Patents Assigned to NetApp
  • Publication number: 20130219101
    Abstract: One or more techniques and/or systems are disclosed for enabling communication between a SAS communication port of a SAS communication component and multiple storage devices. In a first example, a first SAS to SATA bridge chip and a second SAS to SATA bridge chip may be configured to route data from a SAS communication component to multiple storage devices. In a second example, a SAS to SATA bridge chip and a port multiplier may be configured to route data from a SAS communication component to multiple storage devices. In a third example, a four port SAS to SATA bridge comprising two SAS ports and two SATA ports may be configured to route data from a SAS communication component to multiple storage devices. Supporting two or more storage devices with a single SAS communication port allows storage enclosures to increase storage capacity, while decreasing cost per slot.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 26, 2010
    Publication date: August 22, 2013
    Applicant: NetApp
    Inventors: Robert Hansen, Radek Aster, Tim K. Emami
  • Publication number: 20120166886
    Abstract: A novel RDMA connection failover technique that minimizes disruption to upper subsystem modules (executed on a computer node), which create requests for data transfer. A new failover virtual layer performs failover of an RDMA connection in error so that the upper subsystem that created a request does not have knowledge of an error (which is recoverable in software and hardware), or of a failure on the RDMA connection due to the error. Since the upper subsystem does not have knowledge of a failure on the RDMA connection or of a performed failover of the RDMA connection, the upper subsystem continues providing requests to the failover virtual layer without interruption, thereby minimizing downtime of the data transfer activity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 27, 2010
    Publication date: June 28, 2012
    Applicant: NetApp
    Inventors: Hari Shankar, Huadong Liu, Hua Li
  • Patent number: 7925759
    Abstract: System for decentralized storage and rapid retrieval of medical data among geographically separate locations, connected by data paths of limited bandwidth, which optimizes transmission therebetween. Medical data is separated into bulk content and metadata. Metadata is transmitted to all locations. Bulk content is copied to selected locations based on desired duplication, available storage, distance, transmission cost, data path bandwidth or utilization, likelihood of retrieval calculated from the metadata, requests to use or prior usage of content or information from a system that manages the content. Transmission rate is limited and bulk content is queued for transmission based on priority calculated from metadata, from requests to use content or information from a system that manages the content. Optimal locations for bulk content are recalculated based on requests to use content, new patient appointments, data path or equipment failures. Copies are made or deleted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2011
    Assignee: NetApp
    Inventors: David Slik, Tym Altman, Mohammad Kermani, Keith Ma, Michael Montour, Walter Proseilo, Oliver Seiler
  • Publication number: 20100180066
    Abstract: An operating system on a computer system can comprise a user space, which can comprise a persistent data store, and a kernel space, which can be extended by loading kernel modules. As provided herein, the kernel space can utilize kernel designated electronically addressed non-volatile memory (e.g., flash memory) to cache data from the user space persistent store, for example, upon a boot event. The kernel space can further comprise a cache controller that can be used to populate the kernel electronically addressed non-volatile memory with kernel in-memory data caches that comprise user space persistently stored data. In one embodiment, the kernel space can further comprise kernel designated volatile main memory (e.g., RAM), which can be used in conjunction with the kernel electronically addressed non-volatile memory to cache user space persistently stored data. In this way, kernel modules may access user space persistent store data from the RAM and/or electronically addressed non-volatile kernel cache.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 13, 2009
    Publication date: July 15, 2010
    Applicant: NetApp
    Inventor: Paul Powell
  • Publication number: 20100122248
    Abstract: While current solutions for cloning virtual machines can involve copying and duplicating files associated to a virtual machine (VM), systems and techniques can be devised to create thin clones of a VM using the VM's associated storage system to copy and deduplicate storage for the VMs. One can create a base VM in a directory of a storage container attached to a hypervisor, and then map the storage container to a volume on a storage system. One can clone the base VM using a snapshot of respective files associated to the base VM, which can comprise creating metadata that identified a physical storage location of the files. Further, the metadata can then be copied to a desired location on the storage container, to create a VM clone. Once copied, the cloned VM can be customized and registered within the hypervisor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 11, 2008
    Publication date: May 13, 2010
    Applicant: NETAPP
    Inventors: Matthew Douglas Robinson, Peter R. Learmonth, Michael Vaugh Stewart, Eric Paul Forgette
  • Publication number: 20100115126
    Abstract: Various computing components (such as devices, operating environments, and processes) may communicate by exchanging instances of a data collection, such as a class or data structure. However, the definition of the data collection may evolve to specify different numbers, types, properties, and orderings of the items in the data collection, and it may be difficult to verify the structure and contents of an instance received from another component and possibly of a different version. This difficulty may be mitigated by exchanging versioning information about the instance (e.g., as part of the communications wire protocol) and by allocating the converting such that the sender may downconvert to earlier versions requested by a recipient, while the recipient may upconvert to later versions than a version provided by a sender. These techniques may promote the accuracy and consistency of information exchange among many components that operate on different versions of the data collection.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 31, 2008
    Publication date: May 6, 2010
    Applicant: NetApp
    Inventors: Kiran Kanakadandi, David Brittain Bolen
  • Publication number: 20090276566
    Abstract: A computer storage system includes multiple disk trays, each disk tray holding two or more physical disks. The disks on a single tray are virtualized into a single logical disk. The single logical disk reports to the RAID (redundant array of inexpensive disks) subsystem, creating the impression that there is one large capacity disk. In one implementation, each disk in the tray is allocated to a different RAID group. By allocating the disks in a tray to different RAID groups, if the tray is removed, only a portion of several different RAID groups are removed. This arrangement permits a simple reconstruction of the RAID groups if a disk tray is removed from the system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2008
    Publication date: November 5, 2009
    Applicant: NetApp
    Inventors: Doug Coatney, Radek Aster
  • Publication number: 20090276714
    Abstract: A method and system for visually displaying and navigating a computer storage system are disclosed. The storage system can be graphically browsed to select a particular entity in the storage system. A graphical timeline of events relating to the selected entity is displayed. Selecting an event from the timeline displays a graphical representation of the storage system at a time relating to the selected event or additional graphical detail about the selected event. Based on the selected event, configuration information for the entity in the storage system that experienced the event can be displayed and compared against the configuration of the entity at a different time or against a predefined template.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2008
    Publication date: November 5, 2009
    Applicant: NetApp
    Inventors: Yogesh Kandlikar, Diana Bocskai, Art Cruz
  • Patent number: 7406488
    Abstract: A method and system where data is maintained in a continuous data protection system is disclosed. A primary volume may be protected according to an any-point-in-time (APIT) window wherein restores may be performed at any time as desired. The APIT window may be of any time duration as desired. Outside of the APIT window, a retention policy for phasing out data may be established as desired.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2008
    Assignee: NetApp
    Inventors: Roger Keith Stager, Donald Alvin Trimmer, Pawan Saxena, Randall Johnson, Craig Anthony Johnston, Yafen Peggy Chang, Rico Blaser
  • Patent number: 7401198
    Abstract: A method for stream allocation in a data storage system begins by determining whether a stream needs storage space. Storage space for the stream is requested, and a device on which to allocate the storage space is selected. The storage space on the selected device is allocated to the stream.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2008
    Assignee: NetApp
    Inventors: Craig Anthony Johnston, Roger Keith Stager