Patent ID: 8812469

Claim:
A method for persistent data storage for a computer system including a plurality of components that do not have local data storage, wherein the computer system is a massively parallel machine having a plurality of compute nodes and a central node, and each of the components is one of the plurality of compute nodes, comprising: providing a data storage system that is accessible by the plurality of components for persistent data storage; providing a repository that is accessible by each of the plurality of components, the repository containing, for each of the plurality of components, configuration information that includes a persistent data storage location in the data storage system for that component; responsive to a system operation request by one of the plurality of components, retrieving the configuration information corresponding to the component from the repository; analyzing the retrieved configuration information to decide whether the system operation request is to be executed by the data storage system; when, as a result of the deciding, the system operation request is to be executed by the data storage system, the data storage system executing the system operation request including reading from or writing to the persistent data storage location in the data storage system; and when, as a result of the deciding, the system operation request is not to be executed by the data storage system, executing the system operation request without using the data storage system.