Managing data storage by provisioning cache as a virtual device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9037795-B1
Application number	US-201314085195-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Nov 20, 2013
Priority date	Sep 6, 2011
Publication date	May 19, 2015
Grant date	May 19, 2015

Abstract

There is disclosed herein techniques for use in managing data storage in a data storage system comprising a cache and data storage devices. In one embodiment, the technique comprises setting a hot spare capacity value for a virtual hot spare device in a data storage system. The technique also comprises detecting the state of data storage devices in a RAID configuration in the data storage system. The technique further comprises determining if a cache in the data storage system has free capacity corresponding to the hot spare capacity value in response to detecting a failure state in connection with at least one of the data storage devices in the RAID configuration. The technique still further comprises provisioning at least a portion of the cache as the virtual hot spare device with a capacity corresponding to the hot spare capacity value in response to determining the cache has free capacity corresponding to the hot spare capacity value.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for use in managing data storage, the method comprising:
providing a cache comprising first, second and third segments, the first segment for provisioning as a virtual hot spare device, the second segment for storing synchronized data, the third segment for storing unsynchronized data;
detecting the state of data storage devices in a RAID configuration;
in response to detecting a failure state in connection with at least one of the data storage…

Assignees

• Emc Corp

Inventors

• Linnell Thomas E
• O'Brien Iii Walter A

Classifications

• G06F11/1088 Primary

  Physics · mapped topic

• G06F11/2082

  Physics · mapped topic

• G06F12/0866 Primary

  Physics · mapped topic