Patent ID: 7536501

Claim:
A method to manage one or more reserved volume serial numbers in a virtual library grid, comprising the steps of: supplying a virtual library grid comprising one or more virtual library clusters, wherein each of said one or more virtual library clusters comprises a management interface node, at least one virtualization node, at least one management node, at least one library manager node, at least one direct access storage device, one or more information storage media, and at least one data storage device to read information from and to write information to said one or more information storage media; reserving in each of said one or more virtual library clusters one or more volume serial numbers; establishing a time out period; determining if said time out period has expired; if said time out period has expired, unreserving in each of said one or more virtual library clusters said one or more volume serial numbers providing by an initiating virtual library cluster to each of said one or more virtual library clusters a reservation request reciting said one or more volume serial numbers; wherein said establishing a time out period step further comprises: establishing a default reservation period; determining by each of said one or more virtual library clusters if said reservation request comprises a time out period; if said reservation request does not comprise a time out period, setting by each of said one or more virtual library clusters said time out period equal to said default reservation period.