Abstract: A technique of managing virtual volumes includes receiving, by a storage system, instructions to create specified virtual volumes in the storage system, the instructions including virtual volume metadata that identifies virtual machines to which the specified virtual volumes are assigned, and providing a database that associates such virtual volumes with the virtual machines identified by the virtual volume metadata. The technique further includes performing a storage activity on a virtual machine by identifying, from the database, multiple virtual volumes that the database associates with the virtual machine and performing the storage activity on all of the identified virtual volumes together as a group.

Abstract: Discovery service contact information is provided from a data storage system to administration logic of a virtualization environment, and distributed within the virtualization environment to hypervisor hosts, enabling the hypervisor hosts to discover logical ports within the data storage system, and then establish logical communication paths between the hypervisor hosts and the ports. In response to determining that the data storage system supports virtual volumes, the hypervisor hosts indicate hypervisor capability of using virtual volumes to the data storage system, and the data storage system exposes virtual volumes to hypervisors in response to indications of the ability of those hypervisors to use virtual volumes.

Abstract: A technique of managing virtual volumes includes receiving, by a storage system, instructions to create specified virtual volumes in the storage system, the instructions including virtual volume metadata that identifies virtual machines to which the specified virtual volumes are assigned, and providing a database that associates such virtual volumes with the virtual machines identified by the virtual volume metadata. The technique further includes performing a storage activity on a virtual machine by identifying, from the database, multiple virtual volumes that the database associates with the virtual machine and performing the storage activity on all of the identified virtual volumes together as a group.

Abstract: Techniques include receiving a backup request for backing up data on a production VVOL, to which is assigned physical space from storage devices in a first storage tier. When the production VVOL and a snapshot VVOL exist, and a write request is received to a data block on the production VVOL that is shared between the production VVOL and the snapshot VVOL, then the techniques include capturing a snapshot of the production VVOL by redirecting the write request to newly allocated space on the production VVOL, writing new data to the newly allocated space, and storing metadata referring to the original block(s) on the production VVOL. Based on an IO workload threshold, the techniques include copying, in a background process, the original version of the modified block from the production VVOL to a snapshot VVOL, to which is assigned physical storage space from storage devices in a second storage tier.

Abstract: A technique for deploying virtual volumes in a metro cluster across first and second arrays includes impersonating a third array that purports to host single-site virtual volumes. The technique further includes mapping the single-site virtual volumes purportedly hosted by the third array to respective pairs of actual virtual volumes. Each pair includes a first virtual volume in the first array and a second virtual volume in the second array and realizes a stretched virtual volume, with writes being mirrored between the virtual volumes of each pair.

Abstract: Discovery service contact information is provided from a data storage system to administration logic of a virtualization environment, and distributed within the virtualization environment to hypervisor hosts, enabling the hypervisor hosts to discover logical ports within the data storage system, and then establish logical communication paths between the hypervisor hosts and the ports. In response to determining that the data storage system supports virtual volumes, the hypervisor hosts indicate hypervisor capability of using virtual volumes to the data storage system, and the data storage system exposes virtual volumes to hypervisors in response to indications of the ability of those hypervisors to use virtual volumes.

Abstract: Techniques include receiving a backup request for backing up data on a production VVOL, to which is assigned physical space from storage devices in a first storage tier. When the production VVOL and a snapshot VVOL exist, and a write request is received to a data block on the production VVOL that is shared between the production VVOL and the snapshot VVOL, then the techniques include capturing a snapshot of the production VVOL by redirecting the write request to newly allocated space on the production VVOL, writing new data to the newly allocated space, and storing metadata referring to the original block(s) on the production VVOL. Based on an IO workload threshold, the techniques include copying, in a background process, the original version of the modified block from the production VVOL to a snapshot VVOL, to which is assigned physical storage space from storage devices in a second storage tier.

Abstract: Embodiments are directed to a method performed by a computing device. The method includes (a) receiving, by the computing device, a stream of storage management commands directed at logical disks hosted by a DSS, the logical disks being accessible to VMs running on a remote host, each storage management command having a command type of a plurality of command types, each command type of the plurality of command types having a respective timeout period, (b) placing the storage management commands of the stream into a VM storage management queue stored on the computing device, and (c) selectively dequeueing storage management commands stored in the VM storage management queue to be performed by the DSS, wherein selectively dequeueing includes applying a set of dequeueing criteria, the set of dequeueing criteria including a criterion that selects storage management commands from the VM storage management queue according to their respective command types.

Abstract: Techniques for creating consistent snapshots on synchronously replicated storage resources. The techniques perform such creation of consistent snapshots using snapshot requests that are handled in-band with other IO requests (e.g., write requests, read requests) being processed at a data storage site. By processing snapshot requests as a type of IO request with other IO requests in an IO path to a storage resource, a data storage system can employ the same synchronization logic for efficiently performing both synchronous data replication and synchronous snapshot replication. Further, the disclosed techniques serially process snapshot requests along with write requests that target overlapping sectors of a storage resource according to their order-of-arrival, while concurrently processing write requests that target non-overlapping sectors of the storage resource, thereby reducing repeated pausing and un-pausing of the processing of IO requests received at the data storage system.

Abstract: Techniques for creating consistent snapshots on synchronously replicated storage resources. The techniques perform such creation of consistent snapshots using snapshot requests that are handled in-band with other IO requests (e.g., write requests, read requests) being processed at a data storage site. By processing snapshot requests as a type of IO request with other IO requests in an IO path to a storage resource, a data storage system can employ the same synchronization logic for efficiently performing both synchronous data replication and synchronous snapshot replication. Further, the disclosed techniques serially process snapshot requests along with write requests that target overlapping sectors of a storage resource according to their order-of-arrival, while concurrently processing write requests that target non-overlapping sectors of the storage resource, thereby reducing repeated pausing and un-pausing of the processing of IO requests received at the data storage system.

Abstract: Embodiments are directed to a method performed by a computing device. The method includes (a) receiving, by the computing device, a stream of storage management commands directed at logical disks hosted by a DSS, the logical disks being accessible to VMs running on a remote host, each storage management command having a command type of a plurality of command types, each command type of the plurality of command types having a respective timeout period, (b) placing the storage management commands of the stream into a VM storage management queue stored on the computing device, and (c) selectively dequeueing storage management commands stored in the VM storage management queue to be performed by the DSS, wherein selectively dequeueing includes applying a set of dequeueing criteria, the set of dequeueing criteria including a criterion that selects storage management commands from the VM storage management queue according to their respective command types.

Abstract: Described are techniques for provisioning storage for a logical device including receiving at least one capability profile identifying a first set of storage resource configurations; receiving a request to provision storage for the logical device, the request including a policy profile identifying a second set storage resource configurations; determining a third set of zero or more storage resource configurations, the third set being a set intersection of the first set and the second set; determining whether the third set includes at least one storage resource configuration; and if it is determined that the third set includes at least one storage resource configuration, selecting one of the storage resource configurations of the third set and provisioning storage of the logical device in accordance with the selected storage resource configuration of the third set.

Abstract: Storage system characteristics are processed to generate a service level for a storage system that is one of a fixed number of service levels. Application specific usage tags describing application types the storage system is appropriate to support may also be generated. The service level and application specific usage tags are stored into a storage system capability profile and made available, together with any metadata needed to describe the application specific usage tags, to a system associated with a virtualization environment. A request to provision storage resources for a virtual machine is subsequently received, including a policy profile having a requested service level and one or more application specific usage tags describing the storage requirements of the virtual machine. If the policy profile matches the capability profile, storage resources are provisioned for the virtual machine from the storage system.

Abstract: Described are techniques for synchronizing operations performed on objects. Locking tables may be received where each of the locking tables corresponds to different object class. First processing may be performed by a first thread to acquire a set of one or more locks. Each lock in the set may be a lock for one of the objects. The first processing may include traversing the locking tables in accordance with a predefined ordering and acquiring the set of one or more locks, wherein, for each lock in the set, a first entry is updated in a first of the locking tables to indicate that the first thread has acquired the lock on one of the objects included in an associated object class corresponding to the first locking table.

Abstract: Systems and method are disclosed for provisioning storage for a logical storage device. At least one storage capability profile is provided. A request to provision the storage for the logical storage device is received. A plurality of candidate storage resource configurations are determine based on the at least one storage capability profile and the storage policy profile, where a first candidate storage resource configuration specifies thick provisioning in a first storage pool and a second candidate storage resource configuration specifies thin provisioning in the first storage pool. A ranking of the plurality of candidate storage resource configurations is provided, the ranking indicating the first candidate storage resource configuration has a higher priority than the second candidate storage resource configuration. It is determined that the first storage pool has insufficient storage for thick provisioning.

Abstract: An improved technique involves delivering asynchronous notifications of state changes of components of a data storage system by querying a database whose entries contain event descriptors along with a sequentially generated identifier value. In response to a state change of a component, a database server receives a state change indication and updates an entry in the database by recording the state change and generating a new identifier value. A management server running management software then detects state changes by noting the largest generated identifier value from a previous query and queries all entries in the database having an identifier value larger than that previous value. The layers of the management software that subscribe to state change indications of various components may then access those entries as needed.

Abstract: Described are techniques for synchronizing operations performed on objects. Locking tables may be received where each of the locking tables corresponds to different object class. First processing may be performed by a first thread to acquire a set of one or more locks. Each lock in the set may be a lock for one of the objects. The first processing may include traversing the locking tables in accordance with a predefined ordering and acquiring the set of one or more locks, wherein, for each lock in the set, a first entry is updated in a first of the locking tables to indicate that the first thread has acquired the lock on one of the objects included in an associated object class corresponding to the first locking table.

Abstract: An improved technique involves delivering asynchronous notifications of state changes of components of a data storage system by querying a database whose entries contain event descriptors along with a sequentially generated identifier value. In response to a state change of a component, a database server receives a state change indication and updates an entry in the database by recording the state change and generating a new identifier value. A management server running management software then detects state changes by noting the largest generated identifier value from a previous query and queries all entries in the database having an identifier value larger than that previous value. The layers of the management software that subscribe to state change indications of various components may then access those entries as needed.

Abstract: Described are techniques for provisioning storage for a logical device including receiving at least one capability profile identifying a first set of storage resource configurations; receiving a request to provision storage for the logical device, the request including a policy profile identifying a second set storage resource configurations; determining a third set of zero or more storage resource configurations, the third set being a set intersection of the first set and the second set; determining whether the third set includes at least one storage resource configuration; and if it is determined that the third set includes at least one storage resource configuration, selecting one of the storage resource configurations of the third set and provisioning storage of the logical device in accordance with the selected storage resource configuration of the third set.

Abstract: Described are techniques for analyzing storage resources. I/O operations which are directed to a set of storage resources and received at a data storage system from a first application are monitored. First information characterizing the I/O operations from the first application is collected in accordance with said monitoring. Using the first information, a first execution profile for the first application characterizing I/O operations of the first application is determined. It is determined whether the first execution profile of the first application matches any of a set of predetermined execution profiles for known applications. Each of the predetermined execution profiles characterizes I/O operations of one of the known applications. First processing is performed in accordance with one or more criteria including whether the first execution profile matches any of the set of predetermined execution profiles.