Patents by Inventor Randall Alan Pare

Randall Alan Pare has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking
    Patent number: 7930697
    Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking. The present invention distributes a task across a set of controllers acting in a cooperative rather than a master/slave nature to perform discrete components of the subject task on an as-available basis. This minimizes the amount of time required to perform incidental data manipulation tasks, thus reducing the duration of instances of degraded system performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Dennis McKean, Randall Alan Pare
  • APPARATUS FOR COOPERATIVE DISTRIBUTED TASK MANAGEMENT IN A STORAGE SUBSYSTEM WITH MULTIPLE CONTROLLERS USING CACHE LOCKING
    Publication number: 20090119666
    Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking. The present invention distributes a task across a set of controllers acting in a cooperative rather than a master/slave nature to perform discrete components of the subject task on an as-available basis. This minimizes the amount of time required to perform incidental data manipulation tasks, thus reducing the duration of instances of degraded system performance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2009
    Publication date: May 7, 2009
    Applicant: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Brian Dennis McKean, Randall Alan Pare
  • Method and apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking
    Patent number: 7480909
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking. The present invention distributes a task across a set of controllers acting in a cooperative rather than a master/slave nature to perform discrete components of the subject task on an as-available basis. This minimizes the amount of time required to perform incidental data manipulation tasks, thus reducing the duration of instances of degraded system performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Dennis McKean, Randall Alan Pare
  • Method and apparatus for using cache coherency locking to facilitate on-line volume expansion in a multi-controller storage system
    Patent number: 6862668
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for using cache coherency locking to facilitate on-line volume expansion in a multi-controller storage device. A volume set is divided into segments by a first controller. The first controller acquires a cache lock for one of the segments of the volume set to be expanded. A second controller is provided access to any non-cache-locked segments of data during the expansion while safeguarding integrity of the segment undergoing expansion. The first controller also provides the second controller information regarding the expansion so that the second controller may, in the event the first controller fails, perform the expansion using a backup copy of the segment being expanded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2005
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Dennis McKean, Randall Alan Pare
  • Method and apparatus for using cache coherency locking to facilitate on-line volume expansion in a multi-controller storage system
    Publication number: 20030163655
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for using cache coherency locking to facilitate on-line volume expansion in a multi-controller storage device. A volume set is divided into segments by a first controller. The first controller acquires a cache lock for one of the segments of the volume set to be expanded. A second controller is provided access to any non-cache-locked segments of data during the expansion while safeguarding integrity of the segment undergoing expansion. The first controller also provides the second controller information regarding the expansion so that the second controller may, in the event the first controller fails, perform the expansion using a backup copy of the segment being expanded.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2002
    Publication date: August 28, 2003
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Dennis McKean, Randall Alan Pare
  • Method and apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking
    Publication number: 20030163509
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for cooperative distributed task management in a storage subsystem with multiple controllers using cache locking. The present invention distributes a task across a set of controllers acting in a cooperative rather than a master/slave nature to perform discrete components of the subject task on an as-available basis. This minimizes the amount of time required to perform incidental data manipulation tasks, thus reducing the duration of instances of degraded system performance.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2002
    Publication date: August 28, 2003
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Dennis McKean, Randall Alan Pare