Hitachi/HDS Assigned Two Patents

Method and apparatus of storage array
with frame forwarding capability

Hitachi Ltd., Tokyo, and Hitachi Data Systems Corp., Santa Clara, CA, have been assigned a patent (8,281,050) developed by Toshio Otani, Sunnyvale, CA, and Gary John Pilafas, Hoffman Estates, IL, for a "method and apparatus of storage array with frame forwarding capability."

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: "Embodiments of the invention provide a method of storage array with frame forwarding capability to reduce the complexity of an IT platform system having a large number of hardware devices. In one embodiment, a storage system comprises one or more storage devices; a storage controller having a storage controller processor and a storage controller memory and being coupled with the one or more storage devices; an interface controller receiving an input/output command directly from a host computer; and an internal bus. The interface controller and the storage controller are coupled by the internal bus. In another embodiment, a storage system comprises one or more storage devices; a storage controller having a processor and a memory and being coupled with the one or more storage devices; and a network interface controller which provides virtual Ethernet bridging."

The patent application was filed on Aug. 20, 2010 (12/860,303).

System and method
for managing external storage devices

Hitachi Ltd., Tokyo, has been assigned a patent (8,301,909) developed by Yasuyuki Mimatsu, Cupertino, CA, for a "system and method for managing external storage devices."

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: "An apparatus, system, and method enable a new platform storage system to have access to an external storage system having data encrypted thereon by an existing platform storage system. Encryption information corresponding to the encrypted data in the external storage system is stored in a memory in the existing platform storage system. The encryption information stored in the memory of the existing platform storage system is transferred to an encryption table stored in the new platform storage system, so that the new platform storage system can read the encrypted data stored in the external storage system."

The patent application was filed on Nov. 30, 2010 (12/956,451).