Patent ID: 7529816

Claim:
A data storage server system, comprising: at least first and second data storage servers; and at least one virtual volume of data storage distributed over at least said at least first and second data storage servers; wherein each of said at least first and second data storage servers comprise: a configuration map comprising information related to said at least one virtual volume and portions of said at least one virtual volume stored at each of said at least first and second data storage servers; a network interface operable to transmit/receive communications to/from a network infrastructure; at least one data storage device; and a processor operable to receive, from said network interface, an iSCSI network command from a host computer indicating a change in said configuration map and generate an error code when additional iSCSI commands are received requesting data storage operations before a new configuration map is received, and further operable to receive an iSCSI network command and generate, to carry out said iSCSI network command, one or more device specific commands for said data storage device without communicating with any other data storage server when an indication of a change in said configuration map has not been received.