DOT HILL SYSTEMS CORP. Patent applications |
Patent application number | Title | Published |
20120317562 | Method and Apparatus for downgrading firmware in a controller - A method for downgrading firmware in a controller is provided. The method includes receiving a request, by the controller, to downgrade the firmware from a current version to an older version. For a feature implemented in the current version and not implemented in the older version, the method includes determining if the feature is currently in-use by the controller. If the feature is currently in-use by the controller, the method includes warning a user and abandoning the request. If the feature is not currently in-use by the controller, the method includes checking other features implemented in the current version and not implemented in the older version, and repeating determining, providing, abandoning, and checking, and downgrading the firmware, if all of the features implemented in the current version and not implemented in the older version are not currently in-use by the controller. | 12-13-2012 |
20100115210 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXPANDING A VIRTUAL STORAGE DEVICE - The present invention provides for the expansion of a virtual storage device. Expansion of the virtual storage device includes adding one or more additional storage device units to an existing virtual storage device. Blocks or strips included in an added storage device unit are assigned addresses, to allow the added storage capacity to be accessed immediately. In order to reestablish a pattern of data storage addresses from the original storage device units of the pre-expanded virtual storage device across all of the storage device units of the post-expanded virtual storage device, temporary storage is provided. In particular, as a strip of data is relocated to its proper post-expand location, the data occupying that location is placed in a temporary storage buffer. Data in the temporary storage buffer is then written to the proper post-expand location for that data, with displaced data being written to a second temporary storage buffer. | 05-06-2010 |
20080320258 | SNAPSHOT RESET METHOD AND APPARATUS - A method, device, and system for resetting snapshots are provided. The reset of a snapshot incorporates the traditional snapshot delete and snapshot create operations into a single operation. Additionally, a snapshot created under the reset operation may receive an array partition from a snapshot being deleted under the same snapshot reset operation thereby retaining its identifying characteristics. | 12-25-2008 |
20080281877 | BACKING STORE RE-INITIALIZATION METHOD AND APPARATUS - A method, device, and system are provided for re-initializing a backing store in a data storage system. More specifically, when all snapshots associated with a specified backing store are either being deleted or are marked for deletion the backing store is re-initialized rather than deleting each snapshot independently. The re-initialization of the backing store provides for a quicker way to delete all snapshots than could previously be achieved when each snapshot was deleted independently. | 11-13-2008 |
20080281875 | AUTOMATIC TRIGGERING OF BACKING STORE RE-INITIALIZATION - A method, device, and system are provided for determining when to re-initialize a backing store in a data storage system. More specifically, when all snapshots associated with a specified backing store are either being deleted or are marked for deletion the backing store is re-initialized rather than deleting each snapshot independently. The re-initialization of the backing store provides for a quicker way to delete all snapshots than can be achieved by deleting each snapshot independently. | 11-13-2008 |
20080256311 | SNAPSHOT PRESERVED DATA CLONING - A method and device for cloning snapshots is provided. A new snapshot can be created by cloning an existing snapshot. The clone snapshot may use the preserved data of the existing snapshot, thereby obviating the need to copy the preserved data. Additionally, the clone snapshot may be created with a data structure for storing write data. Since the clone snapshot initially has no write data to store, the creation of the entire clone snapshot can be accomplished without copying any preserved data or write data from the existing snapshot, thereby increasing the efficiency with which a clone snapshot can be created. | 10-16-2008 |
20080256141 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING SNAPSHOT PRESERVED AND WRITE DATA - A method and device for managing snapshot data is provided. Snapshots may be created having a preserved data area and a write data area. The preserved data area is used to maintain snapshot data corresponding to the point-in-time when the snapshot was created while the write data area is used to facilitate host read/write access to the snapshot. By maintaining two separate areas, the snapshot can be written to without altering the point-in-time representation of the snapshot. | 10-16-2008 |