Abstract: One example method includes creating a source FS Merkle tree having a structure that matches a topology of a source FS, and a target FS Merkle tree having a structure that matches a topology of a target FS, receiving a change to the source FS, implementing the change in the source FS, updating the source FS Merkle tree to reflect the change, replicating the change to the target FS so that, with respect to the change, the target FS is synchronized with the source FS, updating the target FS Merkle tree to reflect the change to the target FS, and comparing the source FS Merkle tree to the target FS Merkle tree.

Abstract: Data protection operations based on direct storage access. Data protection operations that involve large data transfers are optimized or improved by transferring the data using a communication path that includes direct access to disks of a storage array. This avoids latencies associated with transferring data through the layers of the storage array. The locations of the data to be transferred are identified and provided to an appliance. The appliance can then read and transfer the data over a communication path that includes direct disk access.

Abstract: A method and system for a cloud backup service leveraging peer-to-peer data recovery. Specifically, the disclosed method and system entail the implementation of a backup-as-a-service (BaaS) that, at least in part, extends the recovery of data through peer-to-peer communications. In an enterprise organization, users often share data files and, accordingly, maintain local copies of these data files on their respective computing devices. Recovery of data, through peer-to-peer communications, may involve the retrieval of these maintained local copies.

Abstract: One example method, which may be performed in connection with an object store, includes receiving a key of a key-value pair, correlating the key to a location in a base of a Merkle tree, inserting the key at the location, hashing the value associated with the key to produce a data hash, and inserting the data hash in the Merkle tree. The Merkle tree may then be checked for consistency, and synchronized with another Merkle tree. The Merkle tree may be of a fixed size, and insertion of the key in the Merkle tree does not change the location of any keys existing in the Merkle tree prior to insertion of the new key.

Abstract: Embodiments extend using sparse Merkle trees for smart synchronization of S3 buckets by overcoming fixed size limitations through creating another Merkle tree when the fixed size limit of the first tree is exceeded, and creating yet another tree when the second tree is filled up, and so on as needed. The method maintains a super Merkle tree of trees, in which each tree can be synchronized separately by keeping a strict division to trees according to generation number. The generation is passed from a source site to a target site during replication operations. Syncing between two data sites is efficient as the super Merkle tree of the source is synced with the super Merkle tree of the target using the hashes on the nodes, as in normal Merkle tree sync operations.

Abstract: Embodiments extend using sparse Merkle trees for smart synchronization of S3 buckets by overcoming fixed size limitations through creating another Merkle tree when the fixed size limit of the first tree is exceeded, and creating yet another tree when the second tree is filled up, and so on as needed. The method maintains a list of trees, in which each tree can be synchronized separately by keeping a strict division to trees according to generation number. The generation is passed from a source site to a target site during replication operations. The tagging of the generation number also makes it easy and efficient to remove an older version of an element or deal with deleted elements. This allows efficient syncing between two data object buckets without a size limitation on number of elements in a bucket.

Abstract: Described is a system for intelligently storing and recovering backup data using multiple storage tiers of a cloud-based storage. The intelligent storing of backup data may leverage different cost structures associated with various cloud-based storage tiers by efficiently distributing data to more cost effective tiers. The system may also provide a coordinated (e.g. phased) recovery that prioritizes the recovery of certain files so that a user can gain access to such files in a shorter amount of time. The system may also provide enhanced storage and recovery functionality (e.g. via specialized user interface elements) by leveraging placeholder files to offload and recover individual files, and expedite the recovery of individual files during a substantial recovery process.

Abstract: One example method includes performing various operations while a stream of IOs is being applied to a source dataset and replicated to a target dataset, and the operations include receiving a replicated IO that was previously applied to a source dataset Merkle tree, applying the replicated IO to a target dataset Merkle tree by entering an updated hash value in the target dataset Merkle tree, and applying a timestamp to the target dataset Merkle tree.

Abstract: Replication operations of replicating data from a production site to a replica site. The replication is performed using independent Merkle trees. The Merkle trees are updated asynchronously using Merkle trees that have been augmented with a time-based value. The synchronization is verified by comprising root hashes of the independent Merkle trees at certain points in time. The replication and Merkle trees are self-healing and trigger a resynchronization when a discrepancy is discovered.

Abstract: Filesystem events that change a file system are detected, and information comprising metadata that describe each filesystem change event of a consecutive sequence of changes is created and associated with timestamps and point-in-time snapshots of the filesystem at the time of occurrence of the filesystem events. The information is entered into an event stream that is saved in a journal, and applied to a previously created full index of the filesystem structure in the journal to synthesize and replicate a filesystem index and structure as they existed at any desired point in time represented by the event stream. The reconstructed index and filesystem structure can be searched for a reference to an object of interest such as a filename or a directory, and the file or directory recovered and replicated using an associated PiT.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and system for recreating a file that corresponds to a specified point in time (PiT) in a data storage system is disclosed. The particular PiT and the name of the file to be restored may be received from a user. A file system inode structure corresponding to the particular PiT may be recreated based on an inode event stream stored in a journal. One or more disk locations associated with the file to be restored may be determined based on the inode structure corresponding to the particular PiT. A temporary file may be constructed with data read from the one or more disk locations in a storage system of the backup site. Thereafter, the file to be restored may be obtained, which may comprise rolling back data of the temporary file to the particular PiT based on a data stream stored in the journal.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and system for transmitting file system metadata from an indexing splitter running in a VM to a source side RPA is disclosed. The operations comprise: capturing one or more file system events in a production virtual machine (VM) at an indexing splitter; transmitting file system metadata representing the captured file system events from the indexing splitter to a data splitter, the data splitter being an agent running on a host system hosting the VM; transmitting the file system metadata inside one or more special input/output (I/O) commands associated with a predetermined tag from the data splitter to a source side replication protection appliance (RPA) alongside regular storage system I/O command data; identifying the special I/O commands at the source side RPA based on the predetermined tag; and recovering the file system metadata from the special I/O commands at the source side RPA.

Abstract: An agent executing on a processor at a data production site detects filesystem events and creates a list of bookmarks describing the filesystem events in user-understandable strings. Each bookmark is associated with metadata about the filesystem event that includes a timestamp and a point-in-time (PiT) snapshot of the filesystem at the time of occurrence of the event. The bookmarks and associated metadata are transferred to a recovery site and the bookmark set is recorded in storage. The storage can be searched for bookmarks in the set that reference the filename of a file of interest, and the file recovered and replicated using an associated PiT.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and system for recreating a file that corresponds to a specified point in time (PiT) in a data storage system is disclosed. The particular PiT and the name of the file to be restored may be received from a user. A file system inode structure corresponding to the particular PiT may be recreated based on an inode event stream stored in a journal. One or more disk locations associated with the file to be restored may be determined based on the inode structure corresponding to the particular PiT. A temporary file may be constructed with data read from the one or more disk locations in a storage system of the backup site. Thereafter, the file to be restored may be obtained, which may comprise rolling back data of the temporary file to the particular PiT based on a data stream stored in the journal.

Abstract: Embodiments are directed to a bug reproduction system and method to reproduce non-probabilistic bug conditions in programs, such as those that involve multi-threaded race conditions and/or containerized systems. To consistently reproduce a phenomenon that usually happens with low probability, embodiments provide an effective approach to consistently reproducing bugs by combining multi-point-in-time replication (like RecoverPoint), CPU lockstep and the same constructs used in implementing VMware VMotion functionality. The result is a system that once there is an initial reconstruction, will be able to consistently reproduce the same issue one hundred percent of the time.

Abstract: Described embodiments provide systems and methods for synchronizing a production volume and a backup volume of a storage system. A first thin volume is created and associated with the production volume. A first replica of the production volume is generated by copying data from the production volume to a replica volume. During the copying, an I/O request to be written to the production volume may be received. Data from the I/O request is written to the first thin volume and data changed due to the I/O request is tracked in metadata associated with the production volume and the first thin volume. A size of the first thin volume is checked, and when the size of the first thin volume is below a threshold, changes from the first thin volume are applied asynchronously to the backup storage.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for replication comprising exposing, via a virtualization layer, a storage entity; wherein the virtualization layer runs on a virtual machine and wherein the storage entity corresponds to a virtual disk, and splitting IO in a splitter, wherein the splitter runs in the virtualization layer and the splitting creates a copy of the IO sent to the virtual disk.

Abstract: A fault tolerance computer implemented method, a computer program product, and a system for allowing asynchronous replication to continue with no lag increase due to RPA failure comprising: creating a consistency group (CG) on a first replication appliance and a shadow copy of the CG on a second replication appliance; sending input/output (IO data), via a splitter, to the CG in a first replication appliance; and sending IO data, via the splitter, to shadow copy of the CG on a second replication appliance.

Abstract: A method, system, and program product for enabling a virtual service layer to consume a storage medium of a first site and a storage medium of a second site, enabling the virtual service layer to map the storage mediums of the first and second sites as one or more virtual storage volumes, wherein the one or more storage volumes are mirrored between the first and second site, and enabling the virtual service layer to create a write order fidelity delta set of the virtual storage volumes by writing the delta set to backend storage and notifying a splitter to which delta set the IO belongs.

Abstract: A method, system and computer program product for enabling a virtual service layer to consume a storage medium at a first site and map the storage medium as one or more virtual storage volumes, enabling the virtual service layer to present the one or more virtual storage volumes for consumption at the first site, enabling a splitter of the virtual service layer to intercept I/O written to the one or more virtual storage volumes, splitting intercepted I/O to a journal based replication appliance, enabling the virtual storage volumes to be accessible at a second site, wherein the one or more the virtual storage volume are mirrored at the second site by the virtual service layer; and replicating IO from either the first site or the second site to a third site.