IP Library Granted Patent US 11,599,297
Granted Patent B2
US 11,599,297 · App. 17/477,308 · Granted Mar 7, 2023

Storage apparatus, maintenance support method, and maintenance support program

Inventors: Hideyuki Koseki (Tokyo, JP); Hiroki Fujii (Tokyo, JP); Akira Deguchi (Tokyo, JP); Akira Yamamoto (Tokyo, JP)
Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
G06F3/065G06F3/0617G06F3/0619G06F3/0679G06F11/0727G06F11/0751G06F11/0772G06F11/1004
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,599,297
App. No.
17/477,308
Granted
Mar 7, 2023
Kind
B2
Abstract

The efficiency of the maintenance of a storage apparatus including a plurality of flash drives can be enhanced. In a storage apparatus including a plurality of SSDs and a CPU, the CPU specifies, based on lifetimes of the SSDs depending on amounts of data written to the SSDs, the SSD to be replaced on a scheduled maintenance date, gives notice of the SSD specified to be replaced, and copies data in the SSD to be replaced to another SSD by the scheduled maintenance date on which the replacement is to be performed.

Claims (42)

1. A storage apparatus comprising:

a plurality of flash drives; and

a processor,

wherein the processor is configured to:

specify, based on lifetimes of the flash drives depending on amounts of data written to the flash drives, a flash drive of the flash drives to be replaced on a first scheduled maintenance date;

give notice of the flash drive specified to be replaced;

copy data in the flash drive to be replaced to another an added flash drive by the first scheduled maintenance date on which the replacement is to be performed;

prior to the first scheduled maintenance date, specify an other flash drive of the flash drives that is to be subjected to replacement on a second scheduled maintenance date after the first scheduled maintenance date, and then give notice of the other flash drive by the first scheduled maintenance date; and

copy data in the other flash drive to be replaced on the second scheduled maintenance date to the added flash drive added to the storage apparatus on the first scheduled maintenance date, before the second scheduled maintenance date, and replace the other flash drive to be replaced, with the added flash drive.

2. The storage apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to start copying the data in the other flash drive to the added flash drive when a lifetime consumption rate of the other flash drive that is based on an amount of written data exceeds a predetermined threshold.

3. The storage apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the copy of the data in the other flash drive to the added flash drive is forcibly started by a predetermined time point that allows the copy of the data in the other flash drive to the added flash drive to be completed in time before the second scheduled maintenance date.

4. The storage apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of flash drives include a flash drive of a parity group and a spare dedicated flash drive,

wherein a part of a storage area of the flash drive of the parity group is set as a spare area, and

wherein the processor is configured to:

preferentially use the spare dedicated flash drive to copy the data in the flash drive to be replaced; and

preferentially use the spare area of the flash drive of the parity group to recover and copy data managed in the parity group.

5. The storage apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of flash drives form a parity group, and

wherein the processor is further configured to detect a failure in the flash drives, and to give notice of, when a number of the flash drives having the failure is smaller than a number of failed flash drives whose data is recoverable in the parity group, a projected number of flash drives that need to be replaced based on the lifetime and the number of the flash drives having the failure, before a next scheduled maintenance date of the storage apparatus, without giving notice of a request for maintenance of the storage apparatus.

6. A maintenance support method for a storage apparatus including a plurality of flash drives and a processor,

the maintenance support method comprising:

specifying, based on lifetimes of the flash drives depending on amounts of data written to the flash drives, a flash drive of the flash drives to be replaced on a first scheduled maintenance date;

giving notice of the flash drive specified to be replaced;

copying data in the flash drive to be replaced to an added flash drive by the first scheduled maintenance date on which the replacement is to be performed;

prior to the first maintenance date, specifying an other flash drive of the flash drives that is to be subjected to replacement on a second scheduled maintenance date after the first scheduled maintenance date, and then giving notice of the other flash drive by the first scheduled maintenance date; and

copying data in the other flash drive to be replaced on the second scheduled maintenance date to the added flash drive added to the storage apparatus on the first scheduled maintenance date, before the second scheduled maintenance date, and replacing the other flash drive to be replaced, with the added flash drive.

7. The maintenance support method according to claim 6 , wherein the plurality of flash drives include a flash drive of a parity group and a spare dedicated flash drive,

wherein a part of a storage area of the flash drive of the parity group is set as a spare area,

wherein the spare dedicated flash drive is preferentially used to copy the data in the flash drive to be replaced, and

wherein the spare area of the flash drive of the parity group is preferentially used to recover and copy data managed in the parity group.

8. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium encoded with a maintenance support program that is executed by a computer forming a storage apparatus including a plurality of flash drives and a processor,

the maintenance support program causing the computer to:

specify, based on lifetimes of the flash drives depending on amounts of data written to the flash drives, a flash drive of the flash drives to be replaced on a first scheduled maintenance date;

give notice of the flash drive specified to be replaced;

copy data in the flash drive to be replaced to an added flash drive by the first scheduled maintenance date on which the replacement is to be performed;

prior to the first scheduled maintenance date, specify an other flash drive of the flash drives that is to be subjected to replacement on a second scheduled maintenance date after the first scheduled maintenance date, and then give notice of the other flash drive by the first scheduled maintenance date; and

copy data in the other flash drive to be replaced on the second scheduled maintenance date to the added flash drive added to the storage apparatus on the first scheduled maintenance date, before the second scheduled maintenance date, and replace the other flash drive to be replaced, with the added flash drive.

9. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium according to claim 8 ,

wherein the plurality of flash drives include a flash drive of a parity group and a spare dedicated flash drive,

wherein a part of a storage area of the flash drive of the parity group is set as a spare area, and

wherein the computer is caused to:

preferentially use the spare dedicated flash drive to copy the data in the flash drive to be replaced; and

preferentially use the spare area of the flash drive of the parity group to recover and copy data managed in the parity group.

Assignments (2)
COMPANY SPLIT Recorded Aug 20, 2024
From: HITACHI, LTD.
To: HITACHI VANTARA, LTD.
Reel/Frame 069518/0761 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 16, 2021
From: KOSEKI, HIDEYUKI; FUJI, HIROKI; DEGUCHI, AKIRA; YAMAMOTO, AKIRA
To: HITACHI, LTD.
Reel/Frame 057508/0029 →
Priority Claims (1)
JP JP2021-011019 · Jan 27, 2021 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20220236882A1 · Jul 28, 2022