JP3400398B2 - Storage management system - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a storage management system, and more particularly to a storage management system for reconstructing a logical disk configuration which is obtained by allocating a physical disk to a plurality of logical disks.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between a physical disk and a logical disk of a storage management system.

Conventionally, when a storage such as the storage device 8 shown in FIG. 8 is used in a computer system, the physical disk 81 in the storage device is not used as it is in a physical unit, but a plurality of physical disks are used. It is common to make a disk appear as one logical disk, or to make a predetermined part of the physical disk appear as a plurality of logical disks. This is because by adopting the logical disk configuration, it is possible to construct a flexible disk configuration that is suitable for the user's environment and usage situation. Conventionally, when generating the above logical disk configuration,
By constructing a new logical disk configuration considering only the access performance of the storage device and the remaining storage capacity,
It tried to use the disk space efficiently.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a conventional storage management system.

As shown in FIG. 7, a conventional storage management system includes a plurality of host computers 6 connected to a network, a plurality of storage devices 7, a storage management device 63, a storage device information storage database 64, and a storage device information storage database 64. It comprises a logical disk configuration management unit 631 included in the storage management device 63 and a logical disk configuration database 634.

The conventional storage management system having such a configuration operates as follows.

That is, when a plurality of physical disks are added to a logical disk configuration, which physical disk is added to which logical disk configuration is determined. At that time, each physical disk held in the storage device information storage database is determined. Of the available physical disks, the one with the best access performance was selected as a candidate. Alternatively, when a new storage device is added to the system to increase the capacity of an existing logical disk, the storage device information storage database stores it when deciding which logical disk and how much disk capacity should be added. The remaining capacity of each logical disk is referred to, and the physical disk is added as a candidate from the disk with the smallest remaining capacity. Eventually, a new logical disk configuration candidate was created by integrating these pieces of information.

[0008]

However, the above conventional technique has a problem that a logical disk is constructed without reflecting the history of disk usage from the past to the present. That is, the configuration of the new logical disk remains at the stage of being constructed on the basis of the performance of the storage device and the remaining amount of the storage area at the time of configuring the logical disk.

Further, the above-mentioned conventional technique has a problem that the construction of the logical disk is made without reflecting the deterioration of the performance due to the correlation between the plurality of accesses. That is, the configuration of the new logical disk remains at the stage of being constructed in consideration of the average performance of access to one device and the performance value of one access.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems in the conventional storage management system as described above, and has a logical disk configuration which can improve the access performance and the use efficiency of the disk area. It is an object of the present invention to provide a storage management system that can be rebuilt.

[0011]

According to the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems, a storage management system of a computer system comprising a plurality of host computers and a plurality of storage devices connected to a network is provided to access the storage devices. An access information history database storing information history and an access information history storing history information of access information corresponding to an access request sent from a user to the storage device via the host computer in the access information history database. Recording means, access information history analysis means for analyzing history information of access information accumulated in the access information history database and creating a new logical disk configuration candidate based on the analysis result, and the access information history analysis By means Based on the analysis result, characterized by having a disk configuration competence diagnosis means for determining the effect of the new logical disk configuration above, thereby achieving the above object.

Here, the access information history analysis means finds access conflict among the plurality of storage devices in time series based on the history information of the access information accumulated in the access information history database. At the same time, calculate the increase rate of the used disk capacity of each logical disk or the decrease rate of the remaining disk capacity over time,
A logical disk whose capacity should be increased can be determined and a new logical disk configuration candidate can be determined based on the disk capacity increment information within a predetermined fixed period.

Further, the category of the record items of the access information history database may include the access time, the identifier of the request source host computer, the identifier of the access destination logical disk, the type of access, and the write data amount. .

Further, the access information history analyzing means and the disk configuration validity diagnosing means are required to add or delete a new storage device, or to reconfigure the system including a structural review for improving system efficiency. It can be started at any time.

Further, the present invention for solving the above problems is a program for causing a computer to execute a method for storage management of a computer system comprising a plurality of host computers and a plurality of storage devices connected to a network. Is a computer-readable recording medium in which the history information of access information corresponding to an access request sent from a user to the storage device via the host computer is stored in an access information history database. An access information history recording step, an access information history analysis step of analyzing history information of access information accumulated in the access information history database, and creating a new logical disk configuration candidate based on the analysis result; Access information history solution Based on the analysis result by means, characterized by having a disk configuration competence diagnosis determining the effect of the new logical disk configuration above,
As a result, the above object can be achieved.

In the access information history analysis step, an access conflict between the plurality of storage devices in time series is found based on the history information of the access information accumulated in the access information history database. At the same time, calculate the increase rate of the used disk capacity or the decrease rate of the remaining disk capacity of each logical disk over time,
A logical disk whose capacity should be increased can be determined and a new logical disk configuration candidate can be determined based on the disk capacity increment information within a predetermined fixed period.

Further, the category of the record items of the access information history database may include the access time, the identifier of the requesting host computer, the identifier of the access destination logical disk, the type of access, and the write data amount. .

Further, in the access information history analysis step and the disk configuration validity diagnosis step, there is a demand for system reconfiguration including the addition and deletion of a new storage device or a structural review for system efficiency improvement. Can be performed at any time.

That is, in the present invention, the configuration of the newly constructed logical disk is judged from the past access status (ie, access history) to the physical disk, and more specifically, each storage device. The host computer or the host computer is provided with an access information history recording means capable of storing the access information together with the elapsed time information in the access information history database in response to the access request from the user, and the access accumulated by the means. Based on the information history, the access information history analysis means on the computer for managing the storage in the system that operates as the storage management device accesses the physical disks in a time series and the relation between the plurality of storage devices. Discriminating access information, and further disc The validity of the newly constructed logical disk configuration is judged by the validity diagnosing means, and if the newly constructed logical disk configuration is valid, this is adopted as the new logical disk configuration in the system. With this configuration, it is possible to improve the access performance in the computer system and improve the use efficiency of the disk area.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a storage management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The storage management system according to the present embodiment is provided with a host computer group 1, a storage device group 2, a storage management device 3, an access information history database 4, and a logical disk configuration database, each connected to a network. Including 34.

Each host computer of the host computer group 1 and each storage device of the storage device group 2 are provided with an access information history recording section 5 which operates under program control.

The storage management device 3 includes a logical disk management unit 31, an access information history analysis unit 33, and a disk configuration validity diagnosis unit 32, and the logical disk management unit 31 stores data in the system (that is, the storage device group 2). The physical disk 21 held by the logical disk 2
It is shown to the user (that is, the host computer 1) as 2.

The function of each component of the storage management system according to this embodiment will be described below.

The access information history recording unit 5 records a history of access information indicating what kind of access is made within the elapsed time when each host computer 1 accesses each of the above storage devices. The access information history analysis unit 5 refers to the access information history database 4 in which the history of the above access information is stored and the logical disk configuration database 34 controlled by the logical disk management unit 31, and refers to the disk access performance and the storage capacity. Detects the logical disk configuration corresponding to the access information that seems to make the allocation of
Create a new logical disk configuration candidate. The disk configuration validity diagnosis unit 32 checks whether or not the disk access performance and storage capacity allocation in the entire system are improved when the created logical disk configuration candidate is adopted, and the logical disk configuration If it can be judged to be appropriate, considering the work overhead associated with the change,
A message is sent to the storage administrator to adopt the logical disk configuration as a subsequent logical disk configuration or as a system configuration.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of recorded contents of the access information history database of the storage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

The recorded items of the access information history database 4 can include, for example, access time, requester host computer identifier, access destination logical disk identifier, access type, write data amount, and the like.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the overall operation of the storage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

The operation of the access information history database will be described below using the flowchart shown in FIG. 3 with reference to FIGS.

When constructing the system, in step S1,
A logical disk configuration is created on the physical disk of each storage device in the system and operation is started.

During normal operation, in steps S2 and S3,
In response to an access from one of the host computers 1 to the storage device group 2,
The process of the access information history recording unit 5 is executed to record the access time and the access information in the access information history database 4. The recording in the access information history database 4 can be performed in parallel with the original access processing (that is, the processing of returning a result in response to an access request) to avoid the influence on the access performance. is there. Details of the processing of the access information history recording unit 5 will be described later with reference to FIG.

In step S4, it is determined whether or not the existing logical disk configuration is to be reviewed at the time when a request is made to add or delete a new storage device or restructure the structure for efficiency. If the above-mentioned review is to be carried out, the process proceeds to step S5, and if the review is not to be carried out, the process returns to step S2.

In step S5, the processing of the access information history analysis unit 33 is executed. Access information history analysis unit 33
The details of the process will be described later with reference to FIG.

In steps S6 and S7, the processing of the disk configuration validity diagnosis section 32 is executed to judge whether or not a valid logical disk configuration candidate has been generated. Details of the processing of the disk configuration validity diagnosis unit 32 will be described later with reference to FIG.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the processing operation of the access information history recording unit 5 of the storage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Here, as the access information, the identifier of the request source host computer, the identifier of the access destination logical disk, the type of access, the write data amount, and the access time are recorded in the access information history database 4. This operation is performed in cooperation with each host computer and storage device in the system during normal operation.
The execution is performed in parallel with the original access process (that is, the process of returning the result in response to the access request).

Step A1 is step S2 shown in FIG.
This is a process corresponding to the above process, and receives an access request to a certain logical disk sent from the host computer by the user.

Step A2 is the above-mentioned original access processing (that is, the above-mentioned logical disk returns the result in response to the access request). This processing is executed in parallel with the processing of steps A3 to A5 described below.

At step A3, the access information history recording unit 5 relating to the access source host computer of the host computer group 1 and the access destination storage device, the access request source host computer identifier, the access destination logical disk identifier, The type of access, the amount of write data, etc. are specified.

At step A4, the above-mentioned access request source host computer identifier, access destination logical disk identifier, access type, write data amount, etc., and access time are stored in the computer in which the access information history database 4 exists. (That is, the storage management device 3).

At step A5, the storage management device 3
Stores the transmitted history information in the access information history database 4.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the processing operation of the access information history analysis unit 33 of the storage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Here, the access information stored in the access information history database 4 is analyzed and new logical disk configuration candidates are created.

In step B1, the access information history analysis unit 33 searches the data in the access information history database 4 and detects a logical disk whose access time falls within a predetermined fixed time. Here, the time interval for detecting the access conflict is given to the system in advance.

Next, in step B2, a physical disk as an element constituting the detected logical disk is referred to, and a combination of logical disks using the same physical disk is detected. In step B3, the logical disk configuration is changed so as to reduce the detected combinations as much as possible, and new logical disk configuration candidates are created. At this time, a predetermined threshold is set in advance so that too many physical disks cannot be set as one logical disk, and when adding physical disks to the logical disk, the total count Does not exceed the threshold.

Next, at step B4, the access information for each logical disk is extracted from the access information history database, and at step B5 the increase rate of the used disk capacity of each logical disk (or the remaining disk capacity Calculate the rate of decrease.

Finally, in steps B6 and B7, a logical disk whose capacity is to be increased is determined from the above-mentioned increase rate according to how much the disk capacity has increased in a certain period, and a new logical disk configuration candidate is determined. . This decision estimates the capacity change from the time from the previous disk configuration review to the current disk configuration review until the next disk configuration review, and when the disk capacity becomes insufficient beyond the prescribed threshold (percentage of remaining capacity), , By adding a new physical disk to the logical disk configuration.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing operation of the disk configuration validity diagnosis unit 32 of the storage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Here, by applying the generated logical disk configuration candidate to this system, it is diagnosed whether or not the system is effective as a whole.

In step C1, the disk configuration validity diagnosing section 32 calculates, for each of the generated logical disk configurations, the efficiency-improving element when adopting it as a pair of a performance element and a capacity element ( (Performance improvement rate due to deletion of access contention and reduction rate of remaining capacity due to addition of disk capacity). In addition, overhead elements (restore time of physical disks and maintenance time for adding physical disks) when the system configuration is changed to each of the above logical disk configurations are calculated. Then, the effectiveness of the logical disk configuration candidate is calculated from the above efficiency improving factor and overhead factor. The degree of effect can be obtained, for example, by the following formula.

Effectiveness = √ (aA ² + bB ² ) −√ (cC ² + dD ² ), where A is the performance improvement rate, B is the remaining capacity reduction rate, C is the restore time, and D is the maintenance time. Variable and coefficient
a, b, c, d are constants indicating weights. The weighting factors a, b,
c, d, the above A, B, C, of the D, and shall depend whether advance which element is important.

At step C2, the logical disk configuration candidates that give the above-mentioned degree of effectiveness below a predetermined threshold are discarded.

Finally, in step C3, the logical disk configurations corresponding to the calculated effect levels are incorporated as new logical disk configurations in the order of the calculated effect levels.

A program for causing the above storage management device to perform the above processing, such as a program for executing the processing shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 3 to 6, is C
It may be stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as a D-ROM or a magnetic tape and distributed. Then, a computer including at least a microcomputer, a personal computer, and a general-purpose computer in the category may read the program from the recording medium and execute the program.

[0056]

According to the present invention described above, the disk area can be used efficiently by reducing the inclusion of useless physical disk areas in the logical disk configuration.

Moreover, since the number of times of contention for access to the physical disk is reduced by physically separating the storage devices that are frequently accessed at the same time, the access performance can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a storage management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of recorded contents of an access information history database of the storage management system according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the storage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a processing operation of the access information history recording unit 5 of the storage management system according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a processing operation of an access information history analysis unit 33 of the storage management system according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing operation of the disk configuration validity diagnosis unit 32 of the storage management system according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a conventional storage management system.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a relationship between a physical disk and a logical disk of the storage management system.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Host computer group 2 Storage device group 3 Storage management device 4 Access information history database 5 Access information history recording section 21 physical disk 22 Logical disk 31 Logical Disk Management Unit 32 Disk configuration validity diagnosis section 33 Access information history analysis unit 34 Logical Disk Configuration Database

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G06F 3/06-3/08 G06F 12/00 531

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A plurality of logical disks of a plurality of physical disks.
To manage the logical disk configuration for allocation to
In the storage management system, Host identification information about the accessed host, access
Physical disk identification for the physical disk
Includes information, access time, and data volume related to access
Access information history database that stores access information history
And Located on each host computer and each physical disk,
The access to be stored in the access information database.
Access information used to generate process information history
A history storage section, Logical disk configuration data that stores the logical disk configuration
Tabata, The access information history database and the logical disk
Network configuration database, refer to the
Detects a combination of logical disks with conflicting access
And try to reduce the detected combinations as much as possible
Change the logical disk configuration to create a new logical disk structure.
Access information history analysis unit that creates success candidates, A storage management system comprising: 2. The storage management system according to claim 1.
In the The access information history analysis unit is configured to access the access information history.
Browse the database to see the usage disks for each logical disk.
Calculate the rate of increase in capacity and calculate the capacity based on the rate of increase.
Determine the logical disk to be increased and
The feature is that it is reflected in the candidate of the logical disk configuration
Storage management system. 3. Storage management according to claim 1 or 2.
In the system, Calculating the effectiveness of the new logical disk candidate,
Of the new logical disk whose effectiveness is below the threshold
A disk configuration validity diagnosis unit for discarding candidates is further provided.
A storage management system characterized by that. 4. A plurality of logical disks of a plurality of physical disks.
To manage the logical disk configuration for allocation to
A storage management system, Host identification information about the accessed host, access
Physical disk identification for the physical disk
Information, access time and data related to access Including quantity
Access information history database that stores access information history
On each host computer and each physical disk.
Stored in the access information database
The access used to generate the access information history.
Process information history storage section, Logical disk configuration data that stores the logical disk configuration
Tabata, The access information history database and the logical disk
Network configuration database, refer to the
Detects a combination of logical disks with conflicting access
And try to reduce the detected combinations as much as possible
Change the logical disk configuration to create a new logical disk structure.
Access information history analysis unit that creates success candidates, The access information of the storage management system including
A program for operating a computer as a history analysis unit
Computer read characterized by recording ram
Possible recording medium. 5. A computer readable according to claim 4.
In possible recording media, The access information history analysis unit is configured to access the access information history.
Browse the database to see the usage disks for each logical disk.
Calculate the rate of increase in capacity and calculate the capacity based on the rate of increase.
Determine the logical disk to be increased and
The feature is that it is reflected in the candidate of the logical disk configuration
Computer readable recording medium. 6. The computer reading according to claim 4 or 5.
In recordable recording media, The storage management system uses the new logical disk
The effectiveness of each candidate is calculated, and the effectiveness is below the threshold.
The new logical disk candidate that is
Further comprises a configuration validity diagnosis unit, The computer-readable recording medium is the computer
Also functions as a disk configuration validity diagnosis unit.
Computer-readable record characterized by
Medium.