Dell Assigned Three Patents

Data loss prevention during fall of storage device

Dell, Inc., Round Rock, TX, has been assigned a patent (8,390,949) developed by four co-inventors for a "data loss prevention during a fall of a storage device."

The co-inventors are Munir Ahmad, Kevin Mundt, Austin, TX, Andrew Thomas Sultenfuss, Leander, TX, and Thomas W. Studwell, Georgetown, TX.

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: "A storage circuit includes a HDD (HDD) and a fall sensor. The HDD includes a rotatable media platter operable to receive and store data; a R/W head operable to communicate with the media platter by writing data to the media platter and by reading the data from the media platter; an arm supporting the R/W head; a motor coupled to the arm and operable to move the arm to and from the media platter; a drive controller operable to control the media platter, the R/W head and the servo motor; a general purpose input/output (GPIO) terminal coupled to the drive controller; and a data interface terminal coupled to the drive controller. The fall sensor is communicatively coupled to the drive controller and is configured to send an interrupt trigger signal to the drive controller when the drive is falling. The interrupt trigger signal is sent via the GPIO terminal when the HDD is free fall sense enabled and the interrupt trigger signal is sent via the data interface terminal when the HDD is not free fall sense enabled."

The patent application was filed on April 30, 2010 (12/771,680).

Optimized backup

Dell Inc., Round Rock, TX, has been assigned a patent (8,397,022) developed by Jacob Cherian, Austin, TX, for a "system and method for optimized data backup."

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: "A spilt backup agent model where a component on a host and a component on the block storage device function together logically to provide a backup agent. In certain embodiments, the mechanism provides a split backup agent model using a NDMP protocol. The NDMP protocol is an industry standard protocol that allows for backup of hosts with a single backup agent that is compatible with multiple independent software vendor (ISV) backup software. Thus with the present invention, proprietary backup software dependent host agents are not required. The NDMP protocol provides for separation of control and data connections where the control path runs between the data server on the host that needs to be backed up and backup software (e.g., a Data Management Application (DMA)) and between the backup device and the backup software. The data path runs between the host and the backup device."

The patent application was filed on Sept. 24, 2010 (12/889,817).

Optimizing secured Internet small computer system interface SANs

Dell Inc., Round Rock, TX, has been assigned a patent (8,417,806) developed by Gaurav Chawla, and Saikrishna Kotha, Austin, TX, for a "system and method for optimizing secured Internet small computer system interface SANs."

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: "A network device includes a port coupled to a device, another port coupled to another device, and an access control list with an access control entry that causes the network device to permit log in frames to be forwarded from the first device to the second device. The network device receives a frame addressed to the second device and determines the frame type. If the frame type is a log in frame, then the frame is forwarded to the second device and another access control entry is added to the access control list. The second access control entry causes the network device to permit data frames to be forwarded from the first device to the second device. If not, then the frame is dropped based upon the first access control entry."

The patent application was filed on May 27, 2011 (13/117,912).