Abstract: Cameras, radios, televisions, set top boxes, telephones, kitchen appliances, and other electrical devices have their own IP address, and communicate using an internetworking protocol. Of particular interest are those devices that utilize some form of mass storage. Communication of the packets between or among elements can occur using any suitable package switched network (or combination of networks), including the Internet. The preferred protocol for communicating packets is IP, and communication of the packets between elements can advantageously occur by virtualizing a native bus using IP. It is especially contemplated that the inventive elements can be disaggregated outside the housing of a device, at distances of several meters or more. Communication can be hard wired, or can include wireless aspects. Adapters are also contemplated that permit traditional elements to be addressed by their own IP addresses.

Abstract: Communication protocols, systems, and methods that facilitate communication between disaggregated elements, and also to devices adapted to function as such disaggregated elements, particularly across peer-to-peer (masterless) and include one or more unique features such as packet atomicity, blind ACKs, NAT bridging, locking, multicast spanning and mirroring, and authentication.

Abstract: Cameras, radios, televisions, set top boxes, telephones, kitchen appliances, and other electrical devices have their own IP address, and communicate using an internetworking protocol. Of particular interest are those devices that utilize some form of mass storage. Communication of the packets between or among elements can occur using any suitable package switched network (or combination of networks), including the Internet. The preferred protocol for communicating packets is IP, and communication of the packets between elements can advantageously occur by virtualizing a native bus using IP. It is especially contemplated that the inventive elements can be disaggregated outside the housing of a device, at distances of several meters or more. Communication can be hard wired, or can include wireless aspects. Adapters are also contemplated that permit traditional elements to be addressed by their own IP addresses.

Abstract: Communication protocols, systems, and methods that facilitate communication between disaggregated elements, and also to devices adapted to function as such disaggregated elements, particularly across peer-to-peer (masterless) and include one or more unique features such as packet atomicity, blind ACKs, NAT bridging, locking, multicast spanning and mirroring, and authentication.

Abstract: A storage device has partitions that are separately addressed by distinct IP addresses. This allows direct access of the partitions, on a peer-to-peer basis, by any other device that can communicate using IP. Preferred storage devices support spanning between or among partitions of the same device, as well as between or among different storage devices. Both multicast and proxy spanning are contemplated. Combinations of the inventive storage devices with each other, and with prior art storage devices are contemplated, in all manner of mirroring and other arrangements. In still other aspects of the invention, a given storage device can comprise one or more types of media, including any combination of rotating and non-rotating media, magnetic and optical, and so forth.

Abstract: A storage device has partitions that are separately addressed by distinct IP addresses. This allows direct access of the partitions, on a peer-to-peer basis, by any other device that can communicate using IP. Preferred storage devices support spanning between or among partitions of the same device, as well as between or among different storage devices. Both multicast and proxy spanning are contemplated. Combinations of the inventive storage devices with each other, and with prior art storage devices are contemplated, in all manner of mirroring and other arrangements. In still other aspects of the invention, a given storage device can comprise one or more types of media, including any combination of rotating and non-rotating media, magnetic and optical, and so forth.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for providing environmental protection to electronic particularly data storage systems, in order to permit such systems to survive severe mental changes such as those that occur during a fire.

Abstract: Cameras, radios, televisions, set top boxes (118), telephones, kitchen appliances, and other electrical devices have their own IP address, and communicate using an internetworking protocol. Of particular interest are those devices that utilize some form of mass storage. Communication of the packets between or among elements can occur using any suitable package switched network (or combination of networks), including the Internet (142). The preferred protocol for communicating packets is IP, and communication of the packets between elements can advantageously occur by virtualizing a native bus (120) using IP. It is especially contemplated that the inventive elements can be disaggregated outside the housing of a device, at distances of several meters or more. Communication can be hard wired, or can include wireless aspects. Adapters are also contemplated that permit traditional elements to be addressed by their own IP addresses.

Abstract: Communication protocols, systems, and methods that facilitate communication between disaggregated elements, particulary across peer-to-peer (masterless) and include one or more unique features such as packet atomicity (1100), blind ACKs (1800), NAT bridging, locking, multicast spanning and mirroring, and authentication.

Abstract: A storage device (300) has partitions (310A, 310B, 310C, 320A, 320B, 320C, 330) that are separately addressed by distinct IP addresses (IP1, IP2, IP3, IP4, IP5, IP7, IP9). This allows direct access of the partitions (310A, 310B, 310C, 320A, 320B, 320C, 330), on a peer-to-peer basis, by any other device that can communicate using IP. Preferred storage devices support spanning between or among partitions of the same device, as well as between or among different storage devices. Both multicast and proxy spanning are contemplated. Combinations of the inventive storage devices with each other, and with prior art storage devices are contemplated, in all manner of mirroring and other arrangements. In still other aspects of the invention, a given storage device can comprise one or more types of media, including any combination of rotating and non-rotating media, magnetic and optical, and so forth.

Abstract: Communication protocols, systems, and methods that facilitate communication between disaggregated elements, and also to devices adapted to function as such disaggregated elements, particularly across peer-to-peer (masterless) and include one or more unique features such as packet atomicity, blind ACKs, NAT bridging, locking, multicast spanning and mirroring, and authentication.

Abstract: A storage systems comprising a redundant array of multicast storage areas. In a preferred embodiment, such a storage system will utilize multicast devices that are adapted to communicate across a network via encapsulated packets which are split-ID packets comprising both an encapsulating packet and an encapsulated packet; and each of any split-ID packets will also include an identifier that is split such that a portion of the identifier is obtained from the encapsulated packet while another portion is obtained from a header portion of the encapsulating packet. In some embodiments, storage areas of the redundant array share a common multicast address. In the same or other embodiments the storage system will comprise a plurality of RAID sets wherein each raid set comprises a plurality of storage areas sharing a common multicast address.