Synchronization system and method for storages with different access speeds

1. An information processing device provided with a first storage with an access speed different from that of a second storage, comprising:

an access request acknowledging unit configured to acknowledge a request for access to a storage from an application designed to perform a synchronization process on the assumption that the speed of access will be the access speed of the second storage;

an access execution unit configured to perform a process of accessing the first storage in response to a request for access;

an access time estimation unit configured to estimate the required time needed to access the second storage in response to a request for access, in accordance with an evaluation function for calculating the required time;

an adjustment unit configured to make an adjustment process to fill a time gap between the time required to access the first storage and an estimated time to access the second storage; and

an access completion notification unit configured to notify the application that the process of accessing the storage is completed after the adjustment process,

wherein, if the first storage access time is shorter than the estimated second storage access time by a predetermined duration or longer, the adjustment unit delays the notification of completion for a duration indicated by the time gap.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the access time estimation unit selects an evaluation function associated with the configuration of the second storage from a plurality of types of evaluation functions associated with a plurality of storage configurations, respectively, so as to estimate the required time.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 ,

wherein the application includes an adjustment value for adjusting the required estimated time to perform a process of accessing the second storage, and

wherein the access time estimation unit adjusts the required estimated time calculated according to the evaluation function, in accordance with the adjustment value.

4. The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein

the information processing device is connected to another information processing device provided with the second storage,

the access request acknowledging unit acknowledges the request for access from an application that should execute a series of data processing steps in synchronization with another application installed in the other information processing device, and

the adjustment unit performs the adjustment process for synchronization between the application and the other application.

5. The information processing device according to claim 4 , further comprising:

an error detection unit configured to obtain the record time required to perform an access process for the second storage from the other information processing device and to detect an error in the estimated time calculated by the access time estimation unit for the access process,

wherein the access time estimation unit adjusts, upon detection of an error equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the estimated time calculated according to the evaluation function, in accordance with the error.

6. The information processing device according to claim 5 , wherein the error detection unit detects the error when the access process for the first storage is not performed.

7. The information processing device according to claim 4 , wherein, if the required estimated time is equal to or longer than a predetermined duration, the adjusting unit performs the adjustment process by suspending notification of the completion of an access until the completion of an access to the second storage in the other information device is detected.

8. An information processing method adapted to execute, in an information processing device provided with a first storage with an access speed different from that of a second storage, an application designed to perform a synchronization process on the assumption that the speed of access will be that of the access speed of the second storage, the method comprising:

acknowledging a request for access to a storage from the application;

performing a process of accessing the first storage in response to the request for access;

estimating the time required to access the second storage in response to the request for access, in accordance with an evaluation function for calculating the required time;

making an adjustment process to fill a time gap between the time required to access the first storage and a required estimated time to access the second storage; and

notifying the application that the process of accessing the storage is completed after the adjustment process,

wherein, if the first storage access time is shorter than the estimated second storage access time by a predetermined duration or longer, the adjustment process delays the notification of completion for a duration indicated by the time gap.

9. A recording medium having embodied thereon a computer program adapted for execution, in an information processing device provided with a first storage with an access speed different from that of a second storage, of an application designed to perform a synchronization process on the assumption of a speed of access to the second storage, the program comprising:

a module configured to acknowledge a request for access to a storage from the application;

a module configured to access the first storage in response to the request for access;

a module configured to estimate time required to access the second storage in response to the request for access, in accordance with an evaluation function for calculating a required time;

a module configured to make an adjustment process to fill a time gap between a time required to access the first storage and a required estimated time to access the second storage; and

a module configured to notify the application that the process of accessing the storage is completed after the adjustment process,

wherein, if the first storage access time is shorter than the estimated second storage access time by a predetermined duration or longer, the module for the adjustment process delays the notification of completion for a duration indicated by the time gap.