Proactively optimizing a storage system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11347697-B1
Application number	US-202016828164-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Mar 24, 2020
Priority date	Dec 15, 2015
Publication date	May 31, 2022
Grant date	May 31, 2022

Abstract

Proactively optimizing a storage system, including: generating, at a storage system services provider, a list of problem storage systems among a group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider; selecting a problem storage system from the list of problem storage systems based on two or more criteria; determining a system update for the selected problem storage system to address a problem with the selected problem storage system; and applying the system update to the selected problem storage system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of proactively optimizing a storage system comprising:
generating, at a storage system services provider, a list of problem storage systems among a group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider;
selecting a problem storage system from the list of problem storage systems based on two or more criteria;
determining a system update for the selected problem storage system to address a problem with the selected problem storage system; and
applying the system update to the selected problem storage system.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises adding storage systems from the group of storage systems to the list of problem storage systems based on a number of previous errors encountered by the storage system.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises adding storage systems from the group of storage systems to the list of problem storage systems based on a likelihood that a future error will occur on the storage system.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider further comprises determining, for each problem storage system in the list of problem storage systems, a future date at which an error is likely to occur.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein selecting the problem storage system from the list of problem storage systems based on two or more criteria comprises:
sorting the list of problem storage systems based on an organization to which each problem storage system belongs;
determining a particular organization has an increasing number of total errors reported for problem storage systems belonging to the particular organization; and
selecting the problem storage system from problem storage systems belonging to the particular organization.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises determining a severity of errors reported for each problem storage system in the list of problem storage systems.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the system update to the selected problem storage system comprises remotely updating the storage system without intervention by the organization.

8. An apparatus for proactively optimizing a storage system, the apparatus comprising a computer processor, a computer memory operatively coupled to the computer processor, the computer memory having disposed within it computer program instructions that, when executed by the computer processor, cause the apparatus to carry out the steps of:
generating, at a storage system services provider, a list of problem storage systems among a group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider;
selecting a problem storage system from the list of problem storage systems based on two or more criteria;
determining a system update for the selected problem storage system to address a problem with the selected problem storage system; and
applying the system update to the selected problem storage system.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises adding storage systems from the group of storage systems to the list of problem storage systems based on a number of previous errors encountered by the storage system.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises adding storage systems from the group of storage systems to the list of problem storage systems based on a likelihood that a future error will occur on the storage system.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider further comprises determining, for each problem storage system in the list of problem storage systems, a future date at which an error is likely to occur.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein selecting the problem storage system from the list of problem storage systems based on two or more criteria comprises:
sorting the list of problem storage systems based on an organization to which each problem storage system belongs;
determining a particular organization has an increasing number of total errors reported for problem storage systems belonging to the particular organization; and
selecting the problem storage system from problem storage systems belonging to the particular organization.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises determining a severity of errors reported for each problem storage system in the list of problem storage systems.

14. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein applying the system update to the selected problem storage system comprises remotely updating the storage system without intervention by the organization.

15. A computer program product for proactively optimizing a storage system, the computer program product disposed upon non-transitory computer-readable media, the computer program product comprising computer program instructions that, when executed, cause a computer to carry out the steps of:
generating, at a storage system services provider, a list of problem storage systems among a group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider;
selecting a problem storage system from the list of problem storage systems based on two or more criteria;
determining a system update for the selected problem storage system to address a problem with the selected problem storage system; and
applying the system update to the selected problem storage system.

16. The computer program product of claim 15 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises adding storage systems from the group of storage systems to the list of problem storage systems based on a number of previous errors encountered by the storage system.

17. The computer program product of claim 15 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems monitored by the storage system services provider comprises adding storage systems from the group of storage systems to the list of problem storage systems based on a likelihood that a future error will occur on the storage system.

18. The computer program product of claim 17 , wherein generating, at the storage system services provider, the list of problem storage systems among the group of storage systems mon

Assignees

• Pure Storage Inc

Inventors

• Sullivan Scott
• Borowiec Benjamin
• Zhu Danbing

Classifications

• G06F8/65

  Updates (security arrangements therefor G06F21/57) · CPC title

• G06F11/0781

  Error filtering or prioritizing based on a policy defined by the user or on a policy defined by a hardware/software module, e.g. according to a severity level · CPC title

• G06F11/0727

  in a storage system, e.g. in a DASD or network based storage system (drivers for digital recording or reproducing units G06F3/06; circuits for error detection or correction within digital recording or reproducing units G11B20/18; for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS], H04L67/1097) · CPC title

• G06F11/3034

  where the computing system component is a storage system, e.g. DASD based or network based (digital input from or digital output to record carriers G06F3/06; digital recording or reproducing G11B20/18; for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS], H04L67/1097) · CPC title

• G06F3/067 Primary

  Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS] · CPC title