High speed fault tolerant mass storage network information server

Abstract

The information server system incorporates a high speed, microcomputer based server running industry standard operating system software enhanced to include functionality directed to operation of a new disk array controller, which controls the physically independent or integral disk storage device array, and communications interface. The disk array controller subsystem controls and communicates with the disk storage device array with a Fibre Channel protocol. The disk storage device array incorporates a plurality of disk storage devices with a corresponding number of bypass interface cards configured to facilitate the on-line addition, removal and replacement of disk storage devices. In additional to incorporating the above described buses and Fibre Channel capability, the disk array further incorporates a physically independent Fibre Channel compatible optical bus for high speed, communication between disk storage device array subsystem components, including the internal disk storage devices, independent from the information server. A wide array of user reconfigurable options are available as well as a scalable expansion capability.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is based upon Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 077,643, filed Mar. 10, 1998.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] This invention relates to a “plug and play”, high speed, microcomputer based, Fibre Channel compatible and fault tolerant mass storage information server system. In particular, the present invention relates to a device and method for providing an enterprise-wide information server system which incorporates a dual loop arbitrated, Fibre Channel capable, multiple-fault tolerant, hot-swappable disk array requiring no host computer. [0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art [0005] Efforts have been made in the past to provide a mass storage file server capable of delivering information throughout an enterprise with high speed data throughput, scalable data storage capability in a convenient, easily configurable enclosure using well known, industry standard operating software. However, such syst...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The system provides continuous operation and non-degraded performance during storage expansion and maintenance, reducing the need for manual intervention and system resources, enabling efficient and cost-effective scalability and fault tolerance.

Problems solved by technology

However, such systems have typically experienced many shortcomings and problems associated with the inability of presently available computer and communications hardware to sustain performance and survive failure of component devices.

Such shortcomings have included the lack of capability to allow for scalability to accommodate increased storage requirements without the need to completely power down information server system to facilitate installation of additional disk storage devices or communications capability.

This and other comparable or more capable server systems require a significant amount of system administrator personnel time and server system resources to facilitate system maintenance for expansion of storage space, repair, and routine maintenance such as optimization and system health monitoring.

Other problems existing in the presently available information server systems include a general inability of the present technology to provide continuous information server capability after some predetermined number of failures have occurred in the server system.

Some prior art information server systems have provided a limited fault tolerance capability.

Such systems, however, require considerable hands-on intervention of the system administrator personnel to manually manipulate the hardware interfaces and operating system software for purposes of physically and logically reintegrating the newly replaced disk device into the disk array subsystem.

Also, the systems capable of hot-swapping, experience severe degradation of performance resulting from the process of taking corrective action.

This need for server system resources, although temporary, results in a severe decrease in the performance of the information server system.

The second type of system is, in effect, unavailable to the users due to the seriously degraded performance experienced by the information server system during the system maintenance operation.

As a result of the problems and shortcomings of the technology incorporated into the presently available information server systems, users are left without a satisfactory server system which is capable of, among other features, continuous uninterrupted availability, nondegraded performance and simplified, quick and easy storage space expansion, reconfiguration, repair and routine maintenance.

None of the previous devices have adequately met these needs.

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