 |
|
|
|
|
|
 Title: |
US6539460:
System and method for storing data sectors with header and trailer information in a disk cache supporting memory compression
[ Derwent Title ]
|
| Country: |
US United States of America
|
| |
| Inventor: |
Castelli, Vittorio; Croton-on-Hudson, NY
Franaszek, Peter A.; Mt. Kisco, NY
Heidelberger, Philip; Cortlandt Manor, NY
Robinson, John T.; Yorktown Heights, NY
|
| Assignee: |
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY
other patents from INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION (280070) (approx. 44,393)
News, Profiles, Stocks and More about this company
|
| Published / Filed: |
2003-03-25
/ 2001-01-19
|
| Application Number: |
US2001000765563
|
| IPC Code: |
Advanced:
G06F 3/06;
G06F 12/08;
Core:
more...
IPC-7:
G06F 12/00;
|
| ECLA Code: |
G06F3/06M; G06F12/08B12;
|
| U.S. Class: |
711/154;
711/112;
711/114;
710/068;
|
| Field of Search: |
711/104,111,112,144,170,173,118,154
710/068
|
| Priority Number: |
| 2001-01-19 |
US2001000765563 |
|
| Abstract: |
A computing system includes a storage server having a memory organization that includes a compressed memory device for storing sectors, each sector having a sector data portion and associated header and trailers, either attached by the hosts or by components of the computing system. The compressed memory device comprises a memory directory and a plurality of fixed-size blocks. The system implements a methodology for detaching headers and trailers from sectors before storing the sectors in the memory, and storing the headers and trailers in the memory disk cache, separate from the sector data portion; and, reattaching headers and trailers to sector data portions when the sectors are sent from the memory to a host or to a mass storage device. The header and trailer data are managed through the same memory directory used to manage the compressed main memory. The process of detaching headers and trailers from sectors for separate storage results in increased efficacy of data compression, thus yielding better compression ratios, and decreased memory traffic generated by host reads, host writes, cache stages and cache destages.
|
| Attorney, Agent or Firm: |
Scully, Scott, Murphy & Presser ;
Jennings, Esq., Derek S. ;
|
| Primary / Asst. Examiners: |
Yoo, Do Hyun; Dinh, Ngoc V
|
| INPADOC Legal Status: |
Show legal status actions
Family Legal Status Report
|
| Family: |
Show 2 known family members
|
First Claim:
Show all 41 claims |
Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by letters patent is:
1. In a computer memory system capable of storing data in compressed and uncompressed form, and in which units of data held in said system comprise sectors with each sector comprising header, sector data, and trailer portions for storage in a compressed main memory, a method for storing said sectors including the steps of:
- a) separating header and trailer portions from each sector data portion of each sector during a data storage operation, and storing said sector data and associated header and trailer portions in fixed size data blocks provided in said compressed main memory,
- b) providing a memory directory structure in said compressed main memory having entries for enabling access to said fixed size data blocks in said compressed main memory in accordance with issued real addresses; and,
- c) indexing a memory directory structure entry for performing a system read and write operation of a data sector and its associated header and trailer portion stored in said compressed main memory in accordance with a corresponding issued real address,
- wherein compressed memory storage efficiencies are achieved by separating said header and trailer sector portions for independent processing thereof.
|
| Background / Summary: |
Show background / summary
|
| Drawing Descriptions: |
Show drawing descriptions
|
| Description: |
Show description
|
| Forward References: |
Show 14 U.S. patent(s) that reference this one
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Foreign References: |
None
|
| Other References: |
"Disk Cache--Miss Ratio Analysis and Design Considerations", by Alan Jay Smith, ACM Transactions on Computer Systems, vol. 3, No. 3, Aug. 1985, pp. 161-203.
(43 pages)
Cited by 3 patents
"On-line Data Compression in a Log-structured File System", by Michael, Burrows, et al., DEC Systems Research Center, 1992, pp. 2-9.
(8 pages)
Cited by 5 patents
[ISI abstract]
"Combining the concepts of Compression and Caching for a Two-Level Filesystem", Vincent Cate, et al., School of Computer Science, 1991, pp. 200-209.
(12 pages)
Cited by 2 patents
[ISI abstract]
|
|
 Nominate this for the Gallery...
|
|
