Data library background operations system apparatus and method
View Patent ↗An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for performing data library background operations. The present invention teaches one or more data storage drives capable of entering a phantom load mode and a library controller capable of initiating the phantom load mode for the data storage drives. The phantom load mode operates to hide the media status of the data storage drives from host computers during background operations involving the data storage drives. In certain embodiments, the data storage drives exit the phantom load mode as a result of a media unload request. In some embodiments, the library controller receives a media load request from a host computer during the background operation and completes the media load request upon completion of the background operation.
1. An apparatus for performing data library background operations, the apparatus comprising:
a storage control module entering a phantom load mode by communicating a drive empty status for a first data storage drive to at least one host computer to hide a media status of the first data storage drive from the at least one host computer and initiating a background operation for the first data storage drive; and
the storage control module receiving a media load request and continuing the background operation if the media load request is for a second data storage drive else aborting the background operation and exiting the phantom load mode if the media load request is for the first data storage drive.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the storage control module exits the phantom load mode upon completion of the background operation.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the storage control module exits the phantom load mode as the result of a media unload request.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a library control module configured to initiate the phantom load mode for the first data storage drive.
5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the library control module is further configured to initiate completion of the phantom load mode for the first data storage drive.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the background operation is selected from the group consisting of cleaning the first data storage drive, reading data from data storage media, writing data to the data storage media, reading a cartridge memory of the data storage media, writing a cartridge memory of the data storage media, performing media diagnostics, performing storage drive diagnostics, performing data library diagnostics, encrypting data storage media, decrypting data storage media, and re-keying encrypted data storage media.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the storage control module resides within the first data storage drive.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the storage control module resides outside the first data storage drive.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the storage control module is further configured to communicate the drive empty status during the phantom load mode to the at least one host computer regardless of whether data storage media is loaded in the first data storage drive.
10. An apparatus for performing data library background operations, the apparatus comprising:
a library control module initiating a phantom load mode for a first data storage drive; and
a storage control module entering the phantom load mode by communicating a drive empty status for the first data storage drive to at least one host computer to hide a media status of the first data storage drive from at the least one host computer, initiating a background operation for the first data storage drive, and receiving a media load request and continuing the background operation if the media load request is for a second data storage drive else aborting the background operation and exiting the phantom load mode if the media load request is for the first data storage drive.
11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the storage control module resides within the first data storage drive.
12. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the storage control module is configured to exit the phantom load mode in response to a media unload request.
13. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the library control module is configured to exit the phantom load mode upon completion of the background operation.
14. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the library control module is further configured to initiate completion of the phantom load mode for the first data storage drive.
15. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the library control module is further configured to receive a media load request from a host computer during the background operation and complete the media load request upon completion of the background operation.
16. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the library control module is further configured to abort the background operation upon reception of a media load request for the first data storage drive from a host computer.
17. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the background operation is selected from the group consisting of cleaning the first data storage drive, reading data from data storage media, writing data to the data storage media, reading a cartridge memory of the data storage media, writing a cartridge memory of the data storage media, performing media diagnostics, performing storage drive diagnostics, performing data library diagnostics, encrypting data storage media, decrypting data storage media, and re-keying encrypted data storage media.
18. A system for performing data library background operations, the system comprising:
at least one host computer;
a plurality of storage shelves;
at least one robot accessor;
at least one data storage drive;
a library controller initiating a phantom load mode for a selected first data storage drive of the at least one data storage drive; and
a storage control module entering a phantom load mode by communicating a drive empty status for the first data storage drive to the at least one host computer to hide a media status of the first data storage drive from the at least one host computer, initiating a background operation for the first data storage drive, receiving a media load request, and continuing the background operation if the media load request is for a second data storage drive else aborting the background operation and exiting the phantom load mode if the media load request is for the first data storage drive.
19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the first storage drive exits the phantom load mode upon completion of the background operation.
20. The system of claim 18 , wherein the first storage drive exits the phantom load mode in response to a media unload request.
21. The system of claim 18 , wherein the background operation is selected from the group consisting of cleaning the first data storage drive, reading data from data storage media, writing data to the data storage media, reading a cartridge memory of the data storage media, writing a cartridge memory of the data storage media, performing media diagnostics, performing storage drive diagnostics, performing data library diagnostics, encrypting data storage media, decrypting data storage media, and re-keying encrypted data storage media.
22. The system of claim 18 , wherein the library controller receives a media load request from the at least one host computer during the background operation, and is further configured to complete the media load request upon completion of the background operation.
23. The system of claim 18 , wherein the library controller aborts the background operation upon reception of a media load request for the first data storage drive.
24. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform operations for performing data library background operations, the operations comprising: initiating a phantom load mode with the library controller by communicating a drive empty status for a first data storage drive to at least one host computer to hide a media status of the first data storage drive from the at least one host computer initiating a background operation for the first data storage drive; and receiving a media load request and continuing the background operation if the media load request is for a second data storage drive else aborting the background operation and exiting the phantom load mode if the media load request is for the first data storage drive.
25. The computer program product of claim 24 , further comprising exiting the phantom load mode when media is unloaded from the first storage drive.
26. The computer program product of claim 24 , further comprising initiating completion of the phantom load mode with a library controller for the first data storage drive.
27. The computer program product of claim 24 , wherein the background operation is selected from the group consisting of cleaning the first data storage drive, reading data from data storage media, writing data to the data storage media, reading a cartridge memory of the data storage media, writing a cartridge memory of the data storage media, performing media diagnostics, performing storage drive diagnostics, performing data library diagnostics, encrypting data storage media, decrypting data storage media, and re-keying encrypted data storage media.
28. The computer program product of claim 24 , further comprising communicating the drive empty status to the at least one host computer during the background operation, regardless of whether data storage media is loaded in the first data storage drive.
29. The computer program product of claim 24 , further comprising receiving a media load request from the at least one host computer during the background operation and completing the media load request upon completion of the background operation.
30. The computer program product of claim 24 , further comprising aborting the background operation upon receipt of a media load request from a host computer for the first data storage drive.