JPH07121310A - Hard disk storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To efficiently use the capacity to achieve a duplexed file by discriminating a duplexed area and a non-duplexed area of plural bar code disks and switching the access method by the request from a processor. CONSTITUTION:A sector number discriminating part 9 of a disk controller 7 stores the start sector and the end sector of a part to be made duplexed and discriminates whether the sector number given at the time of read or write belongs to the duplexed part or not, and the dual write/read control of stored data to hard disk units 1 and 3 is performed in accordance with the storage write command and stored data or the storage read command from a processor 5. Thus, a part of hard disk units 1 and 3 is made dual, and only data which should be essentially made duplexed is stored there, and thereby, the capacity is efficiently used to achieve the duplexed file.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hard disk storage device used for storing information in an information processing system such as a computer, and more particularly to a hard disk capable of efficiently using a capacity to achieve a duplicated file. Regarding a storage device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in an information processing system such as a computer, a hard disk storage device for storing information in a hard disk is known. Recently, in order to improve the reliability of the information processing system, a dual file hard disk storage device that stores the same data in two hard disk units has been proposed. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a duplicated file state in a conventional hard disk storage device, and a shaded portion in FIG. 10 is a duplicated portion. As shown here, in the conventional duplication, two hard disk units A and B of the same type are used, and the same information is written in the same position of each hard disk unit A and B. That is, the duplication was performed over the entire area of the units A and B. As a result, the higher-level information processing system using this dual hard disk storage device can continue the processing even when one of the hard disk units A and B is in a failed state, and the reliability of the entire system can be improved. It was

As for the usage of each unit in the case of the above-mentioned duplication, in response to a write request from the processing unit of the system, the same information is simultaneously written to the same position of the two units A and B (although there is a slight time difference). ), And a read request is read from the designated position of either unit A or B. If a data error occurs during reading, the data is read from the same position on the other unit, and the read data is written to the part where the error occurred to restore the data. In the event of a failure, the failed unit was not used and only normal units were used to continue operation.

By the way, the main purpose of the duplicated file is to prevent the loss of data due to a failure of the hard disk unit, and although this purpose is naturally achieved by the above-mentioned usage, it is continuous as a whole system. When the operation is not always necessary and only the data loss prevention is required, the above-mentioned usage is wasteful. That is, the data written in the OS unit and the application unit shown in FIG. 10 is data that is installed in advance from another medium, and even if all data is lost, it is data that can be restored by re-installing it from the original medium. is there. On the other hand, the data written in the user data section is new data created by the operation of the processing device, and there is no restoration method when it is completely lost unless the user has backed up to another medium. It is a thing. Therefore, it can be said that this user data part is a part that should be prevented from being lost by duplication. Considering in this way, duplication of the OS part and the application part of FIG. 10 means duplication of the part that does not need to be prevented from being lost, and the disk capacity is wasted. In particular, recent OSs and applications have more functions and larger capacities, so their influence is increasing. As described above, the conventional hard disk storage device has a drawback that the disk capacity cannot be used efficiently.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object thereof is to provide a hard disk storage device which can efficiently use a capacity to achieve a duplicated file. It is to be.

[0006]

To achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a hard disk storage device connected to a processing device and storing predetermined data in duplicate by two hard disk units. A determination means for distinguishing the hard disk from the area, the hard disk access method being switched depending on whether the hard disk access request from the processing apparatus is a duplex area or a non-duplex area, and the hard disk access method is connected to the processing apparatus,
In a hard disk storage device for duplicating and storing predetermined data by a hard disk unit, a judging means for distinguishing a duplicated area and a non-duplicated area of the hard disk unit, and a sector in a designated area of the hard disk unit given from the processing device. And a conversion means for searching the correspondence relationship according to the table, and switching the access method depending on whether the hard disk access request from the processing device is a duplex area or a non-duplication area. ,
When accessing the duplicated area, the hard disk unit is accessed according to the correspondence relationship between the sectors. As a result of having the configuration as described above, it is possible to duplicate a part of the hard disk unit and store only the indispensable data of the duplication therein.
Thereby, the capacity can be efficiently used to achieve the duplicated file.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic block configuration diagram of a hard disk storage device embodying the present invention. As shown in Figure 1,
This hard disk storage device includes two hard disk units 1 and 3 for storing data, and storage data for the hard disk units 1 and 3 according to a storage write command and storage data or a storage read command from the processing device 5 of the information processing system. And a disk controller 7 for controlling redundant writing and reading.

Here, the hard disk unit 1,
Reference numeral 3 is of the same format, and as shown in FIG. 2, only the user data portion indicated by diagonal lines is duplicated and filed in the same sector position. In the hard disk unit 1, the OS section is stored in the sector above the user data section, and in the hard disk unit 3, the application section is stored in the sector above the user data section. It has become like.

Returning to FIG. 1, the disk controller 7 stores the start sector and end sector to be duplicated, and determines whether the sector number given at the time of reading or writing is the duplicated portion. Sector number judging unit 9 for judging data and data buffer 1 for temporarily holding data
1 and the first and second I / F units 13 and 15 for performing a read or write interface with the hard disk units 1 and 3, and a control unit 17 for controlling the disk controller 7. is doing.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment of the hard disk storage device will be described with reference to the operation flowchart of FIG. First, in step 101 of FIG. 3, the entire system is initialized. At this time, the processor 5 instructs the controller 17 of the disk controller 7 to use the hard disk, that is, the start sector of the area to be duplicated. And the end sector indication is sent. And
The contents of the start sector and the end sector of the duplicated area are sent from the control unit 17 to the sector number judgment unit 9 and stored therein. Here, the duplicated areas of the hard disk units 1 and 3 are areas where the user data section is stored, as shown in FIG.

Next, in step 103, an instruction to access the control unit 17 from the processing device 5 (for example,
When a read or write from the 25 sectors of the unit 1) is issued, in step 105, the controller 17 determines whether the access is for reading or writing. And
In the case of reading, in step 107, the sector number (25 sectors) is sent to the sector number determination unit 9 and it is determined whether or not the sector number is within the duplex area.

If the sector number is within the duplex area in step 107, step 109
First, the sector number of the hard disk unit 1 is accessed to read the data. If a data error occurs when accessing the hard disk unit 1, the hard disk unit 3
It is only necessary to access the same sector number of. If the sector number is outside the duplex area in step 107, the data is read from the sector number of the designated unit in step 111.

If it is judged to be a write in step 105, the sector number is sent to the sector number judgment unit 9 in step 113, and it is judged whether or not the sector number is in the duplex area. . If the sector number is within the duplicated area in step 113, the sector numbers of both hard disk units 1 and 3 are accessed to write data in step 115. Step 1 above
If the sector number is out of the duplex area in 13, the data is written in the sector number of the designated unit in step 117.

As described above, in the case of the first embodiment, the conventional duplexing of the entire unit is duplicated in a part of the unit, so that the non-duplicating unit can be used for each unit separately. Therefore, the total effective capacity is increased. For example, when a hard disk having a capacity of 300 MB is used, the actual capacity remains 300 MB even if two units are used in the conventional usage shown in FIG. On the other hand, if the usage shown in FIG.
If 150MB of B is duplicated, the remaining 150M
B has a capacity of substantially 450 MB because different OSs, applications, etc. can be written. On the contrary, if you use 150MB for OS and application, divide this into 2 units.
By taking 5 MB each, the duplicated portion as the user data portion can be widened to 225 MB, and the capacity can be effectively used.

Next, a second embodiment of the hard disk storage device according to the present invention will be described. First, the above-mentioned two hard disk units are not necessarily of the same type but may be units of different capacities as long as they have a capacity equal to or larger than the capacity to be duplicated. Therefore, in the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, hard disk units 19 and 21 of different formats are used, and the user data section is stored with the areas of different sector numbers shown by hatching as duplex areas. ing. However, both units 19 and 21 have the same format and one sector capacity.

Therefore, in the hard disk storage device of the second embodiment, as shown in FIG.
A conversion table creating unit 23 that creates a one-to-one correspondence relationship with one individual sector, and a sector number conversion that converts the sector numbers between both units 19 and 21 according to the one-to-one conversion table created above. The part 25 and the first
It has a configuration added to the apparatus of the embodiment. The other structure is similar to that of the first embodiment, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Next, the operation of the second embodiment will be described with reference to the operation flowchart of FIG. First, in step 121 of FIG. 6, the entire system is initialized, and the processing device 5 specifies to the control unit 17 the duplicated area of the hard disk unit 19 and the duplicated area of the hard disk unit 21. Then, in step 123, the contents of the duplicated areas of both units 19 and 21 are sent from the control unit 17 to the conversion table creating unit 23, and the conversion table showing the correspondence between the sector numbers of both units 19 and 21. Is created,
In step 125, the conversion table is stored in the sector number conversion unit 25, and the duplicated areas of both units 19 and 21 are stored in the sector number determination unit 9.

Next, in step 127, an instruction to access the control unit 17 from the processing device 5 (for example,
When the reading or writing from the 25 sectors of the unit 1 is issued, in step 129, the control unit 17 determines whether the access is for reading or writing. Then, in the case of reading, in step 131, the sector number (25 sectors) is sent to the sector number determination unit 9 and it is determined whether or not the sector number is within the duplex area.

If the sector number is within the duplex area in step 131, step 133
First, the sector number of the hard disk unit 19 is accessed to read the data. Then, when a data error occurs in the access to the hard disk unit 19, the sector number conversion unit 25 obtains the sector number of the unit 21 from the sector number of the unit 19 and the unit 2
The sector number 1 is accessed and read.

If the sector number is outside the duplex area in step 131, the data is read from the sector number of the designated unit in step 135. When it is judged to be the write in step 129, the sector number is sent to the sector number judgment unit 9 in step 137, and it is judged whether or not the sector number is in the duplex area. When the sector number is within the duplex area in step 137, the sector number conversion unit 25 obtains the sector number of the unit 21 from the sector number of the unit 19 in step 139.
The sector numbers of both units 19 and 21 are accessed to write data. If the sector number is outside the duplicated area in step 137, data is written in the sector number of the designated unit in step 141.

As described above, in the case of the second embodiment, in addition to the effect of the first embodiment, there is an effect that even if the two units have different types, the data loss can be prevented by duplication. . In the above example, if the portion to be duplicated is 150 MB, the first unit is set to 300 MB, and the second unit is set to 150 MB, which has the effect of reducing the unit cost.

Next, a third embodiment of the hard disk device according to the present invention will be described. First, the cause of data loss on the hard disk is the partial access failure due to the unevenness of the magnetic material on the magnetic disk, which is the storage medium, and the scratches on the board, and the motor failure and circuit failure that affect the entire unit. Can be considered. The methods of the first and second embodiments can cope with data loss due to these two factors. By the way, as for the frequency of occurrence of these two factors, partial access failure is significantly greater. Therefore, in the third embodiment, attention is paid to this point, and only the data loss due to the partial access failure is dealt with, and the number of units is one and the data duplication is realized.

That is, in the third embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, different sector positions a-1 to a-2 and b-1 to b of one hard disk unit 27, which have the same capacity and are shown by diagonal lines, are shown. The user data part is duplicated and stored in -2. Therefore, in this third embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, one I / F section 13 is provided corresponding to one unit 27, and other configurations are the same as those of the second embodiment shown in FIG.
It is similar to the embodiment. Here, the sector positions a-1 to a-2 of the hard disk unit 27 are referred to as a first region, the sector positions b-1 to b-2 are referred to as a second region, and the other sector positions are referred to as a third region.

Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described with reference to the operation flowchart of FIG. First, in step 143 of FIG. 6, the initialization of the entire system is performed, and the two duplicated areas (the first area and the second area) of the hard disk unit 27 are designated from the processing device 5 to the control unit 17. Be seen. Then, in step 145, the control unit 17 causes the unit 27 to
The contents of the duplicated area are sent to the conversion table creating section 23, a conversion table showing the correspondence of the sector numbers between the first and second areas of the unit 27 is created, and in step 147, the conversion table is created. The sector number and conversion unit 25 stores the unit 27
The duplicated area of is stored in the sector number determination unit 9.

Next, in step 149, when the processor 5 issues an access instruction to the controller 17, it is determined in step 151 whether the access is for reading or writing. This is performed by the control unit 17. Then, in the case of reading, in step 153, the sector number is sent to the sector number determination unit 9 and it is determined whether or not the sector number is within the duplex area.

If the sector number is within the duplex area in step 153, step 155
In the first step, first, the sector number in the first area of the hard disk unit 27 is accessed to read data. Then, if a data error occurs during access in the first area of the hard disk unit 27, the sector number conversion unit 25 converts the sector number of the unit 27 to the sector number of the second area of the unit 27. Is obtained, and the sector number of the second area is accessed and read. Step 15 above
When the sector number is outside the duplex area in 3,
In step 157, data is read from the sector number of the third area of the designated unit.

If it is determined in step 151 that writing is to be performed, then in step 159, the sector number is sent to the sector number determining section 9 to determine whether or not the sector number is within the duplex area. . If the sector number is within the duplex area in step 159, the sector number conversion unit 25 obtains the sector number of the second area from the sector number of the first area of the unit 27 in step 161. Data is written by accessing the sector numbers in the first and second areas. If the sector number is outside the duplex area in step 159, data is written to the sector number in the third area of the designated unit in step 163.

[0028]

According to the present invention, a part of the hard disk is duplicated so that only the data which is essential for duplication is stored. Can be used efficiently to achieve dual files.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic block configuration diagram of a hard disk storage device embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a duplicated file state in the hard disk storage device shown in FIG.

3 is an operation flowchart of the hard disk storage device shown in FIG.

4 is an explanatory diagram showing a duplicated file state in the hard disk storage device shown in FIG. 5. FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block configuration diagram of a second embodiment of a hard disk storage device according to the present invention.

6 is an operation flowchart of the hard disk storage device shown in FIG.

7 is an explanatory diagram showing a duplicated file state in the hard disk storage device shown in FIG. 8. FIG.

FIG. 8 is a schematic block configuration diagram of a third embodiment of a hard disk storage device according to the present invention.

9 is an operation flowchart of the hard disk storage device shown in FIG.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a duplicated file state in a conventional hard disk storage device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 3, 19, 21, 27, A, B ... Hard disk unit, 5 ... Processing device, 7
... disk control device, 9 ... sector number determination unit,
11 ... Data buffer, 13, 15 ... I / F
Section, 17 ... control section, 23 ... conversion table creation section, 25 ... sector number conversion section,
101-163 ... Each step,

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A hard disk storage device, which is connected to a processing device and stores predetermined data in a duplicated manner by two hard disk units, comprising a determination means for distinguishing a duplicated area and a non-duplicated area of the hard disk unit. A hard disk storage device, wherein the hard disk access method is switched depending on whether the hard disk access request from the processing device is a dual area or a non-duplex area. 2. A hard disk storage device which is connected to a processing device and which stores predetermined data in a duplicated form by a hard disk unit, wherein the determination device distinguishes between a duplicated region and a non-duplicated region of the hard disc unit, and the processing device. And a conversion means for searching the correspondence relationship according to the table, and a means for creating a table for determining the correspondence relationship between the sectors in the designated area of the hard disk unit given by A hard disk storage device characterized in that the access method is switched depending on whether it is a duplex area or a non-duplex area, and when accessing the duplex area, the hard disk unit is accessed according to the correspondence relationship between the sectors. 3. The hard disk storage device according to claim 2, wherein two hard disk units are provided, and the duplicated area is provided in each of the two hard disk units. 4. The hard disk drive according to claim 2, wherein the duplicated area is provided in one hard disk unit.