Patent ID: 8538928

Claim:
A method comprising: sending a first command from a primary host system to a primary storage controller device, the first command specifying that a first primary volume is to be flash-copied to a second primary volume, where flash-copying provides for completion of copying the first primary volume to the second primary volume to be signaled prior to data on the first primary volume being physically copied to the second primary volume; in response to receiving the first command, verifying at least a first state of the first primary volume and the second primary volume, by the primary storage controller device, to determine whether at least the first state permits flash-copying of the first primary volume to the second primary volume; and, in response to successfully verifying at least the first state, sending a first query from the primary storage controller device to a secondary host system, the first query requesting whether a first secondary volume can be flash-copied to a second secondary volume, the first secondary volume asynchronously mirroring the first primary volume, and the second secondary volume asynchronously mirroring the second primary volume.