Patent ID: 8401999

Claim:
A method for operation of a first storage unit in a network having clients and a second storage unit, said method comprising: intercepting a data operation from a requesting client with a kernel module before the data operation is received by a first storage array in the first storage unit; determining whether the data operation modifies data present on the first storage unit with the kernel module; when no modification of data is required, retrieving the requested data from the first storage array in the first storage unit based on the data operation, and transmitting the requested data to the requesting client; when modification of data is required, performing the data operation in the first storage array in the first storage unit, storing the data operation in a buffer, transmitting the data operation from the buffer to the second storage unit, receiving a confirmation from the second storage unit that the data operation has been performed on the second storage unit, and deleting the data operation in the buffer in response to the confirmation for that data operation; and rebooting a card with a central processing unit on the first storage unit when the first storage unit crashes to allow for transmission of any remaining data operations in the buffer to the second storage unit, and the card resides in the first storage unit, and wherein the buffer and the first storage array in the first storage unit provide two discrete communication paths for data operations to travel where one communication path is between the kernel module through the buffer on the first storage unit to the second storage unit and the second communication path is from the kernel module to the first storage array, wherein the communication path between the kernel module and the buffer is on a dedicated connection isolated from the second communication path.