Patent ID: 8756338

Claim:
A method in a storage server in a cluster of storage servers, wherein each storage server in the cluster of storage servers is coupled to a set of one or more mass storage devices, the method comprising: receiving, by the storage server, a data access request from a client device in a standard communication format; if the data access request is received at a first logical interface of a plurality of logical interfaces of the storage server, determining, based upon receipt of the data access request at the first logical interface, that a type of the data access request is a cluster mode request, wherein cluster mode requests seek data from the cluster of storage servers, wherein the first logical interface is addressed by a first network address and is associated with a management module that handles cluster mode requests received by the storage server; selecting a set of one or more Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) from a plurality of APIs utilized by the cluster of storage servers, wherein each API of the plurality of APIs describes a protocol for processing data access requests; translating, using the selected set of APIs, the data access request from the standard communication format to a set of one or more proprietary format requests used by the storage server to communicate with the cluster of storage servers; and servicing the data access request by using a mass storage device of the storage server and by forwarding the translated set of proprietary format requests to a plurality of storage servers of the cluster of storage servers; if the data access request is received at a second logical interface of the plurality of logical interfaces of the storage server, determining that the type of the second data access request is a single mode request, based upon receipt of the second data access request at the second logical interface, wherein single mode requests seek data from the storage server, wherein the second logical interface is addressed by a second network address and is associated with a disk module that handles single mode requests received by the storage server; and selecting an API corresponding to the type of the second data access request from the plurality of APIs.