IBM Assigned Fifteen Patents

Providing security and responsiveness in cloud based data storage and application execution
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,659,472) developed by Borlick, Matthew G., and Gupta, Lokesh M., Tucson, AZ, for “method, system, and computer program product for providing security and responsiveness in cloud based data storage and application execution.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A storage controller that is coupled to a plurality of storage clouds is maintained. The storage controller determines security requirements for performing a selected operation in the plurality of storage cloud. A subset of storage clouds of the plurality of storage clouds that are able to satisfy the security requirements are determined. A determination is made as to which storage cloud of the subset of storage clouds is most responsive for performing the selected operation. The selected operation is performed in the determined storage cloud that is most responsive.”

The patent application was filed on November 6, 2018 (16/182,517).

Cost effective data storage
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,657,475) developed by Sabloniere, Pierre, Paris, France, for a “cost effective data storage.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method, system, and computer program product for cost effective data storage. A computer stores and arranges data in data storage resources in compressed or uncompressed arrangements. The computer determines what percentage of data is stored per tier for an uncompressed arrangement of data. The computer further determines both a compression factor as well as the percentage of data stored per tier for data stored in the compressed arrangement. The computer accesses data defining the cost per tier of both the compressed and uncompressed arrangement of data, then calculates the cost of both a compressed and uncompressed arrangement of the data. The computer then moves the data to the less expensive of the compressed or uncompressed arrangement of the data.”

The patent application was filed on October 7, 2015 (14/877,190).

Storage space management in union mounted file systems
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,657,102) developed by Bhagwat, Deepavali M., Cupertino, CA, Eshel, Marc, Morgan Hill, CA, Hildebrand, Dean, Bellingham, WA, Naik, Manoj P., Sawdon, Wayne A., San Jose, CA, Schmuck, Frank B., Campbell, CA, and Tewari, Renu, San Jose, CA, for a “storage space management in union mounted file systems.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”One embodiment provides a method for re-balancing data and metadata across multiple sub-file systems of a file system. The method includes determining sub-file systems including an amount of data that exceeds a threshold. At least one cell in the sub-file systems is identified as a candidate for re-balancing. A re-balance process is performed on the at least one cell that includes performing a flush operation to flush dirty data from file system buffers, copying an inode table for an independent set of files in the at least one cell to a destination sub-file system, notifying an allocation manager for the destination sub-file system of a new storage pool to manage, and performing an un-quiesce operation on I/O operations to each element in the at least one cell.”

The patent application was filed on January 3, 2017 (15/397,614).

Smart selection of storage module to be excluded
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,657,013) developed by Keller, Michael, Haifa, Israel, Leneman, Ofer, Kfar Saba, Israel, Shasha, Osnat, Holon, Israel, Shlomov, Lior, Or Yehuda, Israel, and Waizel, Ariel, Nes Ziona, Israel, for a “smart selection of a storage module to be excluded.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”Provided are a computer program product, computer system, and method for smart selection of a storage module to be excluded when a connection between two storage modules is broken. An indication is received from a first storage module that a connection between the first storage module and a second storage module is broken. In response to determining that the second storage module is accessible, values of exclusion criteria for the first storage module are determined and summed to identify a first exclusion total. Then, values of exclusion criteria for the second storage module are determined and summed to identify a second exclusion total. In response to determining that the first exclusion total exceeds the second exclusion total, the second storage node is excluded from the cluster. In response to determining that the second exclusion total exceeds the first exclusion total, the first storage node is excluded from the cluster.”

The patent application was filed on December 5, 2017 (15/832,608).

Comingling conventional and backup volumes in tiered storage
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,657,005) developed by Zhou, Xue Qiang, Pudong New District, China, Zhang, Hui, Gong, Yongjie, Shanghai, China, Liu, Yang, Pudong, China, Lyu, Gang, Shanghai, China, and Clayton, Nicolas M., Warrington, Great Britain, for “comingling conventional and backup volumes in tiered storage systems.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A method for efficiently managing extents of backup volumes in a tiered storage system is disclosed. In one embodiment, such a method includes identifying a lifespan associated with a backup volume. The lifespan indicates how long extents of the backup volume are retained in a tiered storage system before being released. The method further assigns a temperature value to the extents that determines where the extents are stored in the tiered storage system. The method utilizes the lifespan to determine the temperature value, where the temperature value is inversely proportional to the lifespan. The method places the extents on tiers of the tiered storage system in accordance with their temperature value, such that higher temperature extents are placed on higher tiers of the tiered storage system, and lower temperature extents are placed on lower tiers of the tiered storage system. A corresponding system and computer program product are also disclosed.”

The patent application was filed on June 29, 2018 (16/023,075).

Electronic component having redundant product data stored externally
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,656,991) developed by Allen, Corville O., Morrisville, NC, Helgeson, Lee N., Rochester, MN, Li, Jenny S., Danbury, CT, and Sanders, Philip J., Rochester, MN, for an “electronic component having redundant product data stored externally.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”Embodiments include method, systems and computer program products for redundantly storing product data for an electronic component on an external device. Aspects include determining that product data stored in a primary storage device is corrupted and determining whether the product data is available on the external device that is in communication with the electronic component. Based on a determination that the product data stored in the primary storage device is corrupted and that the product data is available on the external device, aspects include obtaining product data from the external device to continue operation of the electronic component.”

The patent application was filed on August 24, 2015 (14/833,158).

External comment storage and organization
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,656,938) developed by Mairet, Jay G., McDougall, Dylan C., Austin, TX, McEleney, Michael J., Travis, TX, and Vander Velden, Arjay A., Austin, TX, for “external comment storage and organization.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”Systems, methods, and computer-readable media are described for external storage and organization of documentation for computer-executable source code. An executable program is provided that receives a selected codebase as input and generates or updates a code comment database corresponding thereto that provides a structured framework for documenting the codebase externally from the codebase. The executable program provides a user with the capability to add and/or edit comments for each structure in a codebase that is represented in a corresponding code comment database. A user can navigate through a code comment database using a user interface that includes a visual representation of a nested hierarchy of functions of the codebase. The visual representation can be manipulated by a user to provide an identification of arguments, variables, called functions, or the like for each function. Code documentation can also be displayed in association with the visual representation.”

The patent application was filed on September 25, 2018 (16/140,835).

Data loss avoidance in multi-server storage
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,656,848) developed by Borlick, Matthew G., Robison, Micah, Elliott, John C., Ash, Kevin J., Gupta, Lokesh M., and Rinaldi, Brian A., Tucson, AZ, for a “data loss avoidance in multi-server storage systems.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A method for avoiding data loss in a storage system is disclosed. In one embodiment, such a method includes monitoring a degradation level associated with a battery. The battery provides backup power to a storage system in the event of a primary power outage. The storage system includes volatile storage media storing modified data to destage to more persistent storage media, such as an array of storage drives. In the event the degradation level crosses a designated threshold, the method automatically takes steps to alter a time period needed to completely copy the modified data off of the volatile storage media. A corresponding system and computer program product are also disclosed.”

The patent application was filed on June 17, 2018 (16/010,462).

Data compression determination for storage area networks
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,656,835) developed by Auvenshine, John J., Tucson, AZ, Richardson, Laura, Tampa, FL, Kodjo, Dave Aime Desire, Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac, Canada, and Chavez, Lisa M., Placitas, NM, for a “data compression determination for storage area networks.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A method, computer system, and computer program product for determining whether data compression should be performed at a storage virtualization layer or a backend layer, within a storage area network, including assessing a volume of data to decide whether the volume of data should be compressed or is already compressed, and in response to deciding that the volume of data should be compressed: checking whether a restriction exists on the volume of data, and in response to deciding that the volume of data is already compressed: determining that the volume of data already compressed should be uncompressed based on at least one metric.”

The patent application was filed on May 3, 2018 (15/969,902).

Caching for unique combination reads in dispersed storage network
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,652,350) developed by Wozniak, Ethan S., Park Ridge, IL, for “caching for unique combination reads in a dispersed storage network.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A method includes receiving a first access request that indicates a first data object stored as encoded slices in a plurality of storage units. A first desired slice set is selected, based on the requesting module, that includes a first subset of encoded slices of the first data object. Absent slice data is generated based on searching a local cache, indicating an encoded slice not present in the local cache. A read request to read the encoded slice indicated by the absent slice data from one of the storage units is transmitted. The encoded slice indicated by the absent slice data from the storage unit is received and the local cache is updated to include the encoded slice. The first data object is regenerated for transmission to the first requesting module by decoding the first subset of encoded slices in the first desired slice set.”

The patent application was filed on June 6, 2016 (15/174,596).

Compensation for nonlinearity in servo patterns
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,650,852) developed by Judd, Kevin B., Tucson, AZ, Furrer, Simeon, Altdorf, Switzerland, Pantazi, Angeliki, Thalwil, Switzerland, and Lantz, Mark A., Adliswil, Switzerland, for “compensation for nonlinearity in servo patterns.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A method according to one embodiment includes generating a y-position estimate based on a servo readback signal, and determining a nonlinearity-correction value corresponding to the y-position estimate. The method further includes adjusting the y-position estimate using the nonlinearity-correction value. A computer program product for compensating for nonlinearity in a timing based servo pattern according to another embodiment includes a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith. The program instructions are readable and/or executable by a controller to cause the controller to perform the foregoing method. An apparatus according to another embodiment includes a controller configured to perform the foregoing method.”

The patent application was filed on March 1, 2019 (16/290,758).

Enhancing security for multiple storage configurations
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,650,160) developed by Baptist, Andrew D., Mt. Pleasant, WI, Factor, Michael E., Haifa, Israel, Leggette, Wesley B., Chicago, IL, and Wozniak, Ethan S., Park Ridge, IL, for an “enhancing security for multiple storage configurations.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A method begins by a processing module identifying, for a DSN (Dispersed Storage Network) memory using multiple IDA (Information Dispersal Algorithms) configurations simultaneously, a first IDA configuration with a highest security level relative to each of the multiple IDA configurations. The method continues by generating at least one master key. The method continues by encoding the master key with a secure error coding function to produce master key slices according to the first IDA configuration. The method continues by storing the master key slices in the DSN memory using the first IDA configuration. The method continues by, when storing data with a second IDA configuration having a security level lower than the first IDA configuration, retrieving the master key slices, decoding the master key slices to obtain the master key and encrypting the data using the master key.”

The patent application was filed on August 31, 2018 (16/119,616).

Derived data views using byte addressable persistent storage
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,650,018) developed by Harnik, Danny, Tel Mond, Israel, Hershcovitch, Moshik, Tel Aviv, Israel, Kat, Ronen, Kokav-Yair, Israel, and Weinsberg, Yaron, Jerusalem, Israel, for a “method for efficient derived data views using byte addressable persistent storage.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A system to reduce the amount of storage and memory used to maintain derived datasets is disclosed. The system operates by using pointers to the underlying data in persistent, byte-addressable storage media. The system additionally reduces the creation time of the views when storage class memory (SCM) is the underlying storage. Furthermore, the invention relates to a form of compression that is tailored to the use cases of big data analytics. The processes of this disclosure use random access to significantly improve performance.”

The patent application was filed on March 9, 2017 (15/453,928).

Data archive tier of tiered storage
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,649,860) developed by Sarafijanovic, Slavisa, Adliswil, Switzerland, Kim, Yusik, Zwolle, The Netherlands, Venkatesan, Vinodh, Waedenswil, Switzerland, Iliadis, Ilias, Rueschlikon, Switzerland, and Basham, Robert B., Beaverton, OR, for a “data archive tier of a tiered storage system.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”A computer-implemented method for managing a tiered storage system having an archive tier and an active storage tier comprises determining a workload for moving data between the active tier and the archive tier, and determining an assignment of data to be stored across the active tier and the archive tier, based on the determined workload.”

The patent application was filed on September 7, 2017 (15/697,732).

Technique for providing information on time to read file
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, has been assigned a patent (10,649,697) developed by Hasegawa, Tohru, Tokyo, Japan, Itagaki, Hiroshi, Yokohama, Japan, Mitsuma, Shinsuke, Machida, Japan, Watanabe, Terue, and Yamamoto, Noriko, Tokyo, Japan, for a “technique for providing information on time to read a file.“

The abstract of the patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office states: ”An information providing system and method, including a computer, for providing time taken to read a file, which includes an acquisition unit. The acquisition unit obtains information on a recording position of a file when the file is recorded in a storage device. A recording unit writes information on the obtained recording position to an index referred to access the file. A calculation unit calculates time taken to read the file using the information on the recording position written to the index in response to a request to obtain the time taken to read the file, and providing the calculated time to a requester that requests the time.”

The patent application was filed on October 20, 2015 (14/887,404).