Patent ID: 8073886

Claim:
One or more computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed, instruct a processor to perform acts comprising: calling a data access application programming interface (API), the data access API having an access library module and a discovery volume management module; building a discovery volume using the discovery volume management module, the building comprising: initializing the discovery volume having a discovery volume filesystem; implementing a primary volume in the discovery volume filesystem, the primary volume having a primary filesystem storing primary data; initializing a virtualized volume boot region in the discovery volume; moving contents of one or more original boot regions of the primary volume from a beginning of the discovery volume to a new location in the primary volume or creating a discovery volume boot region and writing the original boot region in the primary volume at a location other than the beginning of the discovery volume; constructing a pointer in the discovery volume boot region of the discovery volume pointing to a data structure containing information referring to an original boot region for the primary filesystem and writing the pointer to the discovery volume boot region; constructing at least one cover file entry in the discovery volume filesystem, the at least one cover file entry configured to present the discovery volume as full by claiming blocks used by the primary volume filesystem as being used in the discovery volume filesystem; and accessing the primary volume in a non-privileged user mode with the access library module of the API.