Computer system

The management system includes pair management information for managing pair groups and resource management information for managing resources allocated to the pair groups. The management system monitors data transfer latencies in asynchronous remote copy in the pair groups. In a case where data transfer latencies in a first pair group of the pair groups reach a threshold, the management system selects a first asynchronous remote copy pair from the first pair group with reference to the pair management information. The management system selects a second pair group allocated resources different from resources allocated to the first pair group as a candidate migration destination of the first asynchronous remote copy pair with reference to the resource management information.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to management of asynchronous remote copy.

The background of this invention includes Patent literature 1. In the information storage system disclosed in Patent literature 1, the following processing is performed: During an asynchronous remote copy process for a plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs, a copy of data in a migration source primary storage area is stored in a migration destination primary storage area, and the copy of data in the migration source primary storage area is also stored in a migration destination secondary storage area through a migration destination primary storage area or a migration source secondary storage area. Then, for an asynchronous remote copy pair established between the migration destination primary storage area and the migration destination secondary storage area together with the above-described asynchronous remote copy pairs, the asynchronous remote copy process is executed in such a method that a copy of writing data is stored in a plurality of secondary storage areas in accordance with the write request sequence issued by a computer.

Patent Literature 1: JP 2006-293947 A

SUMMARY

Among a plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs, if a specific primary volume receives host write requests exceeding the data transfer capability for transferring copy data from the primary volume to the secondary volume, data transfer from the primary volume to the secondary volume might be delayed. Accordingly, for asynchronous remote copy in the plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs, demanded is a technique to manage the plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs in view of data transfer delay.

An aspect of this invention is a computer system including an information storage system including one or more main storage apparatuses and one or more remote storage apparatuses, and a management system for managing the information storage system. The information storage system includes a plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs. The plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs each consists of a primary volume provided by the one or more main storage apparatuses and a secondary volume provided by the one or more remote storage apparatuses. The plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs are divided into a plurality of pair groups each including one or more asynchronous remote copy pairs. The management system includes pair management information for managing relations between the plurality of pair groups and one or more asynchronous remote copy pairs included in the plurality of pair groups, and resource management information for managing resources allocated to the plurality of pair groups to be used to transfer copy data in asynchronous remote copy. The management system monitors data transfer latencies in asynchronous remote copy in the plurality of pair groups. In a case where data transfer latencies in a first pair group of the plurality of pair groups reach a threshold, the management system selects a first asynchronous remote copy pair from the first pair group with reference to the pair management information. The management system selects a second pair group allocated resources different from resources allocated to the first pair group as a candidate migration destination of the first asynchronous remote copy pair with reference to the resource management information.

According to an aspect of this invention, for asynchronous remote copy in a plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs, the plurality of asynchronous remote copy pairs can be managed in view of data transfer delay.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an embodiment of this invention is described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that this embodiment is merely an example to realize has invention and is not to limit the technical scope of this invention. Elements common to the drawings are demoted by the same reference signs.

In the following description, information in this invention will be expressed as “aaa table”, “aaa list”, “aaa DB”, “aaa queue”, and the like; however, the information may be expressed in data structures other than tables, lists, DBs, queues, and the like. For this reason, to imply independency from such data structures, the “aaa table”, “aaa list”, “aaa DB”, “aaa queue” or the like may be referred to as “aaa information”.

Moreover, in describing specifies of the information, terms such as identification information, identifier, name, and ID are used; but they may be replaced with one another.

The following description includes descriptions with subjects of program but such descriptions may be replaced by those having subjects of processor because a program is executed by a processor to perform predetermined processing using a memory and a communication port (communication control device). In addition, the processing disclosed with descriptions having subjects of program may be taken as the processing performed by a computer such as a management server or an information processing apparatus. A part or all of a program may be implemented by dedicated hardware.

Programs may be installed in computers through a program distribution server or a computer-readable non-transitory storage medium. In this case, the program distribution server includes a CPU and storage resources; the storage resources holds a distribution program and a program to be distributed. The CPU executes the distribution program so that the CPU in the program distribution server distributes the program to be distributed to other computers.

FIG. 1is a diagram for illustrating the outline of this embodiment. A computer system includes an information storage system100and a storage management server180for managing the information storage system100. The information storage system performs asynchronous remote copy.

In the example ofFIG. 1, the information storage system100includes a first and a second main storage apparatuses120A and120B, a first and a second remote storage apparatuses130A and130B. The first main storage apparatus120A and the first remote storage apparatus130A constitute an apparatus pair for asynchronous remote copy. The second main storage apparatus120B and the second remote storage apparatus130B constitute an apparatus pair for asynchronous remote copy.

The first main storage apparatus120A has primary volumes261A to263A and the first remote storage apparatus130A has secondary volumes261B to263B. The primary volume261A and the secondary volume261B constitute an asynchronous remote copy pair. The primary volume262A and the secondary volume262B constitute an asynchronous remote copy pair. The primary volume263A and the secondary volume263B constitute an asynchronous remote copy pair. These three asynchronous remote copy pairs are included in a pair group251A.

The second main storage apparatus120B has a primary volume264A and the second remote storage apparatus130B has a secondary volume264B. The primary volume264A and the secondary volume264B constitute an asynchronous remote copy pair. This asynchronous remote copy pair is included in a pair group251B.

The pair groups251A and251B are allocated the resources of the storage apparatuses120A,120B,130A, and130B for the purpose of asynchronous remote copy. The allocated resources are, for example, processors and ports. Data transfer in asynchronous remote copy pairs included in the pair group251A is performed by the resources allocated to the pair group251A and the data transfer in the pair group251B is performed by the resources allocated to the pair group251B.

The pair groups251A and251B constitute a copy group250. In the copy group, the order of writing host write data to the primary volumes261A to264A matches the order of copying the host write data to the secondary volumes261B to264B.

Upon detection of delay in copying in a copy group, the storage management server180identifies one or more pair groups in which transfer delay occurs from the pair groups included in the copy group. The storage management server180selects candidate primary volumes to be migrated (candidate asynchronous remote copy pairs to be migrated) from the identified one or more pair group. This method is applicable to a system in which no copy group is defined; depending on the design, candidate destinations may be selected from a different copy group.

The storage management server180selects, for each of the candidate primary volumes to be migrated, a pair group having resources at least a part of which are different from the resources of the pair group including the candidate primary volume to be migrated as a candidate destination pair group. The storage management server180indicates information on the selected candidate primary volumes to be migrated and candidate destination pair groups on the display device or alternatively, migrates the asynchronous remote copy pairs including the candidate primary volumes to be migrated to the candidate destination pair groups. This migration can reduce the data transfer delay in the source pair group without additional hardware.

Specific explanation follows. The storage management server180monitors the data transfer latency in asynchronous remote copy in the copy group250. The example ofFIG. 1shows only one copy group250, but the information storage system100can have a plurality of copy groups.

The data transfer latency means the delay time between writing write data to a primary volume and writing the write data to a secondary volume, namely, the latency in transferring the write data. The storage management server180periodically acquires data transfer latency of each copy group from the information storage system100. The data transfer latency of a copy group is, for example, the highest value among the data transfer latencies of all asynchronous remote copy pairs included in the copy group.

The storage management server180compares the data transfer latency of each copy group with a threshold assigned to each copy group to detect a copy group in which asynchronous remote copy is being delayed. In this example, it is assumed that the data transfer latency of the copy group250is higher than the threshold.

The storage management server180identifies pair groups of which the data transfer latencies are higher than the threshold from the copy group250. The data transfer latency of a pair group may be the highest value among the data transfer latencies of all the asynchronous remote copy pairs included in the pair group. In this example, it is assumed that the data transfer latency of the pair group251A is higher than the threshold.

The storage management server180compares the amount of write data for the pair group251A with the data transfer capability of the resources allocated to the pair group251A to determine the amount of write data to be migrated (migration write data amount). The transfer capability and the amount of write data may be indicated by the amount of data per unit time.

The storage management server180determines one or more candidate primary volumes to be migrated with reference to the amount of write data in each of the primary volumes261A to263A in the pair group251A and the foregoing migration write data amount. For example, the one or more candidate primary volumes to be migrated are selected in such a manner that the total amount of write data for the candidate primary volumes to be migrated will not be less than the migration write data amount. In the example ofFIG. 1, the primary volume261A (and the secondary volume261B) is selected as a candidate primary volume (asynchronous remote copy pair) to be migrated (a candidate object).

The storage management server180selects pair groups in which the data transfer capability of the resources is higher than the amount of write data, or pair groups having a margin in the transfer capacity, from the pair groups in the same copy group as candidate destinations. In the example ofFIG. 1, the pair group251B is selected as a candidate destination pair group.

The storage management server180selects a candidate destination pair group for each of the candidate primary volumes to be migrated from the selected pair groups. The pair groups sharing all the allocated resources with the pair group including the candidate primary volume to be migrated are excluded for the candidate destination. Hence, data transfer delay in the source pair group can be reduced by migration of asynchronous remote copy pairs. In an example, pair groups sharing at least a part of the allocated resources with the pair group including the candidate primary volume to be migrated may be excluded from the candidate destinations. Consequently, data transfer delay in the source pair group can be reduced more definitely.

For example, the storage management server180selects candidate primary volumes to be migrated one by one and, for each of the selected candidate primary volumes to be migrated, selects a pair group in which the allocated resources are different from those of the candidate primary volume and the amount of write data for the candidate primary volume is not more than the margin in the transfer capacity as a candidate destination pair group.

In an example, the storage management server180may select a pair group having the largest margin in the transfer capacity and if the margin in the transfer capacity of the selected pair group is smaller than the amount of write data for the candidate primary volume to be migrated, it removes the primary volume (asynchronous remote copy pair) from the candidate objects.

The storage management server180instructs the information storage system100to migrate the asynchronous remote copy pairs including the selected primary volumes to be migrated to the storage apparatuses including the selected destination pair groups. In the example ofFIG. 1, the primary volume261A is migrated to the second main storage apparatus120B and the secondary volume261B is migrated to the second remote storage apparatus130B.

Before instructing the information storage system100to perform migration, the storage management server180may display information about the selected candidate primary volumes to be migrated and the candidate destination pair groups on the display device. In response to input from the administrator, the storage management server180instructs the information storage system100to perform migration of the designated asynchronous remote copy pairs to the designated destination pair groups.

FIG. 2is a block diagram schematically illustrating an example of the system configuration in this embodiment. The first and second main storage apparatuses120A and120B and the first and the second remote storage apparatuses130A and130B may have the same configuration. The first main storage apparatus120A and the first remote storage apparatus130A constitute an apparatus pair for asynchronous remote copy. In similar, the second main storage apparatus120B and the second remote storage apparatus130B constitute an apparatus pair for asynchronous remote copy. Each storage apparatus may form a pair for asynchronous remote copy with other storage apparatuses.

InFIG. 2, the first main storage apparatus120A includes a CPU121of a processor, a memory122of a primary storage device, a network interface card (NIC)124for connecting to a LAN150, and logical volumes125. For example, the logical volumes125are storage areas of one or more non-volatile storage devices such as HDDs or SSDs.

The first main storage apparatus120A further includes host ports123for connecting to a network for communication with a primary host110and a storage management server180and storage ports126for connecting to an inter-storage network for communication with other storage apparatuses. For data communication among storage apparatuses and hosts, a storage area network (SAN) may be used. At least a part of these networks may be the same network.

The numbers of components in the first main storage apparatus120A depend on the design. For example, the example ofFIG. 2shows one CPU121by way of example; however, the first main storage apparatus120A generally includes a plurality of CPUs121. The same applies to the other apparatuses.

The primary host110accesses the first and the second main storage apparatuses120A and120B; the secondary host140accesses the first and the second remote storage apparatuses130A and130B. The primary host110and the secondary host140constitute a cluster; when a failure occurs in the primary host110, the secondary host140takes over the services.

The primary host110and the secondary host140may have the same configuration. InFIG. 2, the primary host110includes a CPU111of a processor, a memory112of a primary storage device, a NIC113, a host bus adapter (HBA)115and ports114for communication with the storage apparatuses, and an HDD116of an auxiliary storage device. In the hosts110and140, the numbers of components depend on the design.

A storage management client101is an apparatus such as a personal computer, a workstation, or a thin client terminal for providing a user interface function of the service system. The storage management client101provides a user interface function of the storage management program187.

The storage management client101includes an input device102for receiving inputs from the user (administrator) and a display device103for displaying information to the user. The display device103may be an image display device such as a CRT or a liquid crystal display device. Examples of images to be displayed on the display device103are described later with reference toFIGS. 5 and 6. The storage management client101communicates with the storage management program187in the storage management server180and other programs via the LAN150.

The storage management server180includes a CPU181of a processor, a memory182of a primary storage device, a NIC183, host ports184, a host bus adapter (HBA)185, and an HDD186of an auxiliary storage device. The storage management program187is held in the HDD186and loaded to the memory182to be executed by the CPU181. In the storage management client101and the storage management server180, the numbers of components depend on the design.

In this example, the storage management client101and the storage management server180constitute a management system. The management system may be configured with a single computer. The management system may include a plurality of clients and servers; for example, a plurality of management servers may bear part of the processing described hereinafter.

FIG. 3schematically illustrates an example of a method of asynchronous remote copy.FIG. 3illustrates asynchronous remote copy between the first main storage apparatus120A and the first remote storage apparatus130A by way of example. The first main storage apparatus120A and the first remote storage apparatus130A have three pair groups255A,255C, and255D.

The pair group255A includes a plurality of primary volumes256, a primary journal volume257, a secondary journal volume258, and a plurality of secondary volumes259. A pair group can include a plurality of primary journal volumes and a plurality of secondary journal volumes. A pair group may include one pair. The other pair groups255C and255D each include one or more primary and secondary volumes and primary and secondary journal volumes.

In this example, a pair group includes all volume pairs that use the primary and secondary journal volumes assigned to the pair group. For example, the pair group255A consists of a primary journal volume257, a secondary journal volume258, and all primary and secondary volumes256and259that use these journal volumes. Although this example defines pair groups with journal volumes, asynchronous remote copy may be performed without using journal volumes or pair groups may be defined independently from journal volumes.

Asynchronous remote copy writes host write data for a primary volume in the main storage apparatus to the primary volume and further copies the same data to a secondary volume in the remote storage apparatus. Upon completion of write to the primary volume, the asynchronous remote copy notifies the host of the completion of writing the host write data to the secondary volume without waiting for the completion of write.

For example, upon receipt of a host write command for a primary volume256, the first main storage apparatus120A writes the write data to the primary volume256(wherein, the write includes write to the cache). Further, the first main storage apparatus120A creates a data unit called a journal including the write data and writes it to the primary journal volume257.

The journal includes a write address in the primary volume256and a timestamp (TS#) managed by the first main storage apparatus120A in addition to the write data. For example, the storage management server180periodically issues timestamps at predetermined intervals and sends them to the first and the second main storage apparatuses120A and120B. The first and the second main storage apparatuses120A and120B include the latest timestamp numbers in journals.

The first main storage apparatus120A sends journals that have not been transferred to the first remote storage apparatus130A in response to a request from the remote storage apparatus130A. The remote storage apparatus130A stores the received journals in the secondary journal volume258and thereafter, writes the write data from the secondary journal volume258to the secondary volumes259(wherein, the write includes write to the cache).

The remote storage apparatuses130A and130B restore the data to the secondary volumes in order of timestamp from the oldest to the newest. As a result, the order of data update in the primary volumes can be kept in the data update in the secondary volumes within the copy group. In this way, matching update points among storage apparatuses with timestamps enables data copy to keep consistency within the copy group.

FIG. 4illustrates a configuration example of the storage management server180. The CPU181is a processor for executing software programs loaded from the HDD186of an auxiliary storage device to the memory182of a primary storage device. In the following description, the processing performed by the software programs loaded to the memory182is actually performed by the CPU181executing the software programs.

The memory182is a semiconductor storage device such as a dynamic RAM. For the HDD186, a semiconductor storage device such as a flash memory may be used, instead of a hard disk drive. The memory182stores the software programs loaded from the HDD186and executed by the CPU181and data to be referred to by the CPU181.

Specifically, executed by the CPU181are at least programs included in the storage management program187, such as a condition setting program201, a configuration and performance information collection program202, a data transfer delay detection program205, a candidate object determination program206, a candidate destination determination program207, a proposed migration display program203, and a volume migration control program204. The memory182further stores configuration management information208, performance and capacity information209, data transfer latency information210, and data transfer latency threshold management table501.

The NIC183is used for the storage management server180to communicate with the storage management client101and other apparatuses via the LAN150. The HBA185is used for the storage management server180to communicate with the first main storage apparatus120A and other apparatuses. The HBA185has ports184as connection terminals for communication cables.

The storage management server180may use the Fibre channel (FC) protocol in inputting and outputting data to and from the first main storage apparatus120A and other apparatuses, but may use other protocol. The storage management server180may use the NIC183and the LAN150to communicate with the first main storage apparatus120A and other apparatuses, instead of the HBA185.

The condition setting program201stores thresholds of data transfer latency for copy groups individually specified on a data transfer latency threshold setting image for copy groups301(refer toFIG. 5) displayed on the display device103of the storage management client101to the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501.

The configuration and performance information collection program202collects configuration information and performance (capacity) information on the storage apparatuses120A,120B,130A, and130B and stores them to the configuration management information208and the performance and capacity information209.

The configuration management information208includes a primary volume management table601, a pair group management table701, and a pair group-related resource management table801. The performance and capacity information209includes a write data amount management table901, a data transfer capability management table for ports951, and a data transfer capability management table for processors961. Details of the tables are described later with reference toFIGS. 7 to 13.

The storage management program187identifies a copy group in which data transfer is delayed with reference to the data transfer latency thresholds for copy groups stored by the condition setting program201and the configuration and performance information collected by the configuration and performance information collection program202, determines candidate volumes to be migrated and candidate destination pair groups, and notifies the proposed migration display program203and the volume migration control program204.

The proposed migration display program203receives information on the candidate volumes to be migrated and the candidate destination pair groups issued by the candidate destination determination program207and displays a proposed migration list image401(FIG. 6). The information on the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups selected in the proposed migration list image401is sent to the volume migration control program204.

The volume migration control program204instructs, in the case where automatic migration is set at ON, the main and the remote storage apparatuses to perform migration upon receipt of information on the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups from the candidate destination determination program207. In the case where automatic migration is set at OFF, the volume migration control program204instructs the main and the remote storage apparatuses to perform migration upon receipt of information on the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups designated by the user from the storage management client101.

Next, examples of images displayed by the proposed migration display program203are described with reference toFIGS. 5 and 6.FIGS. 5 and 6are examples of images displayed by the display device103of the storage management client101in accordance with instructions from the proposed migration display program203.

FIG. 5illustrates an example of a data transfer latency threshold setting image for copy groups301for the user to specify thresholds of data transfer latency for individual copy groups. The condition setting program201creates the image301to be displayed and sends it to the storage management client101. The data transfer latency threshold setting image for copy groups301includes a column for indicating copy group names, a current value column for indicating current thresholds, and a new value column allowing the user to enter values for setting thresholds. Each row corresponds to one of the rows of the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501.

The copy group column corresponds to the names503in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501(refer toFIG. 7). The current value column corresponds to the data transfer latency thresholds504in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501. When the user enters a value different from the current value in a new value held and presses the UPDATE button in the data transfer latency threshold setting image for copy groups, the condition setting program201updates a data transfer latency threshold504in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501into the value entered in the new value field.

Below the threshold column, a button is displayed that is used by the user to request update of the data transfer latency threshold for a copy group. The user can request update of the data transfer latency threshold for a copy group with the input device102of the storage management client101.

FIG. 6illustrates an example of a proposed migration list image401. In the case where automatic migration is set at OFF in the storage management program187, the proposed migration display program203creates data for this image401and sends it to the storage management client101. The proposed migration list image401shows a list of combinations of candidate volumes to be migrated and candidate destinations and changes in data transfer latency caused by the migration.

The proposed migration list image401includes columns of a copy group name indication column, a migration source indication column, a migration destination indication column, a percentage (%) of threshold (current value) column, a percentage (%) of threshold (estimated value after migration) column, and a check column. The migration source indication column includes columns of pair group IDs, apparatus IDs, and VOL IDs. The migration destination indication column includes columns of pair group IDs and apparatus IDs. Each row corresponds to one of the combinations of source volumes and a destination pair group notified by the candidate destination determination program207.

The copy group column corresponds to the names503in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy group501. The pair group IDs, the apparatus IDs, and the VOL IDs included in the migration source column respectively correspond to the pair group IDs703, the main storage apparatus IDs704, and the primary volume IDs705in the pair group management table701(refer toFIG. 9). The source volumes to be indicated are the candidate volumes to be migrated notified of by the candidate object determination program206.

The pair group IDs and the apparatus IDs included in the migration destination column respectively correspond to the remote storage apparatus IDs706and the secondary volume IDs707in the pair group management table701and the destination pair groups to be indicated are the candidate destination pair groups notified of by the candidate destination determination program207.

The percentage (%) of threshold (current value) is a value obtained by multiplying the result of division of the data transfer latency983in the data transfer latency management table for copy groups981by the data transfer latency threshold504in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501by 100.

The percentage (%) of threshold (estimated value after migration) is a value indicating the rate of the estimated data transfer latency after migration of the source volumes corresponding to the row to the destination pair group with respect to the data transfer latency threshold504in the data transfer latency management table501.

The estimated data transfer latency after migration is calculated from the rate of increase in the amount of write data in the copy destination. For example, assuming that, in the write data amount management table901, the sum of the amounts of write data for the primary volumes included in the destination pair group is 40 MB (the sum of the values for PVOLs #21 and #22) and the sum of the amounts of write data for the volumes to be migrated is 40 MB (the value for PVOL #12), the amount of write data will be 200%.

Accordingly, it is estimated that the data transfer latency973in the data transfer latency management table for pair groups971will also be 200%. That is to say, since the data transfer latency of PAIR #2 is 1TS#, the data transfer latency after migration is estimated at 2TS#.

On the other hand, the result of subtracting the amount of write data 40 MB to be migrated (the value for PVOL #12) from the sum of the amounts of write data 140 MB for the source pair group (the sum of the values for PVOL #11, #12, and #13) in the write data amount management table901is 100 MB. Since the amount of write data is 71% of the current value, it is estimated that the data transfer latency973for the pair group in the data transfer latency management table971will also be 71%. That is to say, since the data transfer latency of PAIR #1 is 4TS#, it is estimated that the data transfer latency will be 3TS#.

If the data transfer latency of PAIR #1 is 3TS# and the data transfer latency of PAIR #2 is 2TS#, the data transfer latency983of CTG1 in the data transfer latency management table for copy groups981is estimated at 3TS#. The value obtained by multiplying the result of division of the data transfer latency 3TS# of CTG1 by the data transfer latency threshold504in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501by 100 is indicated in the percentage (%) of threshold (estimated value after migration) in the proposed migration list image401.

As to the check column, when the user checks one or more intended candidates in the proposed migration list and presses the MIGRATE button, a list of checked sets of the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups is sent to the volume migration control program204and the migration is executed.

Below the check column, a button is displayed for the user to execute migration of the discretionally selected volumes. The user operates the button with the input device102of the storage management client101to issue an instruction to execute migration of any of the volumes displayed in the proposed migration list image401.

Next, configuration examples of the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501, the configuration management information208, the performance and capacity information209, the data transfer latency information210to be used by the storage management program187are described with reference toFIGS. 7 to 15.

The configuration management information208includes a primary volume management table601, a pair group management table701, and a pair group-related resource management table801. The performance and capacity information209includes a write data amount management table901, a data transfer capability management table for ports951, and a data transfer capability management table for processors961. The data transfer latency information210includes a data transfer latency management table for pair groups971and a data transfer latency management table for copy groups981.

FIG. 7illustrates an example of the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501. The data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501holds data transfer latency thresholds for copy groups and has a copy group ID column502, a name column503, and a data transfer latency threshold column504. Each row of the table corresponds to a copy group managed by the storage management program187.

The data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501is created by the condition setting program201based on the information collected from the latency thresholds for copy groups entered in the data transfer latency threshold setting image for copy groups301or recommended values preset to the system.

The copy group ID column502stores identifiers of copy groups. The name column503stores names of the copy groups. The data transfer latency threshold column504stores thresholds of data transfer latency specified for the copy groups.

FIG. 8illustrates an example of the primary volume management table601. The primary volume management table601holds information on primary volumes in the storage apparatuses and has an apparatus ID column602, a volume ID column603, and a capacity column604. Each row of the table corresponds to a primary volume in a storage apparatus managed by the storage management program187. The configuration and performance information collection program202creates the pair group management table701based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

The apparatus ID column602stores identifiers of storage apparatuses. The volume ID column603stores identifiers of volumes. The capacity column604stores capacities of the volumes. The configuration and performance information collection program202creates the primary volume management table601based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

FIG. 9illustrates an example of the pair group management table701. The pair group management table701holds information on pairs of a primary volume and a secondary volume (asynchronous remote copy pairs) included in pair groups and association information on the copy groups the pair groups belong to. Each row of the table corresponds to an asynchronous remote copy pair managed by the storage management program187.

The pair group management table701has a copy group ID column702, a pair group ID column703, a main storage apparatus ID column704, a primary volume ID column705, a remote storage apparatus ID column706, and a secondary volume ID column707.

The copy group ID column702stores identifiers of copy groups to which asynchronous remote copy pairs (pair groups) belong. The pair group ID column703stores identifiers of the pair groups to which the asynchronous remote copy pairs belong. The main storage apparatus ID column704stores identifiers of the main storage apparatuses including the asynchronous remote copy pairs. The primary volume ID column705stores identifiers of the primary volumes of the asynchronous remote copy pairs.

The remote storage apparatus ID column706stores identifiers of the remote storage apparatuses including the asynchronous remote copy pairs. The secondary volume ID column707stores identifiers of the secondary volumes of the asynchronous remote copy pairs.

FIG. 10illustrates an example of the pair group-related resource management table801. The pair group-related resource management table801holds information on resources allocated to pair groups to be used in transferring copy data. Each row of the table corresponds to a pair group managed by the storage management program187. A part or all of the allocated resources may be common to different pair groups. The configuration and performance information collection program202creates the pair group-related resource management table801based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

The pair group-related resource management table801has a pair group ID column802, a main storage apparatus ID column803, a main storage apparatus port ID column804, a main storage apparatus processor ID column805, a remote storage apparatus ID column806, a remote storage apparatus port ID column807, and a remote storage apparatus processor ID column808.

The pair group ID column802stores identifiers of pair groups. The main storage apparatus ID column803stores identifiers of the main storage apparatuses including the pair groups. The main storage apparatus port ID column804stores identifiers of the ports of the main storage apparatuses allocated to the pair groups. The main storage apparatus processor ID column805stores identifiers of the processors of the main storage apparatuses allocated to the pair groups.

The remote storage apparatus ID column806stores identifiers of the remote storage apparatuses including the pair groups. The remote storage apparatus port ID column807stores identifiers of the ports of the remote storage apparatuses allocated to the pair groups. The remote storage apparatus processor ID column808stores identifiers of the processors of the remote storage apparatuses allocated to the pair groups.

FIG. 11illustrates an example of the write data amount management table901. The write data amount management table901holds the amounts of write data for primary volumes in each storage apparatus. For example, each row of the table corresponds to the write data for the same primary volume assigned the same timestamp (TS#). The configuration and performance information collection program202creates the write data amount management table901based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

The write data amount management table901has an apparatus ID column902, a primary volume ID column903, a timestamp column904, and a write data amount column905. The apparatus ID column902stores identifiers of storage apparatuses holding primary volumes where to write the write data.

The primary volume ID column903stores identifiers of primary volumes where to write the write data. The timestamp column904stores timestamps (TS#) assigned to the write data. A timestamp is included in the journal of write data. The write data amount column905scores amounts of write data.

FIG. 12illustrates aft example of the data transfer capability management table for ports951. The data transfer capability management table for ports951holds data transfer capabilities of ports. Each row of the table indicates the data transfer capability of a port managed by the storage management program187. The configuration and performance information collection program202creates the data transfer capability management table for ports951based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

The data transfer capability management table for ports951has an apparatus ID column952, a port ID column953, and a data transfer capability column954. The apparatus ID column952stores identifiers of the storage apparatuses holding the ports. The port ID column953holds identifiers of the ports. The data transfer capability column954holds values of transfer capability of the ports, such as the amount of data transfer per second.

FIG. 13illustrates an example of the data transfer capability management table for processors961. The data transfer capability management table for processors961holds data transfer capabilities of processors. Each row of the table corresponds to the data transfer capability of a processor managed by the storage management program187. The configuration and performance information collection program202creates the data transfer capability management table for processors961based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

The data transfer capability management table for processors961has an apparatus ID column962, a processor ID column963, and a data transfer capability column964. The apparatus ID column962stores identifiers of the storage apparatuses holding the processors. The processor ID column963holds identifiers of the processors. The data transfer capability column964holds values of transfer capability of the processors, such as the amount of data transfer per second.

FIG. 14illustrates an example of the data transfer latency management table for pair groups971. The data transfer latency management table for pair groups971holds data transfer latencies of pair groups. Each row of the table corresponds to the data transfer latency of a pair group managed by the storage management program187. The data transfer delay detection program205creates the data transfer latency management table for pair groups971based on the information collected from the storage apparatuses.

The data transfer latency management table for pair groups971has a pair group ID column972and a data transfer latency column973. The pair group ID column972stores identifiers of the pair groups. The data transfer latency column973holds the latest latencies in data transfer by the pair groups.

FIG. 15illustrates an example of the data transfer latency management table for copy groups981. The data transfer latency management table for copy groups981holds data transfer latencies of copy groups. Each row of the table corresponds to the data transfer latency of a copy group managed by the storage management program187. The data transfer delay detection program205creates the data transfer latency management table for copy groups981based on the information in the data transfer latency management table for pair groups971and the Information in the pair group management table701.

The data transfer latency management table for copy groups981has a copy group ID column982and a data transfer latency column983. The copy group ID column982stores identifiers of the copy groups. The data transfer latency column983holds the latest latencies in data transfer by the copy groups. Specifically, each field includes the highest value in the data transfer latencies of the pair groups included in the copy group.

Next, the processing performed by the storage management program187is described with reference to the flowcharts ofFIGS. 16 to 23.FIG. 16is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing routine of the condition setting program201included in the storage management program187.

The processing routine illustrated inFIG. 16is started in response to press of the UPDATE button in the data transfer latency threshold setting image for copy groups301after the user enters a threshold different from the current value in a new value held using the input device102of the storage management client101. The processing performed by the condition setting program in the description ofFIG. 16is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187.

The condition setting program201acquires the entered threshold of latency from the storage management client101(S101). The condition setting program201converts the acquired threshold into a value in unit of timestamp and stores it to the data transfer latency threshold504in the data transfer latency threshold management table501. For example, if the interval between timestamps issued by the storage management server180is 1 second and the entered threshold value is 3 seconds, the condition setting program201stores a value 3TS# in the data transfer latency threshold management table501.

FIG. 17is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing routine of the configuration and performance information collection program202included in the storage management program187. The storage management program187periodically starts the processing routine illustrated inFIG. 17. The processing performed by the configuration and performance information collection program202in the description ofFIG. 17is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187.

The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires a list of copy groups from the storage apparatuses under management (S111). The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires a list of pair groups from the storage apparatuses under management (S112).

The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires a list of primary volumes and information on capacities of the primary volumes from the storage apparatuses under management and stores them to the primary volume management table601(S113).

The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires association relation information between copy groups and pair groups, creates data to be stored in each row of the pair group management table701from the acquired information together with information acquired at Steps S111and S112, and stores the data (S114). The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires information on resources allocated to each pair group from the storage apparatuses under management and stores it to the pair group-related resource management table801(S115).

The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires the amounts of write data for the primary volumes from the storage apparatuses under management and stores them to the write data amount management table901(S116).

The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires information on data transfer capabilities of the ports from the storage apparatuses under management and stores it to the data transfer capability management table for ports951(S117). The configuration and performance information collection program202acquires information on data transfer capabilities of the processors from the storage apparatuses under management and stores it to the data transfer capability management table for processors961(S118).

FIG. 18is a flowchart illustrating the outline of the processing performed by the programs included in the storage management program187. The data transfer delay detection program205monitors data transfer latencies of the copy groups (S121) and identifies a pair group in which data transfer delay occurs (S122).

The candidate object determination program206determines candidate volumes to be migrated (S123) and the candidate destination determination program207determines candidate destination pair groups (S124). The volume migration control program204instructs the relevant storage apparatuses to migrate volumes to be migrated to destination pair groups (S125).

FIG. 19is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing routine of the data transfer delay detection program205included in the storage management program187. This flowchart corresponds to Steps S121and S122in the flowchart ofFIG. 18. The routine illustrated inFIG. 19is periodically started by the storage management program187. The processing performed by the data transfer delay detection program205in the description ofFIG. 19is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187.

The data transfer delay detection program205refers to the values of timestamps (TS#) periodically issued by the storage management server180(S131) and calculates a data transfer latency of each pair group (S132).

For example, the data transfer delay detection program205subtracts a reached timestamp number (TS#) from a received timestamp number (TS#) and stores the result to the data transfer latency management table for pair groups971as a data transfer latency of the pair group. The received timestamp number (TS#) is the latest timestamp number among the timestamps received by the main storage apparatus. The reached time stamp number (TS#) is the timestamp number included in the latest journal among the journals received by the remote storage apparatus.

Although this example calculates a data transfer latency using timestamp numbers, the data transfer latency may be calculated from other value. The data transfer latency represents the difference between the time of write to the main storage apparatus and the time of write to the remote storage apparatus. The method of calculating the data transfer latency can be selected from a plurality of methods.

For example, the time of write to the main storage apparatus may be represented by the time of issuance of a write command from the host, the time of receipt of a write command (including write data) from the host, the time of write to the primary volume, the time of write to the primary journal volume, or the like. The time of write to the remote storage apparatus may be represented by the time of retrieval from the primary journal volume, the time of write to the secondary journal volume, the time of write to the secondary volume, or the like.

Next, the data transfer delay detection program205calculates a data transfer latency of each copy group from the data transfer latencies of all pair groups in the same copy group (S133). For example, data transfer delay detection program205selects the highest value among the data transfer latencies for all the pair groups in a copy group and stores it to the data transfer latency management table for copy groups981.

Further, the data transfer delay detection program205compares the calculated data transfer latencies of the copy groups with their respective predetermined thresholds (S134). The data transfer delay detection program205acquires the thresholds from the data transfer latency threshold column504in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501.

If the calculated data transfer latency of a copy group is higher than the threshold (S134: YES), the data transfer delay detection program205identifies the pair groups of which data transfer latencies are higher than the threshold (S135). The pairs to be identified are the pairs for which the values acquired from the data transfer latencies973in the data transfer latency management table for pair groups971are higher than the data transfer latency threshold504in the data transfer latency threshold management table for copy groups501.

Further, the data transfer delay detection program205creates a list of the pair groups identified at Step S135and sends it to the candidate object determination program206(S136). If, at Step S134, the data transfer latencies are not higher than the threshold (S134: NO), the data transfer delay detection program205exists this flow.

FIG. 20is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing routine of the candidate object determination program206included in the storage management program187. This flowchart corresponds to Step S123in the flowchart ofFIG. 18.

The processing routine illustrated inFIG. 20is started when the data transfer delay detection program205issues a list of pair groups in which data transfer delay occurs. The processing performed by the candidate object determination program206in the description ofFIG. 20is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187.

The candidate object determination program206receives a list of pair groups in which data transfer latencies exceed a threshold in each copy group from the data transfer delay detection program205(S141).

The candidate object determination program205calculates the total amount of write to all the primary volumes of each pair group included in the list (S142). This example calculates the total amount of write per unit time.

Specifically, the candidate object determination program206selects the pair groups one by one from the list of pair groups. The candidate object determination program206identifies all the primary volumes included in each of the selected pair groups with reference to the pair group management table701.

Furthermore, the candidate object determination program206refers to the write data amount management table901and calculates the total sum of the amounts of write in all entries of the primary volumes identified as above. The candidate object determination program206calculates the total amount of write per unit time from the total sum of the amounts of write and the timestamp numbers. For example, the candidate object determination program206converts the difference between the oldest timestamp number and the newest timestamp number into seconds and divides the total sum of the amounts of write by this value.

Next, the candidate object determination program206calculates the amount of data to be migrated in each pair group (S143). The candidate object determination program206calculates the amount of data to be migrated from a pair group from the total amount of write of the pair group and the data transfer capability of the resources allocated to the pair group.

The candidate object determination program206selects the pair groups one by one and determines the data transfer capability of each pair group. Specifically, the candidate object determination program206refers to the data transfer capability management table for ports951and calculates the total sum of the data transfer capabilities of the ports allocated to the selected pair group. The candidate object determination program206calculates the total sums of the data transfer capabilities of transmission ports and receiving ports separately.

Furthermore, the candidate object determination program206refers to the data transfer capability management table for processors961and calculates the total sum of the data transfer capabilities of the processors allocated to the selected pair group. The candidate object determination program206calculates the total sums of the data transfer capabilities of processors on the transmission side and processors on the receiving side separately.

The candidate object determination program206selects the lowest value among the total scans of the data transfer capabilities of the ports and the total sums of the data transfer capabilities of the processors as the data transfer capability of this pair group. The candidate object determination program206may employ other value, such as the average value of these, as the data transfer capability of the pair group.

The candidate object determination program206subtracts the foregoing value of the data transfer capability of the pair group from the total amount of write per unit time calculated for the pair group and determines the result to be the amount of data to be migrated for the pair group. The amount of data to be migrated represents the excess in the data to be transferred in copy processing of the pair group over the data transfer capability.

Next, the candidate object determination program206selects pair groups one by one and searches the write data amount management table901for primary volumes increasing in the amount of write data in each pair group (S144).

For example, the candidate object determination program206acquires the amounts of write to a primary volume from a predetermined number of recent entries of the write data amount management table901and applies the least-square using a linear function to determine the tendency of the change in the amount of write data.

If primary volumes increasing in the amount of write data exist (S145: YES), the candidate object determination program206creates a list of the volumes sorted in descending order of the increasing rate of write data (S146). If no volume increasing in the amount of write data exists, the candidate object determination program206includes all the primary volumes included in the pair group being processed in the list of volumes.

The candidate object determination206sorts the volumes in the created list based on the capacity of the primary volume (S147). The information on the capacities of primary volumes can be acquired from the primary volume management table601.

The candidate object determination program206may sort only the primary volumes showing the same increasing rate in the list of primary volumes increasing in the amount of write data based on the capacity. Alternatively, the candidate object determination program206may divide the increasing rates of the amount of write data into a plurality of ranges and sort the primary volumes in each range based on the capacity. In this way, the increasing rate of the amount of write data is the first priority sort criterion and the capacity is the second priority sort criterion.

Preferentially selecting primary volumes increasing in the amount of write or primary volumes having smaller capacity leads to selecting volumes of lower cost and having more potential effect on future data transfer. The candidate object determination program206may select candidate volumes to be migrated with other selection criteria. For example, the candidate object determination program206may preferentially select primary volumes having a larger total amount of write data. Either only the amount of write data or the capacity may be employed as selection criterion.

The candidate object determination program206selects candidate volumes to be migrated in order from the top of the volume list so that the total amount of write data for the candidate volumes to be migrated will be the foregoing calculated amount of data to be migrated or more (S148). As a result, the delay in the source pair group can surely become lower than the threshold. It should be noted that the program206may be configured to select fewer candidate volumes. Next, the candidate object determination program206sends a list of candidate volumes to be migrated to the candidate destination determination program207(S149).

The list of candidate volumes to be migrated may include information on the copy groups in which the data transfer latencies are higher than the threshold. For example, the list of candidate volumes to be migrated indicates the candidate volumes in the foregoing sort order in each copy group and each pair group. The list of candidate volumes to be migrated may indicate the candidate volumes sorted independently from the pair group in each copy group.

The above-described example might select a pair group in the same storage apparatus pair that includes a candidate migration object as a candidate destination. Unlike this, the storage management server180may be configured to select candidate destinations from the pair groups in the storage apparatus pairs different from the storage apparatus pair including the candidate migration object. As a result, the data transfer latency in the source pair group and the source storage apparatus pair can surely be reduced.

FIG. 21is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing routine of the candidate destination determination program207included in the storage management program187. The processing routine inFIG. 21is started when the candidate object determination program206issues a list of candidate volumes to be migrated. The processing performed by the candidate destination determination program207in the description ofFIG. 21is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187. The candidate destination determination program207selects candidate destinations from the pair groups in the same copy group in the received volume list. As a result, consistency can be maintained between before and after pair migration.

The candidate destination determination program207receives a list of candidate volumes to be migrated from the candidate object determination program206(S151). The candidate destination determination program207performs Steps S152to S154on each primary volume in the list of candidate volumes to be migrated. The candidate destination determination program207selects the primary volumes in each copy group or pair group in sort order in the received list.

The candidate destination determination program207creates a list of pair groups sorted in descending order of the size of the margin in transfer capacity in the copy group to which the primary volume belongs (S152). The candidate destination determination program207calculates the margin in the transfer capacity by subtracting the total amount of write data from the data transfer capability of each pair group by the same method of Step S143in the flowchart ofFIG. 20. The pair groups having a negative value for the margin in the transfer capacity are excluded from the list.

Next, the candidate destination determination program207refers to the pair group-related resource management table801and narrows down the candidate destination pair groups based on the resources used by the pair group to which the primary volume belongs and the resources for the other pair groups (S153).

The candidate destination determination program207excludes the pair groups which have been allocated at least a part of the resources used by the pair group including the primary volume from the list of the foregoing pair group list. That is to say, it keeps only the pair groups which have been allocated resources completely different from the resources allocated to the pair group including the primary volume. As a result, migration of the asynchronous remote copy pair can surely and effectively reduce the load to the source pair group.

In another example, the candidate destination determination program207may exclude only the pair groups in which the resources used by the pair group including the primary volume are completely the same as the allocated resources from the list of the foregoing pair group list. Either the foregoing method or this method of narrowing down the candidates can attain the candidate destination pair groups using resources different from the resources of the pair group including the candidate volume to be migrated.

Next, candidate destination determination program207determines a candidate destination pair group for the asynchronous remote copy pair including the primary volume (S154). The candidate destination determination program207selects the pair group which has a margin in the transfer capacity more than the amount of write data for the primary volume and ranks at the top in the pair group list. As a result, data transfer delay in the destination can surely be eliminated. Depending on the design, the program207may select a pair group having a margin in the transfer capacity smaller than the amount of write data for the primary volume.

In the processing on each primary volume, the candidate destination determination program207uses the value obtained by subtracting the total amount of write data for the primary volume from the margin in the transfer capacity of the selected pair group. If the pair group list does not include any pair group having a margin in the transfer capacity equal to or more than the amount of write data for the primary volume, the primary volume is excluded from the candidate volumes to be migrated.

After performing Steps S152to S154on all the primary volumes (candidate volumes to be migrated), the candidate destination determination program207determines whether automatic migration has been set to the storage management program187(S155).

If automatic migration in the storage management program187is set at OFF (S155: OFF), the candidate destination determination program207sends the list of previously determined candidate volumes to be migrated and the candidate destination pair groups to the proposed migration display program203(S156).

If automatic migration in the storage management program187is set at ON (S155: ON), the candidate destination determination program207sends the list of the previously determined candidate volumes to be migrated and the candidate destination pair groups to the volume migration control program204(S157).

FIG. 22is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing routine of the proposed migration display program203included in the storage management program187. The processing routine illustrated inFIG. 22is started when the user displays a proposed migration list image401with the display device103of the storage management client101. The processing performed by the proposed migration display program203in the description ofFIG. 22is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187.

The proposed migration display program203creates a proposed migration list image401including the latest list of the candidate volumes to be migrated (candidate asynchronous remote copy pairs to be migrated) and candidate destination pair groups received from the candidate destination determination program207(S161) and sends it to the storage management client101to be displayed on the display device103(S162). The proposed migration list image401has been described with reference toFIG. 6. Through this image, the user can check the information on migration.

When the user selects one or more desirable candidates for migration among the candidates for migration indicated in the proposed migration list image401by checking the corresponding check fields and then presses the MIGRATE button (S163: YES), the storage management client101sends the corresponding information to the proposed migration display program203. The proposed migration display program203notifies the volume migration control program204of the information on the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups selected by the user (S154). Unless the MIGRATE button is pressed (S163: NO), the information is not sent to the volume migration control program204.

FIG. 23is a flowchart illustrating an example of the processing routine of the volume migration control program204included in the storage management program187. The processing performed by the volume migration control program204in the description ofFIG. 23is actually performed by the CPU181that executes the storage management program187.

If the automatic migration is set at ON in the storage migration program187(S171: ON), the volume migration control program204that has received information on the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups from the candidate destination determination program207(S172) instructs the relevant storage apparatus to perform migration of asynchronous remote copy pairs (S174).

If the automatic migration is set at OFF in the storage migration program187(S171; OFF), the volume migration control program204that has received information on the volumes to be migrated and the destination pair groups from the candidate destination display program207(S173) instructs the relevant storage apparatus to perform migration of asynchronous remote copy pairs (S174). Through this processing, asynchronous remote copy pairs can be appropriately migrated to reduce the delay in the asynchronous remote copy with low load to the user.

This invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment but includes various modifications. The above-described embodiment has been described in details for better understanding of this invention and is not limited to the one including all the configurations described above. A part of the configuration of one example may be replaced with that of another example; the configuration of one example may be incorporated to the configuration of another example. A part of the configuration of each example may be added, deleted, or replaced by that of a different configuration.

The above-described configurations, functions, and processing units, for all or a part of them, may be implemented by hardware: for example, by designing an integrated circuit. The above-described configurations and functions may be implemented by software, which means that a processor interprets and executes programs for performing the functions. The information of programs, tables, and files to implement the functions may be stored in a storage device such as a memory, a hard disk drive, or an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a storage medium such as an IC card, or an SD card.