Method for provisioning a volume of data including placing data based on rules associated with the volume

1. A computer-implemented method for provisioning a volume of data, the method comprising:

a rules engine identifying a set of placement rules associated with the volume of data, wherein the set of placement rules includes at least two conflicting placement rules;

the rules engine prioritizing the at least two conflicting placement rules;

a scheduler placing the volume of data on a first computer system according to the prioritization of the at least two conflicting placement rules;

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine collecting performance metrics corresponding to the volume of data placed on the first computer system, wherein the performance metrics relate to at least one of the speed of memory access, the number of input/output (I/O) operations per unit of time, the size of I/O operations, replication latency, the size of a queue, and central processing unit (CPU) utilization;

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine computing a score for the volume of data placed on the first computer system based on the collected performance metrics;

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine determining if the computed score for the volume of data placed on the first computer system is acceptable; and

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine changing the prioritization of the at least two conflicting placement rules relative to each other, the scheduler changing the placement of the volume of data according to the changed prioritization of the at least two conflicting placement rules, and the rules engine recomputing the score based on the changed placement, the prioritization changing, the placement changing, and the score recomputing repeating iteratively until the computed score for the volume of data is determined to be acceptable, wherein changing the prioritization of the at least two conflicting rules involves changing which of the at least two conflicting rules takes precedence over the other of the at least two conflicting rules in the placement of the volume of data.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the volume of data is placed on a second computer system only during hours when the second computer system is not used.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the volume of data is placed on a second computer system during a period of time in which activity on the second computer system is relatively low compared to activity on the second computer system during a time when a corresponding enterprise is open for business.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

after the volume of data is placed on a second computer system, collecting performance metrics corresponding to the volume of data placed on the second computer system;

after the volume of data is placed on the second computer system, computing a score for the volume of data placed on the second computer system based on the collected performance metrics;

after the volume of data is placed on the second computer system, determining if the computed score for the volume of data placed on the second computer system is acceptable; and

after the volume of data is placed on the second computer system, changing the prioritization of the at least two conflicting rules and changing the placement of the volume of data to a third computer system according to the changed prioritization when the computed score for the volume of data placed on the second computer system is determined to be unacceptable.

5. A non-transitory computer readable medium that stores computer executable code, which when executed by one or more processors, implements a method for provisioning a volume of data, the method comprising:

a rules engine identifying a set of placement rules associated with the volume of data, wherein the set of placement rules includes at least two conflicting placement rules;

the rules engine prioritizing the at least two conflicting placement rules;

a scheduler placing the volume of data on a first computer system according to the prioritization of the at least two conflicting placement rules;

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine collecting performance metrics corresponding to the volume of data placed on the first computer system, wherein the performance metrics relate to at least one of the speed of memory access, the number of input/output (I/O) operations per unit of time, the size of I/O operations, replication latency, the size of a queue, and central processing unit (CPU) utilization;

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine computing a score for the volume of data placed on the first computer system based on the collected performance metrics;

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine determining if the computed score for the volume of data placed on the first computer system is acceptable; and

after the volume of data is placed on the first computer system, the rules engine changing the prioritization of the at least two conflicting placement rules relative to each other, the scheduler changing the placement of the volume of data according to the changed prioritization of the at least two conflicting placement rules, and the rules engine recomputing the score based on the changed placement, the prioritization changing, the placement changing, and the score recomputing repeating iteratively until the computed score for the volume of data is determined to be acceptable, wherein changing the prioritization of the at least two conflicting rules involves changing which of the at least two conflicting rules takes precedence over the other of the at least two conflicting rules in the placement of the volume of data.

6. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 5 , wherein the volume of data is placed on a second computer system only during hours when the second computer system is not used.

7. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 5 , wherein the volume of data is placed on a second computer system during a period of time in which activity on the second computer system is relatively low compared to activity on the second computer system during a time when a corresponding enterprise is open for business.

8. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 5 , further comprising:

after the volume of data is placed on a second computer system, collecting performance metrics corresponding to the volume of data placed on the second computer system;

after the volume of data is placed on the second computer system, computing a score for the volume of data placed on the second computer system based on the collected performance metrics;

after the volume of data is placed on the second computer system, determining if the computed score for the volume of data placed on the second computer system is acceptable; and

after the volume of data is placed on the second computer system, changing the prioritization of the at least two conflicting rules and changing the placement of the volume of data to a third computer system according to the changed prioritization when the computed score for the volume of data placed on the second computer system is determined to be unacceptable.