Electrical computers and digital processing systems: memory – Storage accessing and control – Specific memory composition
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-28
2004-06-01
Kim, Matthew (Department: 2186)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: memory
Storage accessing and control
Specific memory composition
C711S111000, C711S147000, C711S152000, C711S153000, C711S163000, C711S114000, C711S100000, C711S164000, C709S220000, C709S213000, C709S215000, C709S216000, C709S225000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06745281
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fiber channel connection magnetic disk device and a fiber channel connection magnetic disk controller, and particularly to a fiber channel connection magnetic disk device having a plurality of fiber-channel specification supporting port controllers and a fiber channel connection magnetic disk controller (hereinafter properly referred to as “magnetic disk device”).
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a system in which a plurality of hosts are connected to a magnetic disk device through a fiber channel, the following methods have been hitherto known as a logical volume access right managing method for identifying a host and protecting an access to logical volumes in the magnetic disk device.
For example, in a connection style shown in
FIG. 13
, a host
100
is connected to a port
310
and a port
320
through a port
110
and a port
120
respectively, and a host
200
is connected to a port
330
and a port
340
through a port
210
and a port
220
respectively, whereby the hosts
100
and
200
are connected to a magnetic disk device
300
. In such a connection style, by managing logical volumes
350
,
360
,
370
and
380
which can be accessed from each of the ports
310
,
320
,
330
,
340
, the access right to the logical volumes
350
,
360
,
370
,
380
can be managed.
Further, in a connection style shown in
FIG. 14
, the host
100
is connected to the magnetic disk device
300
while the port
110
and the port
120
are connected to the port
310
and the port
320
respectively, and the host
200
is connected to the magnetic disk device
300
while the port
210
and the port
220
are connected to the port
310
and the port
320
respectively. Such a connection style corresponds to Arbitrated Loop topology or Fabric topology in terms of topology of fiber channels. In order to manage the logical volumes
350
,
360
,
370
,
380
: which are accessible from each of the hosts
100
,
200
, the method may be used an access right managing method based on a port identifier (N_Port ID) and an access right managing method based on host identification using a protocol of an upper layer.
Further, in “FIBER CHANNEL CONNECTION STORAGE CONTROLLER” disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. Hei-10-333839, N_Port_Name information for uniquely identifying a host device is set in a microprocessor of a storage controller before the starting of host devices. When the host devices are started and an issued frame is received by the storage controller, the microprocessor operates comparison to detect whether or not the N_Port_Name information stored in this frame is registered in an N_Port_Name list in a control table already set and held in the microprocessor, and continues a processing based on the instruction of the frame if they are coincident while rejecting the request if they are not coincident, thereby managing the access right.
However, in the above-described technique, the following problems occur when the management of the access right to the logical volume is performed.
A first problem resides in that when the magnetic disk device
300
is jointly owned by the hosts
100
and
200
in a system using a fiber channel, the management of the access right to the logical volumes
350
,
360
,
370
,
380
is dependent on the number of ports of the magnetic disk device
300
if the connection style as shown in
FIG. 13
is used. This is because the management of the accessible logical volumes
350
,
360
,
370
,
380
is performed every the port
310
,
320
,
330
,
340
of the magnetic disk device
300
without identifying each of the hosts
100
,
200
.
A second problem resides in that when the connection of the system is changed in the port-based logical volume access right management method shown in
FIG. 13
, the access right management of each port
310
,
320
,
330
,
340
of the magnetic disk device
300
is required to be altered, and thus a management miss is liable to occur. This is also because the management of the accessible logical volumes
350
,
360
,
370
,
380
is performed every the port
310
,
320
,
330
,
340
of the magnetic disk device
300
without identifying each of the hosts
100
,
200
.
A third problem resides in that when the access right is managed by the port identifier (N_Port ID) in the connection style as shown in
FIG. 14
, the port identifier is determined through initialization processing on the basis of the specification of the fiber channel, and thus it may be varied due to extension/reduction of hosts, change of the connection of the system or the like, so that it is difficult to manage the access right on the basis of the port identifier. This is because the port identifier is dynamically varied.
A fourth problem resides in that when the host identification is executed on the basis of the protocol of the upper layer in the connection style as shown in
FIG. 14
, it is necessary to perform a special-purpose control operation for only the magnetic disk device
300
to be connected to an upper host. This is because the host identification is carried out by using the protocol of the upper layer.
A fifth problem resides in that it is difficult in the “fiber channel connection storage controller” disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. Hei-10-333839 to support the dynamical alteration of the access right due to extension/reduction of hosts, change of the connection of the system or the like. This is because the N_Port_Name information for uniquely identifying the port of the host device is required to be set in the microprocessor of the storage controller before the starting of the host devices.
In the specification of the fiber channel, the following identifies are provided as an identifier for identifying a host or port.
N_Port ID: Identifier for a port used to indicate a transmission source/transmission destination of a frame to be transmitted/received.
Node Name: Identifier given as a unique value to a node such as a host, a magnetic disk device or the like
Port Name: Unique identifier for a port which is given every port of node.
N_Port ID: Identifier for identifying a port of a host determined through initialization processing of a fiber channel, and it is too unstable to surely identify the host even when the system is extended or abnormality occurs.
Therefore, the identification of hosts or ports by using Node Name/Port Name may be considered.
In the fiber channel, processing called as “port log-in” in which a port at the transmission/reception side transmits to a communication partner as a port log-in frame Node Name/Port Name which are unique values for each node/each port is indispensable in order to actually access a logical volume in a magnetic disk device. In consideration of this, if a port controller is set to register N_Port ID in a local access right management table by using a global access right management table, even when N_Port ID is afterwards varied, the host must execute the port log-in processing again, so that it is sufficient to merely re-register N_Port ID in the local access right management table by using the global access right management table managed every port at that time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, a first object of the present invention is to provide a fiber channel connection magnetic disk device which performs management of the access right to logical volumes in the magnetic disk device by identifying a host while the host is not required to perform a control operation dependent on the number of ports of the magnetic disk device or on the magnetic disk device on the basis of the fiber channel specification.
A second object of the present invention is to provide a fiber channel connection magnetic disk device which manages the access right every logical volume, whereby the management can be continuously performed even when a connection condition is varied.
A third object of the present invention is to provide a fiber channel connection magnetic disk controller which perf
Foley & Lardner
Kim Matthew
Li Zhuo H.
NEC Corporation
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