Patent ID: 7725760

Claim:
A storage management device, comprising: a plurality of storage buffers; a plurality of target mode drivers, each target mode driver in communication with at least one of the plurality of storage buffers to receive a request comprising at least one of a read request and a write request, wherein the request comprises control information if the request is a read request, wherein the request comprises control information and a data payload if the request is a write request, wherein the target mode driver receiving the request separates and separately transmits the control information and the data payload, wherein the target mode driver receiving the request stores the received request in a first of the plurality of storage buffers and replicates the separated data payload to create a first data payload copy, and wherein the target mode driver receiving the request evaluates a first cost equation based at least in part on the available capacity of the plurality of storage buffers to optimally select a second of the plurality of storage buffers to store the first data payload copy; a plurality of data classifiers, each data classifier in communication with at least one of the plurality of target mode drivers to receive the control information from the at least one of the plurality of target mode drivers, to classify the received request, in response to the control information, as a particular type of received request, and to transmit the control information; a plurality of I/O managers, each I/O manager in communication with at least one of the plurality of data classifiers to receive the control information from the at least one of the data classifiers, and to process the received control information; and a plurality of physical store interfaces, each physical store interface in communication with at least one of the plurality of I/O managers and with at least one of the plurality of storage buffers.