Patent ID: 7801859
Filing Date: 2010-09-21
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
1. A method for tracking file system backups comprising: receiving a request to perform a non-full backup with respect to a data set comprising a file system or a portion thereof; automatically associating, using a processor, the requested non-full backup with any previously performed backups required to be available in order to restore the data set to a state associated with the requested non-full backup including by identifying one or more previously performed backups required to be available in order to restore the data set to the state associated with the requested non-full backup; wherein identifying one or more previously performed backups includes accessing a backup tree that includes (1) a plurality of nodes, each node corresponding to a full, incremental, or differential backup and (2) for each non-full backup, a link from a node corresponding to a given non-full backup to a node corresponding to an immediate antecedent backup that is required to be available in order to restore the data set to the state associated with the given non-full backup; determining if the identified one or more previously performed backups are all available; if it is determined that the identified one or more previously performed backups are all available, performing, in response to the received request to perform a non-full backup, the requested non-full backup; and if it is determined that at least one of the identified one or more previously performed backups is not available, automatically performing, in response to the received request to perform a non-full backup, a full backup on the data set using the processor, including by accessing data included in the data set from a source device protected by a backup and/or recovery system.