Abstract: Certain embodiments herein relate to implementing collaborative bidding in online auctions. A determination may be made whether bidding entities, or bids associated with bidding entities, share promotional interests, such as promoting the same product. Bids submitted by bidding entities that share the same promotional interests may be combined to create a single, combined bid that may compete against other bids in an online auction. Costs associated with promoting the product may be allocated among such bidding entities in various ways, including proportional allocation of cost based on a bid price submitted by the bidding entity.

Abstract: A data storage system implements techniques for efficient retrieval of data stored thereon, using time of upload or another monotonically increasing variable as a key or identifier for the data to be stored and/or retrieved. Data is sorted according to, e.g., upload time, and the data is addressed with respect to time of upload and byte offset within the archive.

Abstract: First audit information corresponding to a first set of log entries associated with a transformation performed on first data is obtained, where the first audit information includes a first commutative result produced by applying a commutative function to object identifiers associated with the first set of log entries. Second audit information corresponding to a second set of log entries associated with the transformation performed on second data is obtained, with the second data being a different representation of the first data and where the second audit information includes a second commutative result produced by applying the commutative function to object identifiers associated with the second set of log entries. The first commutative result is compared with the second commutative result to validate whether the second data matches the first data. One or more actions are performed depending on whether the second data is the successful transformation of the first data.

Abstract: A data center may include a tape library rack module along with rack computer systems. The rack computer systems may be configured to provide computing capacity within a data center environment. In some embodiments, the tape library rack module may include an enclosure encompassing an interior of the tape library rack module, a rack within the interior, and a tape library unit mounted on the rack. The tape library rack unit may include tape cartridges configured to store data within a tape environment that is different than the data center environment. The tape library rack unit may be within a portion of the interior that is enclosed such that it is environmentally isolated from the data center environment. In some examples, the tape library rack module may include a cooling unit and/or a humidifier unit, which may provide the tape environment to the environmentally isolated portion of the interior of the tape library rack module.

Abstract: A cluster of data transfer devices is used to augment the capabilities of a data storage system. For example, the cluster of data transfer devices may be configured to store a portion of a bundle of redundancy coded shards in a similar fashion as a data storage system. As another example, the cluster may be configured to provide other capabilities incident to the devices used, such as computational capabilities. Data stored on the cluster may be read from and written directly to the cluster without transfer of data to the data storage system. In some embodiments, a connecting entity (such as a customer entity) may interchangeably interface with the data storage system and the cluster, and the requested capabilities may be directed to either in a fashion that is transparent to the requestor.

Abstract: Techniques and systems for storing and retrieving data storage devices of a data storage system are disclosed. In some embodiments, inventory holders are used to store data storage devices used by a data storage system. When data is to be transacted with the data storage devices, mobile drive units locate appropriate inventory holders and transport them to a device reading station, where an appropriate device retrieval unit transacts the data. In some embodiments, each inventory holder includes a heterogenous mix of data storage device types, the layout of which may be calculated according to the specific mix allocated to a given inventory holder. After the data has been transacted, the data storage devices are returned to the appropriate inventory holders, and the inventory holders are placed by the mobile drive units in locations where they may be accessed in response to further data transactions.

Abstract: Certain embodiments herein relate to implementing collaborative bidding in online auctions. Example methods may include generating a bid request, receiving a first response comprising a first bid amount and a first content identifier, receiving a second response comprising a second bid amount and a second content identifier, applying a set of rules to the first response and the second response, and determining, using the set of rules, that the first bid amount and the second bid amount are combinable. Some example methods may include generating a combined bid amount using the first bid amount and the second bid amount, determining that the combined bid amount is a winning bid amount, determining a first allocated cost associated with the first response using the first bid amount, determining a second allocated cost associated with the second response using the second bid amount, and causing presentation of first content and second content.

Abstract: A multilayered index is implemented for data stored in a data storage system. The multilayered index may include a granular index that specifies the location of specific files or abstractions within the data storage system, while a skip table specifies segments of the abstractions, and may point to both the granular index and the data storage devices of the data storage system. In redundancy coded systems, the use of multilayered indices may enable asynchronous retrieval of data during normal or adverse operation (such as during periods of varying data availability).

Abstract: Techniques for encoding data in grid encoded data storage systems are described herein. Data is stored in a grid of shards using grid encoding techniques that store the data in a combination of data shards and derived shards. Because the data is redundantly encoded in the grid of shards, a plurality of distinct copies of the data are reproducible from the grid of shards where each distinct copy is reproducible from a non-overlapping set of shards of the grid of shards.

Abstract: Techniques and systems for storing and retrieving data storage devices of a data storage system are disclosed. In some embodiments, inventory holders are used to store data storage devices used by a data storage system. When data is to be transacted with the data storage devices, mobile drive units locate appropriate inventory holders and transport them to a device reading station, where an appropriate device retrieval unit transacts the data. After the data has been transacted, the data storage devices are returned to the appropriate inventory holders, and the inventory holders are placed by the mobile drive units in locations where they may be accessed in response to further data transactions.

Abstract: A data center may include a tape library rack module along with rack computer systems. The rack computer systems may be configured to provide computing capacity within a data center environment. In some embodiments, the tape library rack module may include an enclosure encompassing an interior of the tape library rack module, a rack within the interior, and a tape library unit mounted on the rack. The tape library rack unit may include tape cartridges configured to store data within a tape environment that is different than the data center environment. The tape library rack unit may be within a portion of the interior that is enclosed such that it is environmentally isolated from the data center environment. In some examples, the tape library rack module may include a cooling unit and/or a humidifier unit, which may provide the tape environment to the environmentally isolated portion of the interior of the tape library rack module.

Abstract: A cluster of data transfer devices is used to augment the capabilities of a data storage system. For example, the cluster of data transfer devices may be configured to store a portion of a bundle of redundancy coded shards in a similar fashion as a data storage system. As another example, the cluster may be configured to provide other capabilities incident to the devices used, such as computational capabilities. Data stored on the cluster may be read from and written directly to the cluster without transfer of data to the data storage system. In some embodiments, a connecting entity (such as a customer entity) may interchangeably interface with the data storage system and the cluster, and the requested capabilities may be directed to either in a fashion that is transparent to the requestor.

Abstract: A data center may include a tape library rack module along with rack computer systems. The rack computer systems may be configured to provide computing capacity within a data center environment. In some embodiments, the tape library rack module may include an enclosure encompassing an interior of the tape library rack module, a rack within the interior, and a tape library unit mounted on the rack. The tape library rack unit may include tape cartridges configured to store data within a tape environment that is different than the data center environment. The tape library rack unit may be within a portion of the interior that is enclosed such that it is environmentally isolated from the data center environment. In some examples, the tape library rack module may include a cooling unit and/or a humidifier unit, which may provide the tape environment to the environmentally isolated portion of the interior of the tape library rack module.

Abstract: A computer system, such as a data storage system, implements techniques for deleting durably stored data without affecting the availability or durability of other data associated therewith. In some embodiments, data is encrypted prior to redundancy coding such that deletion of an encryption key used to encrypt the data renders that data inaccessible, but other data bundled in the same redundancy coded bundle remains available. In such embodiments, a shard containing deleted data may still be usable to regenerate other, non-deleted or live data still extant in the same bundle of shards.

Abstract: One or more grids of redundancy coded shards, such as those stored or otherwise represented on grid encoded storage systems, are combinable or extensible. For example, a generator matrix of a redundancy code may be configured so as to have a sufficient number of fields to generate a grid. The generator matrix may initially be used to generate smaller grids, which can be combined into the target grid without re-encoding most or all of the data represented thereon. In some cases, vertically derived shards of the input grids may be combined using, e.g., matrix addition, which may then be directly allocated to the target grid, while data shards and horizontally derived shards may be allocated to the target grid with no further transformation.

Abstract: Techniques for encoding data storage systems using grid encoded data storage systems are described herein. Data to be stored in a data storage system is obtained and the data is stored in a grid of shards using grid encoding techniques that store the data in a combination of data shards and derived shards. Each of the shards has at least a first index corresponding to one dimension of the grid and a second index corresponding to a second dimension of the grid. Loss of a plurality of data shards can be repaired because each shard is reproducible from one or more shards with a first index that is associated with the first index of the shard and is also reproducible from one or more shards with a second index that is associated with the second index of the shard.

Abstract: Techniques for incrementally updating grid encoding data storage systems are described herein. A grid of shards with a plurality of virtual shards is created where each virtual shard is a representation of a shard in the grid of shards that is not backed by a data storage device and where each shard of the grid of shards has an index value. Data is then stored in the grid of shards by updating a shard to store the data and by also updating a second shard based on a set of shards with the same index value as the shard updated to store the data.

Abstract: Techniques for producing incremental short-term backups while minimizing media access are described herein. A backup request is received that specifies data to backup and a schedule for that backup. The data is then partitioned based on the schedule and, for each of the partitions, it is determined whether to store a full or incremental backup of that partition. Each partition is fully backed up once during a cycle of backups and incrementally backed up at other times. With each full backup of a partition, a reverse delta that can be used to reconstruct the previous full backup for that partition is stored with the full backup.

Abstract: A data center may include a tape library rack module along with rack computer systems. The rack computer systems may be configured to provide computing capacity within a data center environment. In some embodiments, the tape library rack module may include an enclosure encompassing an interior of the tape library rack module, a rack within the interior, and a tape library unit mounted on the rack. The tape library rack unit may include tape cartridges configured to store data within a tape environment that is different than the data center environment. The tape library rack unit may be within a portion of the interior that is enclosed such that it is environmentally isolated from the data center environment. In some examples, the tape library rack module may include a cooling unit and/or a humidifier unit, which may provide the tape environment to the environmentally isolated portion of the interior of the tape library rack module.

Abstract: Techniques for encoding data storage systems using grid-encoded data storage systems with non-parity linear redundancy encoding schemes are described herein. A grid of shards with derived shards and data shards is generated that is indexed by a first index and a second index and is configured so that each shard is reproducible from other shards with the same first index and is also reproducible from other shards with the same second index. The grid of shards is further configured so that each data row of the grid of shards has at least two derived shards and at least twice as many data shards as derived shards.