CN101291202A - Method for managing data transmission path and host server - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a data transmission path management method and a host server, which are applied in the technical field of communication. The method for managing the data transmission path adopted in the embodiment of the present invention is: loading interface parameters corresponding to the storage array, and managing the data transmission path with the interface of the storage array according to the interface parameters. The interface parameters corresponding to the loaded storage array need to be obtained by the host server through a certain method according to the actual communication storage array. By adopting the embodiment of the present invention, in the communication between the host server and the storage array, only the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array to be communicated are loaded into the host server, so that the host server can well support various storage arrays and storage arrays produced by different manufacturers. Its different modes do not have the problem of inconsistent private interfaces, which improves the compatibility between the host server and different storage arrays.

Description

Method for managing data transmission path and host server

technical field

The invention relates to the technical field of communication, in particular to a data transmission path management method and a host server.

Background technique

In today's communication technology field, in order to better utilize the performance of communication equipment, usually, each manufacturer will define some private interfaces at both ends of the communication as the inherent interfaces of the communication end, and users cannot modify or set these interfaces. Such as electronic integrated drive IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics), serial port SATA (Serial ATA) and small computer system interface SCSI (Small Computer System Interface), etc.

Taking the SCSI interface through which the multipath management unit of the host server communicates with the storage array as an example, the multipath management unit in the host server is used to manage multiple data transmission paths between the host server and the storage array. The storage array is a disk array, which is directly connected to the host server as an independent storage device or connected to the host server through a network. SCSI interfaces can be divided into SCSI standard interfaces and SCSI private interfaces, among which SCSI private interfaces are usually used to implement some special functions of storage arrays. As shown in FIG. 1 , after the host server is loaded with multipath management software, the multipath management unit in the host server is used to manage the data transmission path with the storage array. The management method of the data transmission path in the prior art is to manage the data transmission path after the multipath management unit of the host server performs a communication test with the corresponding storage array. The multipath management software is provided by storage vendors and storage software vendors, or comes with the operating system. When the manufacturer provides the multipath management software, it writes the interface parameters of the storage array produced by the factory into the source code of the multipath management software, and the user cannot configure these interface parameters. The former is represented by PowerPath provided by EMC Corporation and RDAC provided by IBM Corporation, while the latter is represented by the multipath management system STMS (StorEdge Traffic Manager Software) of SUN Solaris system and the multipath management system PVLinks of HP Company HP-UX system. (Physical VolumeLinks) as the representative.

During the research and practice of the prior art, the inventors of the present invention found that:

If the multi-path management system is provided by the manufacturer, in the management of the data transmission path, the host server can only well support various storage arrays and their different modes produced by the factory, but cannot be compatible with the storage arrays produced by other storage device manufacturers. Arrays; when the multipath management system comes with the operating system, although it can be compatible with storage arrays produced by third-party storage device manufacturers, the storage arrays have private interfaces, but the host server does not know these interfaces, making the data transmission path In management, SCSI private commands cannot be sent to the storage array, and the host server is generally only compatible with certain modes of the third-party storage array.

In short, these private interfaces often have differences because there is no unified standard. This creates compatibility issues when communicating between host servers and different storage arrays.

Contents of the invention

Embodiments of the present invention provide a highly compatible data transmission path management method and host server. Adopting the embodiment of the present invention enables the host server to be well compatible with various storage arrays produced by various factories in the management of data transmission paths. and its different modes.

A method for managing a data transmission path provided by an embodiment of the present invention includes:

Load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array;

A data transmission path with the interface of the storage array is managed according to the interface parameters.

A host server provided by the present invention includes: an interface loading unit and a multipath management unit,

The interface loading unit is used to load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array;

The multipath management unit is configured to manage the data transmission path between the interface with the storage array according to the interface parameters loaded by the interface loading unit.

The management method of the data transmission path adopted in the embodiment of the present invention is: loading the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array, and managing the data transmission path with the interface of the storage array according to the interface parameters. In the communication between the host server and the storage array, the host server only loads the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array that needs to communicate, so that the host server can well support various storage arrays produced by different manufacturers and their different modes, without There is a problem of inconsistent private interfaces, which improves the compatibility between the host server and different storage arrays.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a management method of a data transmission path in the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method for managing a data transmission path provided in Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of obtaining interface parameters corresponding to a storage array through a network-side server provided by Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of obtaining interface parameters corresponding to the storage array through the local machine provided by Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a logical structure of a host server provided by Embodiment 3 of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a logical structure of a host server provided in Embodiment 4 of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a logical structure of a host server provided in Embodiment 5 of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a logical structure of a host server provided by Embodiment 6 of the present invention.

Detailed ways

Embodiments of the present invention provide a data transmission path management method and a host server, which are applied in the technical field of communication. Storage vendors and storage software vendors will provide a multi-path management system or have their own multi-path management system in the operating system to help users manage multiple data transmission paths between the host server and the storage array. The SCSI interface is a command interface for communication between the multipath management unit of the host server and the storage array. In order to improve the compatibility between the host server and the storage array, the core idea proposed by the embodiments of the present invention is: during use, Store corresponding SCSI interface parameters in the host server according to different storage arrays, and manage the data transmission path between the host server and the storage array through the SCSI interface parameters. The method, system, and related equipment for managing a data transmission path according to the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below.

Embodiment 1. A method for managing a data transmission path.

When the host server manages the data transmission path with the storage array, it must first load the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the communicating storage array, such as: SCSI interface identification parameters and corresponding SCSI interface command parameters, etc., where the interface identification parameter refers to The address of the interface or the Uniform Resource Locator URL (UniformResource Locators), etc., and the interface command parameter refers to the function parameter of the interface. These interface parameters to be loaded include standard interface and private interface parameters, which can be obtained from other devices; they can also be preset by the manufacturer in the multipath management unit of the host server, and the host server can be directly loaded during use.

Then the multipath management unit of the host server manages the data transmission path with the storage array according to the interface parameters.

The host server loaded with SCSI interface parameters has high compatibility with the storage array. When managing the data transmission path with the storage array, the multipath management unit of the host server must first call the interface parameters according to the actual communication situation.

For example: when data transmission is interrupted, the multipath management unit of the host server will call the interface identification parameter of the switching command in the loaded interface parameters, and send the switching command to the corresponding interface, and input/output I/O (Input/Output) When the original main path is normal, the multipath management software of the host server will also send a switchback command to the corresponding interface, and the I/O flow will be switched back at this time; at the same time, the I/O streams are load-balanced and sent according to policies to improve I/O access performance; if the storage array that needs to communicate is in active/passive A/P (Active/Passive) mode, the logical unit LUN (Logical Unit Number) there is a preferred controller, and only one controller has the control authority for the LUN at the same time. When all paths on the preferred controller fail, the multipath management software of the host server calls the relevant interface parameters, and Send a SCSI private command to switch the active controller to the storage array.

With the method for managing data transmission paths in this embodiment, the host server only loads the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array that needs to communicate according to the actual communication situation, so that there is no inconsistent private interface between the host server and the storage array. problem, it can well support various storage arrays produced by different manufacturers and their different modes. It realizes the unification of the SCSI interface at both ends of the communication, overcomes the disadvantage of low compatibility between the host server and the storage array in the prior art, so that the special functions of these storage arrays can be better utilized to provide users with better Serve.

Embodiment 2. A management method of a data transmission path, the flowchart of which is shown in FIG. 2 , including:

Step 201, the host server acquires interface parameters corresponding to the storage array;

Before loading the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array, the host server can obtain the SCSI interface parameters from the remote network side server. The acquisition flow chart is shown in Figure 3, including:

201A1. The host server sends an interface acquisition request of the storage array to the network side server, and the interface acquisition request includes information corresponding to the storage array, such as the model of the storage array, the production serial number of the storage array, and the like.

It can be understood that the information corresponding to the storage array here can be found by the host server on the website of the storage array manufacturer, or can be obtained from other ways, such as manual input. After obtaining the information corresponding to the storage array that needs to communicate, the host server constructs an interface acquisition request carrying the information corresponding to the storage array, and sends the interface acquisition request to the network side server.

After receiving the interface acquisition request, the network side server parses the interface acquisition request to obtain information corresponding to the storage array, and then acquires SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array according to the information corresponding to the storage array.

It can be understood that the server on the network side may be a server that stores an interface parameter table corresponding to the storage array, and the interface parameter table reflects the corresponding relationship between the interface identification parameter and the interface command parameter. At this time, the server on the network side can find the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array as long as it obtains the information corresponding to the storage array in the request through the interface, such as model number and production serial number.

For example, after parsing the information corresponding to the storage array is: HP-UX*****, the server on the network side searches the stored interface parameter table of the storage array, and finds the HP-UX***** type storage array interface parameter table, and extract corresponding SCSI interface parameters accordingly. As shown in Table 1, it reflects the corresponding relationship between the interface identification parameters of the HP-UX****** model storage array and the functions performed by each interface, that is, the interface command parameters.

Table 1 Interface parameter table of HP-UX*****

The server on the network side returns the interface parameter table obtained by searching to the host server.

It can be understood that the server on the network side can also obtain and search interface parameters in other ways, such as finding the corresponding storage array through the information corresponding to the storage array in the interface acquisition request, and analyzing the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array, and finally the network The side server returns the analyzed SCSI interface parameters to the host server.

201A2. The host server receives the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array returned by the network side server.

In other optional embodiments, the acquisition of SCSI interface parameters can also be obtained through the following steps except the above-mentioned method, and the flow chart is as shown in Figure 4:

201B1. The host server sends an interface command to all interfaces of the storage array;

The method for obtaining interface parameters is that the host server sends an interface command to all interfaces of the storage array that need to communicate, and the interface command is a function command of the SCSI interface of the storage array. After the storage array receives the interface command, if the interface command corresponds to the interface, the interface of the storage array will return the interface command response to the host server; if not, the interface of the storage array will not return the interface response to the host server .

201B2. The host server receives the interface command response returned by the storage array, and records the corresponding interface parameters returned in the interface command response.

It can be understood that the interface parameter corresponding to the interface command response recorded and returned is the interface identification parameter recorded and returned to the interface command response, such as URL1 and URL2 in Table 1.

For example, the host server sends the interface command "switch path" to all interfaces of the storage array. When the URL2 interface of the storage array receives the interface command, it finds that the interface command matches the URL2 interface, that is, the function of the URL2 interface is "switch path". ”, the URL2 interface returns an interface command response. After receiving the returned interface command response, the host server records the interface identification parameter URL2 corresponding to the switching path as an interface parameter.

Step 202, the host server loads interface parameters corresponding to the storage array.

Preferably, the host server may first write the obtained SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array to a configuration file, and then load the SCSI interface parameters of the storage array in the form of a configuration file, the configuration file described here may include: "* .conf", "*.xml", "*.ini" and other types.

It can be understood that there are other methods for loading the aforementioned SCSI interface parameters, and the present invention only introduces some preferred methods, which do not limit the present invention.

Step 203, the host server manages the data transmission path with the storage array according to the interface parameters.

As described in Embodiment 1, the host server loaded with the interface parameters has high compatibility with the storage array. When managing the data transmission path with the storage array, the host server first calls the interface parameters in the configuration file.

This embodiment is a specific implementation of the method for managing data transmission paths in Embodiment 1. According to the actual communication situation, the host server loads the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array that needs to communicate in the form of a configuration file. This configuration file is relatively simple. convenient.

Embodiment 3, please refer to FIG. 5 , an embodiment of the present invention provides a host server 300, including: an interface loading unit 31 and a multipath management unit 32, wherein:

The interface loading unit 31 is used to load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array;

The multipath management unit 32 is used to manage the data transmission path with the storage array according to the interface parameters loaded by the interface loading unit 31 .

In this embodiment, the host server 300 adds an interface loading unit 31 and a multipath management unit 32, which can receive the interface parameters of the storage array and manage the data transmission path between the host server 300 and the storage array according to the interface parameters, so as to This enables the host server to correspond to a variety of different storage arrays.

Embodiment 4, please refer to FIG. 6 , an embodiment of the present invention provides a host server 400, including: an interface loading unit 41 and a multipath management unit 42, wherein:

The interface loading unit 41 is used to load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array;

Preferably, the interface loading unit 41 includes: a storage unit 410 and an interface writing unit 411, the storage unit 410 is used to store configuration files, and the interface writing unit 411 is used to write the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array into the storage unit 410 in the stored configuration file.

The multipath management unit 42 is configured to call the interface parameters in the configuration file stored in the storage unit 410 to manage the data transmission path with the storage array.

In this embodiment, the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array are loaded into the host server 400 through configuration files, so that the SCSI interfaces at both ends of the host server 400 and the storage array are unified.

Embodiment 5, please refer to FIG. 7 , an embodiment of the present invention provides a host server 500, including: an interface acquisition unit 51, an interface loading unit 52, and a multipath management unit 53, wherein:

The interface obtaining unit 51 is used to obtain the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array, and in this embodiment, the interface obtaining unit 51 of the host server 500 is connected to the network side server 800 through communication, and the storage array and the host server 500 are connected through the network , since the network side server 800 has stored the interface parameter table of the storage array, the interface acquisition unit 51 includes an interface acquisition request unit 510 and a receiving unit 511, and the interface acquisition request unit 510 is used to send a storage array containing corresponding information of the storage array The interface acquisition request of the array is sent to the network side server 800, and the receiving unit 511 is used to receive the interface parameters returned by the network side server 800;

The interface loading unit 52 is used to load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array received by the receiving unit 511. In this embodiment, the interface loading unit 52 includes: a storage unit 520 and an interface writing unit 521. The storage unit 520 is used to For storing the configuration file, the interface writing unit 521 is connected to the receiving unit 511 in communication, and is used for writing the interface parameters received by the receiving unit 511 into the configuration file of the storage unit 520 .

The multipath management unit 53 is used to call the interface parameters in the configuration file stored in the storage unit 520 to manage the data transmission path with the storage array.

The host server 500 provided in this embodiment is based on the host server provided in Embodiment 4 with an interface acquisition unit 51 added. Using the host server 500 in this embodiment, the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array can be obtained from the network side server 800 . This kind of host server only needs to search the existing interface parameter table through the network server 800, and the actual operation is relatively simple.

Embodiment 6 Please refer to FIG. 8 , which is a schematic diagram of a logical structure of a host server 600 provided by another embodiment of the present invention. The host server 600 includes an interface obtaining unit 61 , an interface loading unit 62 and a multipath management unit 63 .

The interface obtaining unit 61 is used to obtain the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array 700. In this embodiment, the host server 600 and the storage array 700 are directly connected by communication, and the interface obtaining unit 61 includes a command sending unit 610 and a response receiving unit. 611 and interface recording unit 612, wherein:

A command sending unit 610, configured to send an interface command to all interfaces of the storage array 700, where the interface command is a function command of the SCSI interface of the storage array 700;

The response receiving unit 611 is configured to receive the interface command response returned by the storage array 700, and record the interface address of the returned interface command response;

The interface recording unit 612 generates and records interface parameters according to the function command sent by the command sending unit 610 and the interface address of the returned command response recorded by the response receiving unit 612 .

The interface loading unit 62 is configured to load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array recorded by the interface recording unit 612 . In this embodiment, the interface loading unit 62 includes: a storage unit 620 and an interface writing unit 621 . The storage unit 620 is used to store configuration files, the interface writing unit 621 is connected to the interface recording unit 612, and is used to write the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array recorded by the interface recording unit 612 into the storage unit 610. configuration file.

The multipath management unit 63 is configured to call the interface parameters in the configuration file stored in the storage unit 620 to manage the data transmission path with the storage array.

The difference between the host server 600 provided in this embodiment and the host server provided in Embodiment 5 is the interface acquisition unit 61. By using the host server 600 in this embodiment, the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array can also be interacted with the storage array 700. get.

From the management method of the above data transmission path and the host server, it can be seen that in the communication between the host server and the storage array, only the SCSI interface parameters corresponding to the storage array to be communicated are loaded, so that the host server can well support different manufacturers. Various storage arrays produced and their different modes do not have the problem of non-uniform private interfaces, which improves the compatibility between host servers and few storage arrays.

Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that all or part of the steps in the various methods of the above-mentioned embodiments can be completed by instructing related hardware through a program, and the program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, and the storage medium can include: ROM, RAM, disk or CD, etc.

The management method of the data transmission path provided by the embodiment of the present invention and the host server have been introduced in detail above. In this paper, 6 specific examples are used to illustrate the principle and implementation of the present invention. The description of the above embodiment is only for helping Understand the method of the present invention and its core idea; at the same time, for those of ordinary skill in the art, according to the idea of the present invention, there will be changes in the specific implementation and scope of application. In summary, the content of this specification is not It should be understood as a limitation of the present invention.

Claims (12)

1. A method for managing a data transmission path, used to manage a data transmission path between a host server and a storage array, characterized in that it comprises: Load the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array; A data transmission path with the interface of the storage array is managed according to the interface parameters. 2. The data transmission path management method according to claim 1, characterized in that before loading the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array, it further includes: Obtain interface parameters corresponding to the storage array. 3. The data transmission path management method according to claim 2, wherein said acquiring the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array comprises: sending an interface acquisition request of the storage array to a network side server, where the interface acquisition request includes information corresponding to the storage array; Receive the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array returned by the network side server. 4. The data transmission path management method according to claim 2, wherein said acquiring the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array comprises: Send interface commands to all interfaces of the storage array; The interface command response returned by the storage array is received, and the corresponding interface address for returning the interface command response is recorded. 5. The data transmission path management method according to claim 1, wherein said loading the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array comprises: writing the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array into the stored configuration file; The managing the data transmission path between the interface with the storage array according to the interface parameters is to manage the data transmission path between the interface with the storage array by calling the interface parameters in the configuration file. 6. The data transmission path management method according to claim 1, wherein the interface parameters corresponding to loading into the storage array include an interface identification parameter and an interface command parameter for loading into the storage array. 7. A host server, comprising: an interface loading unit and a multipath management unit; The interface loading unit is used to load interface parameters corresponding to the storage array; The multipath management unit is configured to manage the data transmission path between the interface with the storage array according to the interface parameters loaded by the interface loading unit. 8. The host server according to claim 7, further comprising: an interface acquiring unit, configured to acquire interface parameters corresponding to the storage array. 9. The host server according to claim 8, wherein the interface acquisition unit comprises: an interface acquisition request unit and a receiving unit; The interface acquisition request unit is configured to send an interface acquisition request of the storage array to a network side server; The receiving unit is configured to receive the interface parameters returned by the network side server; The interface loading unit loads the interface parameters received by the receiving unit. 10. The host server according to claim 8, wherein the interface acquiring unit comprises: a command sending unit, a response receiving unit and an interface recording unit; The command sending unit is configured to send interface commands to all interfaces of the storage array; The response receiving unit is configured to receive an interface command response returned by the storage array; The interface recording unit is used to record the corresponding interface parameters of the interface command response; The interface loading unit loads the interface parameters recorded by the interface recording unit. 11. The host server according to claim 7, wherein the interface loading unit comprises: a storage unit and an interface writing unit; The storage unit is used to store configuration files; The interface writing unit is used to write the interface parameters corresponding to the storage array into the configuration file stored in the storage unit; The multipath management unit invokes the interface parameters in the configuration file stored in the storage unit to manage the data transmission path between the interface with the storage array. 12. The host server according to claim 7, wherein the interface parameters include interface identification parameters and interface command parameters.

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