High Performance Cloud Storage Technical Overview

What does the architecture look like? Cloud Drive Storage Service Cloud Drive Storage Service Enterprise Cloud Provider Data https Desktop File server Desktop Local Cache Local Cache Web Service Web Service Laptop Server Accelerator Optimizer Storage Service iSCSI Initiator

What are the components? Installed on a server Provides an iSCSI target Communicates with cloud storage Manages local cache Installed on all machines Recovers unused storage Replicates and caches data Installed on all iSCSI initiators Optimises performance Minimises storage requirements Storage Service Optimizer Accelerator

How do I access cloud storage? Access cloud storage is as simple as using iSCSI iSCSI clients are available for Windows, Mac and Linux Transparently maps the iSCSI protocol onto the proprietary cloud provider web services

What data can it store? The service is perfect for storing large volumes of infrequently changing data such as media content, network drives, home drives, log files, photos, music, videos and documents The service performs well with “bursty” data access patterns typical within an organisation For example certain data maybe in extremely high demand for limited periods of time and then not accessed for months The service is also capable of providing storage for virtually any application including Oracle, SQLServer and Exchange

How does caching affect performance? Analysis of enterprise data usage patterns showed that caching 2% of the data provided a cache hit rate of 99% 99% of requests can be satisfied at local network speeds rather than at slower cloud storage speeds, providing a ~100 fold performance increase Most recently used data is maintained in a three tier cache, in memory, in the local cache and on the local network The cache is optimised globally to determine the best strategy for the enterprise

How does caching affect availability? Since a failed storage request requires a cache miss AND a cloud storage outage, cache hit rates increase availability A cache hit rate of 99% has the effect of increasing the availability of cloud storage by a factor of 1/(1-0.99) = 100, or 2x9’s. A cache hit rate of 99% increases cloud storage with 3x9’s availability to 5x9’s Equivalent to reducing downtime from 9 hours per year to 5 minutes

How does caching affect network usage? A cache hit rate of 99% has the effect of decreasing the network usage by a factor of 1/(1-0.99) = 100, when compared to non- caching cloud storage

How does it recover storage? All computers on the local network, including desktops, laptops and rack mounted servers have unused free storage space This storage space is unusable because it’s too small or often unavailable By running an agent on all computers within the organisation, this unused space can be consolidated into a single, massive data storage device

How can this recovered storage be used? More caching Data uploaded to cloud storage is also replicated in these previously unusable storage spaces The replicated data becomes a massive network cache increasing both the availability and performance An enterprise with 1000 PC’s can potentially recover 100 TB of storage for free

Are you locked into a vendor? The enterprise isn’t locked into using the Cloud Drive or the cloud provider All data can be moved to regular disks or shares at any time All data is accessible via iSCSI No special vendor formats are used

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