-specific representations of types of managed components, and representations of relationships among the managed components, determining associated managed components within each route of data communication between the at least two components, augmenting the representation of the associated managed components with information associated with each of the routes of data communication, monitoring at least one performance criterion of the communication between the at least two components and determining a source of degradation when the performance criteria is indicated to be outside acceptable limits.

Abstract: A method of replicating a deduplicated storage system is disclosed. The method comprises requesting the state of a replica system. The method further comprises sending a container to the replica system and sending a file system log record to the replica system.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for different embodiments of incremental garbage collection of data in a secondary storage. In one embodiment, a method comprises locating blocks of data in a log that are referenced and within a range at a tail of the log. The method also includes copying the blocks of data that are referenced and within the range to an unallocated segment of the log.

Abstract: Backing up data blocks is disclosed. An indication that a first set of one or more backed up data blocks are related at an application level to one or more other sets of one or more backed up data blocks is received. An associating data that associates the first set of backed up data blocks with the one or more other sets of backed up data blocks is stored. The associating data is used to ensure that the first set and the one or more other sets remain stored together.

Abstract: A system creates a storage area network (SAN) centric storage virtualization layer in front of storage devices. The system allows data mobility and migration without disruption to the one or more host servers attached to the SAN. Specifically, the host servers are not disrupted when switching I/Os between physical and virtual storage, for example, by taking advantage of WWPN spoofing and Fibre Channel VSAN technology. The use of VSANs effectively allow multiple virtual directors and/or switches to be created within a physical director and/or switches, each with their own separate name server, thereby providing complete isolation from one another. The host-storage pathing information is unchanged as the original physical storage port's WWPNs are spoofed by the virtual storage port. The result is two identical WWPNs within the SAN which is normally disallowed; however, by separating the physical port WWPN into one VSAN and the virtual port WWPN into another, the restriction may be circumvented.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a system and method is provided for reverse lookups using a reverse lookup hint stored in metadata associated with a file or directory. The reverse lookup hint is used to retrieve an entry, comprising a name of the file or directory, which is stored in a map structure related to a parent directory of the file or directory. In an embodiment, the reverse lookup hint comprises a hash value generated from the name of the file or directory.

Abstract: Transferring I/O from a first storage device coupled to a storage area network to a second storage device coupled to the storage area network includes blocking I/O operations for a first port of the first storage device coupled to the storage area network, where the first port is associated with an identifier, coupling the second storage device to the storage area network via a port associated with the identifier and reestablishing a connection between the host and the first port to cause I/O operations by the host to be routed to the second storage device. Transferring may also include, following blocking I/O operations for the first port of the first storage device, coupling a second port of the first storage device to the storage area network and migrating data from the first storage device to the second storage device through the second port of the first storage device without host/application disruption.

Abstract: Multiple Array Management Functions (AMFs) are connected to multiple redundancy groups over a storage area network (SAN), such as a fiber-channel based SAN. The multiple AMFs share management responsibility of the redundancy groups, each of which typically includes multiple resources spread over multiple disks. The AMFs provide concurrent access to the redundancy groups for associated host systems. When a host requests an AMF to perform an operation on a resource, the AMF synchronizes with the other AMFs sharing control of the redundancy group that includes the resource to be operated on, so as to obtain access to the resource. While performing the operation, the AMF send replication data and state information associated with the resource such that if the AMF fails, any of the other AMFs are able to complete the operation and maintain data reliability and coherency.