Patent ID: 6845465

Claim:
A method for data redundancy in a data storage system, comprising: a) grouping a plurality of disk drives into a plurality of arrays having data redundancy to optimize performance, and b) for every failure of one of said plurality of arrays due to a failed disk drive, dynamically creating a new array having data redundancy in said plurality of arrays and that is optimized for performance, said new array containing information from said failed disk drive: wherein b) comprises: b1) upon failure of a first array in said plurality of arrays due to said first failed disk drive, dynamically choosing a second array in said plurality of arrays that has the smallest number of disk drives as between the remaining arrays, said second array having redundancy; b2) combining disk drives from said first array, excluding said first failed disk drive, with disk drives from said second array to dynamically form said new array in a RAID configuration having data redundancy in said plurality of arrays; and configuring said new array in a RAID-4 configuration.