IP Library Granted Patent US 11,755,244
Granted Patent B2
US 11,755,244 · App. 17/237,971 · Granted Sep 12, 2023

System and method for smart NVMeOF disk array enclosure deep background data reduction offload

Inventors: Lior Kamran (Rishon LeZion, IL); Amitai Alkalay (Kadima, IL)
Assignee: EMC IP Holding Company, LLC
G06F3/0659G06F3/0608G06F3/0673H03M7/6064
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,755,244
App. No.
17/237,971
Granted
Sep 12, 2023
Kind
B2
Abstract

A method, computer program product, and computer system for identifying, by a computing device, storage containers that contain cold data. At least a portion of the storage containers may be processed to determine whether a first compression technique will result in a higher level of compression above a threshold level of compression than a second compression technique. The storage containers may be processed using the first compression technique based upon, at least in part, determining that the first compression technique will result in the higher level of compression above the threshold level of compression than the second compression technique.

Claims (35)

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

initiating, via a storage node, a garbage collection scanning process on a plurality of storage containers within a disk array enclosure coupled to the storage node;

offloading the garbage collection scanning process from the storage node to a processor of the disk array enclosure;

identifying, via the processor of the disk array enclosure, storage containers that contain a plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data, wherein the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks include a plurality of physical blocks full with cold data;

determining, via the processor of the disk array enclosure, whether a first compression technique will result in a higher level of compression above a threshold level of compression than a second compression technique by processing at least a portion of the storage containers; and

processing, via the processor of the disk array enclosure, the storage containers by decompressing and compressing each page of at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data of the storage containers using only the first compression technique for a high data reduction based upon, at least in part, determining that the first compression technique will result in the higher level of compression above the threshold level of compression than the second compression technique.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising maintaining a list of storage containers and bitmap pairs to process.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein at least a second portion of the storage containers already compressed with the first compression technique are skipped.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein a command is received for each portion of the storage containers to be processed.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4 wherein the command includes a location of the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data of the storage container, the first compression technique to be used, a location to write a new physical block with the first compression technique.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 wherein metadata on a virtual logical block associated with the location of the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data is updated.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6 wherein the metadata that is updated includes the location of each data block within the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data.

8. A computer program product residing on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a plurality of instructions stored thereon which, when executed across one or more processors, causes at least a portion of the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

initiating a garbage collection scanning process on a plurality of storage containers within a disk array enclosure coupled to the storage node;

offloading the garbage collection scanning process from the storage node to a processor of the disk array enclosure;

identifying storage containers that contain a plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data, wherein the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks include a plurality of physical blocks full with cold data;

determining whether a first compression technique will result in a higher level of compression above a threshold level of compression than a second compression technique by processing at least a portion of the storage containers; and

processing the storage containers by decompressing and compressing each page of at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data of the storage containers using only the first compression technique for a high data reduction based upon, at least in part, determining that the first compression technique will result in the higher level of compression above the threshold level of compression than the second compression technique.

9. The computer program product of claim 8 wherein the operations further comprise maintaining a list of storage containers and bitmap pairs to process.

10. The computer program product of claim 8 wherein at least a second portion of the storage containers already compressed with the first compression technique are skipped.

11. The computer program product of claim 8 wherein a command is received for each portion of the storage containers to be processed.

12. The computer program product of claim 11 wherein the command includes a location of the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data of the storage container, the first compression technique to be used, a location to write a new physical block with the first compression technique.

13. The computer program product of claim 12 wherein metadata on a virtual logical block associated with the location of the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data is updated.

14. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein the metadata that is updated includes the location of each data block within the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data.

15. A computing system including one or more processors and one or more memories configured to perform operations comprising:

initiating a garbage collection scanning process on a plurality of storage containers within a disk array enclosure coupled to the storage node;

offloading the garbage collection scanning process from the storage node to a processor of the disk array enclosure;

identifying storage containers that contain a plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data, wherein the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks include a plurality of physical blocks full with cold data;

determining whether a first compression technique will result in a higher level of compression above a threshold level of compression than a second compression technique by processing at least a portion of the storage containers; and

processing the storage containers by decompressing and compressing each page of at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data of the storage containers using only the first compression technique for a high data reduction based upon, at least in part, determining that the first compression technique will result in the higher level of compression above the threshold level of compression than the second compression technique.

16. The computing system of claim 15 wherein the operations further comprise maintaining a list of storage containers and bitmap pairs to process.

17. The computing system of claim 15 wherein at least a second portion of the storage containers already compressed with the first compression technique are skipped.

18. The computing system of claim 15 wherein a command is received for each portion of the storage containers to be processed.

19. The computing system of claim 18 wherein the command includes a location of the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data of the storage container, the first compression technique to be used, a location to write a new physical block with the first compression technique.

20. The computing system of claim 19 wherein metadata on a virtual logical block associated with the location of the at least one of the plurality of highly utilized physical blocks with cold data is updated.

Assignments (10)
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME (056295/0280) Recorded Jun 10, 2022
From: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
To: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
Reel/Frame 062022/0255 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME (056295/0124) Recorded Jun 10, 2022
From: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
To: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
Reel/Frame 062022/0012 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME (056295/0001) Recorded Jun 10, 2022
From: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
To: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
Reel/Frame 062021/0844 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Nov 2, 2021
From: CREDIT SUISSE AG, CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH
To: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
Reel/Frame 058297/0332 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 19, 2021
From: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
To: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 056295/0124 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 19, 2021
From: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
To: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 056295/0001 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 19, 2021
From: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
To: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A., AS NOTES COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 056295/0280 →
CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE MISSING PATENTS THAT WERE ON THE ORIGINAL SCHEDULED SUBMITTED BUT NOT ENTERED PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL: 056250 FRAME: 0541. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE ASSIGNMENT. Recorded May 17, 2021
From: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
To: CREDIT SUISSE AG, CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH
Reel/Frame 056311/0781 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded May 14, 2021
From: DELL PRODUCTS L.P.; EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY LLC
To: CREDIT SUISSE AG, CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH
Reel/Frame 056250/0541 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 22, 2021
From: KAMRAN, LIOR; ALKALAY, AMITAI
To: EMC IP HOLDING COMPANY, LLC
Reel/Frame 056011/0777 →