Loris: A reliable, modular, file-based storage stack

Опубликовано 21 июня 2016, 19:42

All modern operating systems use a multi-layered collection of protocols, often referred to as the Storage Stack, to manage persistent storage of user data. Similar to the network stack, layers in the storage stack (application libraries, file systems, RAID, volume managers) communicate using standardized interfaces that offer well-defined abstraction boundaries. However, unlike the design-based, planned evolution of protocol layering in the network stack, layering in the storage stack was driven by one factor—compatibility with existing storage installations. In this talk, I will show how this compatibility-driven protocol layering in the traditional storage stack causes various problems that render it ineffective in managing modern-day storage installations and incapable of accommodating future changes in the storage hardware landscape. I will then present a new layering of storage protocols that sacrifices backwards compatibility in favour of modularity, and show how the resulting stack, called Loris, solves all the issues that plague the traditional layering by design. In doing so, I will talk about my experience designing and implementing Loris for the MINIX 3 multiserver, microkernel operating system.