JP2016115375A - Library apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a library device that performs disk replacement processing in inventory processing more quickly. In an inventory process, a library device 1 uses a second optical disk when a first optical disk 9a mounted on a first optical disk drive (# 100) is mounted on a second optical disk drive (# 107). When the second optical disk 9b is already mounted in the drive (# 107), as the optical disk replacement process, the second optical disk 9b is temporarily retracted to the picker P1 of the disk transport unit 7 and the first optical disk 9a is moved to the first disk 9b. After moving to and mounted on the second optical disk drive (# 107), the second optical disk 9b retracted by the picker P1 is moved and mounted on the first optical disk drive (# 100). [Selection] Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a library apparatus for recording data on a plurality of optical disks.

  In recent years, in order to store user data from a client for a long period of time, a library apparatus using an optical disc as a recording medium and an archive system including a plurality of library apparatuses are used.

  In the library apparatus, a large number of optical discs are stored in a disc storage unit, and a desired optical disc is taken out from the optical disc and mounted in a drive (recording / reproducing unit) to record / reproduce data. In order to process a large amount of data at high speed, it is necessary to quickly carry out the process of transporting and taking out / inserting the optical disk into / from the disk storage unit or the drive.

  In Patent Document 1, when a recording medium mounted in a drive is replaced, the recording medium in the drive is temporarily stored in a retracting unit provided in the vicinity of the drive, and then an arbitrary recording medium in a warehouse (storage unit). A configuration is disclosed in which the recording medium stored in the retracting unit is stored at a predetermined position in the warehouse after the disk is conveyed to the drive.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-153166

  In the library apparatus, the storage location when the optical disk inserted in the drive is returned to the disk storage unit may be unclear due to a failure of the disk transport mechanism or the like. As the recovery process, there is an inventory process for returning an unknown optical disk to an empty slot in the disk storage unit. In the inventory process, before returning an unknown disk to an empty slot, data must be read from the optical disk and registered in a database. If the unknown disk is a double-sided disk, it must be inserted into another drive and read in order to read data on both sides. However, when another disk is mounted in another drive, it is necessary to take out and replace the other disk.

  In general, when exchanging two disks a and b mounted on two drives A and B, one disk a is temporarily retracted to an empty slot of the disk storage unit, and the other disk b is moved to drive A. There is a method of moving the evacuated disk a to the drive B after being moved to. However, in this method, it is necessary to search for an empty slot, and there is a problem that the exchange processing time becomes long due to disk conveyance between the drive and the disk storage unit. As a result, completion of inventory processing, that is, system recovery is delayed.

  If the technique described in Patent Document 1 is used, there is no need to move the disk between the drive and the slot for temporarily retracting the optical disk in the drive to an empty slot. However, it requires space. In the inventory process, an efficient replacement process procedure must be determined according to the type of disk to be replaced (for example, a double-sided disk). Patent Document 1 is intended only for disk conveyance between a disk storage unit and a drive, and does not consider the efficiency of inventory processing.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a library apparatus that performs disk replacement processing in inventory processing more quickly.

  The library apparatus according to the present invention includes a disk storage unit that stores a plurality of optical disks, a plurality of optical disk drives that record and reproduce data by mounting the optical disk, and an optical disk transported between the disk storage unit and the optical disk drive. A disc transport unit having a picker for attaching and detaching, an optical disc drive, and a library controller for controlling the disc transport unit. When the library controller mounts the first optical disk mounted in the first optical disk drive among the plurality of optical disk drives in the second optical disk drive, the second optical disk is already mounted in the second optical disk drive. When the second optical disk is replaced, the second optical disk is temporarily retracted by the picker of the disk transport unit, the first optical disk is moved to the second optical disk drive, and then the second optical disk is retracted by the picker. The optical disk is moved to the first optical disk drive and attached.

  According to the present invention, the disk replacement process in the inventory process can be performed more quickly, and the time until system recovery can be shortened.

The block diagram which shows one Example of the library apparatus of this invention. The figure explaining the disc conveyance operation | movement of a library apparatus. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of disk replacement operation in this embodiment. The figure which shows the kind of disk information used for an inventory process. The figure which shows the flowchart of the whole inventory process. The figure which shows the flowchart of a disk information acquisition process. The figure which shows the flowchart of a disk exchange process.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a library apparatus of the present invention.
The library apparatus 1 is connected to the server 3 and records / reproduces data on / from the optical disk 9. At the time of recording, data is received from the network 4 and stored in the hard disk 5 via the server 3, and the stored data is transmitted to the library apparatus 1 and recorded on the optical disk 9. At the time of reproduction, data is reproduced from the hard disk 5 or the optical disk 9 and transmitted to the network 4 via the server 3.

  The server 3 controls the library apparatus 1 through communication with the library controller 2 built in the library apparatus 1 and controls the hard disk 5 to perform data management such as data recording / reproduction and data transmission / reception via the network 4. In addition, information and data regarding each optical disk 9 stored in the disk storage unit 8 is stored in a database and managed. The server 3 reads information on the optical disk 9 recorded in the database, controls the above-described data recording / reproducing operation, and updates the stored information on the optical disk 9 to the latest information as needed. The hard disk 5 stores data transmitted from the network 4 under the control of the server 3.

  A large number of optical disks 9 are stored in the disk storage unit 8, and the library apparatus 1 may incorporate a plurality of disk storage units 8. It is also possible to store a large number of optical discs 9 in a cartridge and extract them in cartridge units. At the time of data recording / reproduction, the optical disc 9 is taken out from the disc storage unit 8 by the disc transport unit 7 and mounted on any one of a plurality of optical disc drives (hereinafter referred to as ODD) 10 to perform data recording / reproduction. When the recording / reproduction is completed, the optical disk 9 is returned to the disk storage unit 8 by the disk transport unit 7. The operation of each ODD 10 is controlled by the library controller 2 to perform data recording / reproduction on the optical disk 9.

  The disk transport unit 7 is controlled by the library controller 2 to take out the optical disk 9 from the disk storage unit 8, transport it, and mount it on the ODD 10. In addition, the optical disk 9 is received from the ODD 10, transported, and stored in the disk storage unit 8. The disc transport unit 7 has a picker for attaching and detaching an optical disc. A picker is also used when exchanging optical disks mounted between the two ODDs 10 respectively.

  In response to a request from the server 3, the library controller 2 controls the disc transport unit 7 to select a designated optical disc from among a plurality of optical discs 9 stored in the disc storage unit 8, and to the designated ODD 10. Installing. Further, the disc transport unit 7 is controlled to take out the optical disc 9 from the ODD 10 and return it to a predetermined position in the disc storage unit 8. The memory 6 stores a program for controlling the library controller 2 and setting information of the library apparatus 1.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the disk transport operation of the library apparatus. The disk storage unit 8 stores a large number of optical disks 9 (hereinafter simply referred to as disks). In this example, two disk storage portions 8 are opposed to each other, and a total of 500 disks 9 are stored (indicated by slot addresses # 1000 to # 1499). The disk storage unit 8 can store a large number of disks 9 in a cartridge, and can be extracted from the library apparatus 1 and stored offline. Each disk 9 can perform single-sided or double-sided recording. In the case of a double-sided recording type, the respective recording surfaces are referred to as a front side direction (front side) and a rear side direction (rear side).

  The optical disk drive (ODD) 10 has six ODDs alternately arranged in two rows in the front side direction / rear side direction in order to enable recording and reproduction on both sides of the disk, and a total of 12 units are used (element address #). 100- # 111). Addresses # 100, # 102, # 104... Are ODDs in the rear side direction, and addresses # 101, # 103, # 105... Are ODDs in the front side direction.

  The disk transport unit 7 has two pickers (elements P 1 and P 2), and transports the disk 9 between the disk storage unit 8 and the ODD 10. By providing two pickers, the disk can be exchanged efficiently. Further, the mean time between failures (MTBF) can be improved by using two pickers alternately when moving the disk.

Next, the inventory process taken up in the present invention will be described.
In the library apparatus 1, the return position (cartridge slot) of the disk 9 mounted on the ODD 10 due to a failure of the server 3 or the disk transport unit 7, a mismatch of disk information stored in the database in the server 3, or the like. May be unknown. One of the recovery operations is inventory processing. In the inventory process, the disk whose return position is unknown (hereinafter referred to as “unknown disk”) is returned to the empty slot of the cartridge. For this purpose, the following operation is performed.

(1) Metadata (information related to user data recorded on the disk) is read from the unknown disk and registered in the server 3 (database).
(2) Return the unknown disk to the empty slot of the cartridge (the recorded disk is the cartridge slot of the same group).
(3) To create a stub file (shortcut file), an XML (Extensible Markup Language) file in which disc information (metadata and disc state) is recorded is created.

  In reading the metadata of (1) above, if the unknown disk is a double-sided recording disk, it is necessary to read the data from both sides of the disk. In the double-sided disk compatible library apparatus, as shown in FIG. 2, rear side and front side ODDs are arranged so that data can be read from both sides of the disk. Then, after reading the data with the ODD on one side, it is necessary to read the data by switching to the ODD on the other side.

  However, when a disk is inserted in all ODDs or when a disk is inserted in the other ODD, the disk already mounted on the ODD on the side to be replaced (hereinafter referred to as “occupation disk”). Must be temporarily retracted to another position (for example, an empty slot in the cartridge) and an unknown disk must be inserted. For this purpose, a process of searching for an empty slot and a process of moving the occupying disk from the ODD to the empty slot are required, and the replacement processing time becomes long.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, the occupied disk is not retracted to the empty slot of the cartridge, but is retracted using the picker of the disk transport unit 7. Since this picker is already present in the disc transport unit 7 for attaching and detaching the disc, no new space is required. Further, the specific procedure of the disk replacement process is an item to be determined according to the type and state of the disk, and is efficiently performed according to the read result of the disk information. As a result, the disk replacement process can be performed quickly, and the inventory process time can be reduced.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the disk replacement operation in this embodiment. As an example, a case is assumed where the double-sided disk 9a attached to the ODD (address # 100, rear side) becomes an “unknown disk” whose return position is unknown. The ODD in which the unknown disk 9a is mounted is referred to as “source ODD”. Hereinafter, it demonstrates in order of a step.

  In step 1, another ODD (front side) is selected to read the opposite surface (front side) of the unknown disk 9a. In this example, ODD (address # 107, front side) is selected, and this ODD is called “target ODD”. Since the disk 9b (occupying disk) is already attached to the target ODD (# 107), the unknown disk 9a and the occupying disk 9b are exchanged.

In step 2, the disk transport unit 7 is moved to the position of the target ODD (# 107), and the occupied disk 9b mounted on the target ODD (# 107) is taken out by the first picker P1.
In step 3, the disk transport unit 7 is moved to the position of the source ODD (# 100), and the unknown disk 9a mounted on the source ODD (# 100) is taken out by the second picker P2.

In step 4, the disk transport unit 7 is moved to the position of the target ODD (# 107), and the second picker P2 mounts the unknown disk 9a on the target ODD (# 107).
In step 5, the disk transport unit 7 is moved to the position of the source ODD (# 100), and the first picker P1 mounts the occupation disk 9b on the target ODD (# 100).

  As described above, the unknown disk 9a and the occupied disk 9b can be exchanged, and the unknown disk 9a can be read out by the target ODD (# 107).

  In this operation, the disk transport unit 7 does not need to move to the position of the disk storage unit 8 and merely transfers the disk to / from a plurality of ODDs 10, so that the disk can be replaced quickly.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the types of disk information used for inventory processing. The disc information (1) to (7) shown here is information for identifying the physical characteristics and usage pattern of the optical disc itself, and is different from metadata for managing user data recorded on the disc. By using disk information, disk replacement and inventory processing can be performed efficiently.

(1) The presence / absence of support indicates whether the disk is an archive-dedicated disk supported by the library apparatus, and is described as BCA (Burst Cutting Area) information.
(2) Single-sided / double-sided disc identification information described as MID (Manufactures ID) information.

(3) Indicates whether the disk is an inspection disk used for ODD performance evaluation.
(4) The disc type is information for identifying a single-layer medium, a double-layer (multi-layer) medium, and a Blu-ray medium (registered trademark).

(5) The disc capacity indicates the amount of data that can be recorded by the disc.
(6) The disk status indicates whether data has not been recorded or has been recorded.

  (7) The share ID (Share OID) is identification information unique to the group to which the user belongs (referred to as a share). An optical disk is assigned to each share in units of cartridges. In share management, recorded disks need to be stored in cartridges having the same share ID.

  Next, the flow of inventory processing according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the following description, the disk replacement shown in FIG. 3 is performed as a specific example. That is, the return position of the disk 9a attached to the ODD (# 100) becomes unknown.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the entire inventory process.
In S100, disk information (FIG. 4) is acquired from the unknown disk 9a by ODD (# 100). At this time, the disk information is also acquired for the disks mounted on other ODDs (# 101 to # 111). The reason for carrying out with respect to other disks is to determine the processing priority order when there are a plurality of unknown disks and to determine the empty slot of the cartridge to which the unknown disks are returned. Details of the disk information acquisition process will be described with reference to FIG.

  In S101, the disk information acquired from the unknown disk 9a is referred to and the presence / absence of share ID (Share OID) information is determined. If there is no share ID, the process proceeds to S102 and a disk exchange process is performed. If there is a share ID, the process proceeds to S103 without disk replacement processing.

  In S102, a disk replacement process (case 1) for mounting the unknown disk 9a to the target ODD is performed. In case 1, an ODD that has not been subjected to disk replacement is selected as the target ODD. For example, if another disk (occupying disk) 9b already exists in the selected target ODD (# 107), the unknown disk 9a and the occupying disk 9b are switched using the pickers P1 and P2 of the disk transport unit 7. Details of the disk replacement process will be described with reference to FIG.

  In S103, the metadata is read from the unknown disk 9a by the target ODD (# 107), and the read metadata is registered in the database in the server 3. Then, an XML file is created for each cartridge slot.

  In S104, it is determined whether the type of the unknown disk 9a is a single-sided disk or a double-sided disk. In the case of a double-sided disk, it is necessary to acquire metadata on the opposite side, and the process advances to S105 to perform disk replacement processing. In the case of a single-sided disk, the process proceeds to S107 without disk replacement processing.

  In S105, a disk replacement process (case 2) for mounting the unknown disk 9a to the target ODD is performed. In case 2, the target ODD is selected at random. Also in this case, if there is an occupied disk in the target ODD, it is replaced. Details of the disk exchange process will be described with reference to FIG.

  In S106, the metadata is read from the unknown disk 9a by the target ODD, and the read metadata is registered in the database in the server 3. Then, an XML file is created for each cartridge slot.

  In S107, the unknown disk 9a is taken out from the target ODD by the disk transport unit 7, moved to the disk storage unit 8, and stored in an empty slot.

When there are a plurality of unknown disks in the above processing, the following priority order is provided according to the disk type, and registration in the database and storage in an empty slot are performed. This is because, under share management, it is necessary to return the recorded disk to the cartridge slot of the same share.
Priority 1: A disc having a share ID (Share OID) (recorded disc).
Priority 2: An unrecorded disc of the same type as the disc type (type) recorded on the cartridge.
Priority 3: Other disc.
Note that fixed slots (for example, # 1249 and # 1499 in FIG. 2) may be assigned to the inspection disc (Qualification disc), and the discs may be stored with priority over the above three.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the disk information acquisition process (S100) in FIG. This process is executed for all disks mounted on the ODD.

In S200, the disc is recognized. If disc recognition fails, the following steps are skipped and the process ends.
In S201, disk information is read from each disk. The type of information acquired here is No. shown in FIG. 1-No. 6 (excluding the share ID of No. 7).

  In S202, it is determined whether or not the disc is supported (No. 1) and recorded (No. 6) based on the obtained disc information. If the determination is Yes, the share ID (No. 7) recorded on the disc is acquired in S203. If the determination is No, the process ends without acquiring a share ID.

  According to this flow, for a recorded disc with support, it is possible to acquire the share ID and execute inventory processing with priority over others. In other words, by skipping reading of non-prioritized disk information, the disk information acquisition process can be performed efficiently.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the disk replacement process (S102, S105) in FIG. An example of exchanging the disk 9a and the disk 9b in FIG. 3 will be described.

In S300, a reverse-side target ODD is selected at random. For example, the reverse side ODD (# 107) is selected with respect to the source ODD (# 100).
In S301, it is determined whether another disk (occupied disk) is already mounted on the target ODD. If an occupied disk is mounted, it is determined as “error”. For example, if the occupied disk 9b exists in the target ODD (# 107), it is determined as an error, and the process proceeds to the disk replacement process using the picker after S302. If it is not an error, the process proceeds to S306 without disk replacement processing.

In S302, the case setting (1 or 2) at the time of disk replacement is determined. This case setting is instructed in the overall flow of FIG.
In case 1, the process proceeds to S303, and an ODD for which disk replacement has not been performed is selected. As a result, it can be avoided that the exchanged disks are the same. In case 2, the process proceeds to S304, and ODD is selected at random. This is because each ODD has not been subjected to disk replacement and may be selected at random.

  In S305, the occupation disk 9b of the target ODD (# 107) is taken out by the picker P1 and retreated (see step 2 in FIG. 3).

  In S306, the unknown disk 9a of the source ODD (# 100) is taken out by the picker P2 and mounted on the target ODD (# 107) (see steps 3 and 4 in FIG. 3).

  In S307, it is determined whether or not there is a disk evacuated to the picker. If there is a disk 9b retreated in the picker P1, the disk 9b is attached to the source ODD (# 100) in S308 (see step 5 in FIG. 3).

  According to the above flow, even when a disk is already mounted on the target ODD, the disk replacement is performed using the picker of the disk transport unit 7 as a retreat location, so that the disk replacement can be performed quickly.

  The present embodiment is characterized in that the exchange process between disks inserted in the ODD is performed using the picker as a retreat location, and the disk exchange process is efficiently performed by obtaining the disk information. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the processing flow described above, and various modifications can be made.

  Also, if the reverse side metadata can be reliably determined from the rear (front) side metadata for a disk that has already been registered in the database, the disk replacement to ODD in the reverse side direction and the disk registration process are skipped. Needless to say, metadata can be registered.

1 ... Library device,
2 ... Library controller
3 ... Server,
4 ... Network,
5 ... Hard disk,
6 ... Memory,
7: Disc transport section,
8 ... disk storage (cartridge),
9 ... Optical disc,
10 ... Optical disc drive (ODD),
P1, P2 ... Picker.

Claims (5)

In a library device that records and reproduces data on a plurality of optical disks,
A disk storage unit for storing the plurality of optical disks;
A plurality of optical disk drives for recording and reproducing data by mounting the optical disk;
A disc transport unit having a picker for transporting the optical disc between the disc storage unit and the optical disc drive, and attaching and detaching the optical disc;
A library controller for controlling the optical disk drive and the disk transport unit;
The library controller, when mounting the first optical disk mounted in the first optical disk drive among the plurality of optical disk drives in the second optical disk drive, already has the second optical disk in the second optical disk drive. When the optical disk is mounted,
The second optical disk is retracted by the picker after the second optical disk is temporarily retracted by the picker of the disk transport unit, the first optical disk is moved to and mounted on the second optical disk drive. Is moved to and attached to the first optical disk drive. The library apparatus according to claim 1,
The library controller reads disk information of the first optical disk by the first optical disk drive before performing the optical disk replacement process, and controls the optical disk replacement process based on the read disk information. Library device. The library apparatus according to claim 2, wherein
If the slot position when returning the first optical disk loaded in the first optical disk drive to the disk storage unit becomes unclear, the optical disk is replaced and data is transferred from the first optical disk. A library apparatus characterized by returning the first optical disk to an empty slot of the disk storage unit after reproduction and registration in a database. The library apparatus according to claim 3, wherein
When the disc information read from the first optical disc indicates a double-sided recording disc, an optical disc drive in the direction opposite to the first optical disc drive is selected as the second optical disc drive. The library apparatus according to claim 3, wherein
If the disc information read from the first optical disc indicates that data has been recorded on the disc supported by the library apparatus, the group ID to which the optical disc belongs is further read from the first optical disc, A library apparatus, wherein the first optical disk is returned to an empty slot of the disk storage unit assigned to the group ID.

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