Phillip Paul Fultz

US Patent:

7454561, Nov 18, 2008

Filed:

Jun 16, 2005

Appl. No.:

11/153932

Inventors:

Phillip Fultz - Clinton MA, US
Ashok Tamilarasan - Framingham MA, US
Michael Manning - Hopkinton MA, US
Thomas Dibb - Rutland MA, US

Assignee:

EMC Corporation - Hopkinton MA

International Classification:

G06F 13/00

US Classification:

711112, 711163, 711166

Abstract:

A system sets a disk access inhibitor flag whenever a disk drive is placed by the system in an inaccessible condition. The drive operates to set a bit therein when the drive has placed itself in a by-pass condition. During each polling event, the system determines: (1) whether the bit has been set; and (2) whether the disk access inhibitor flag has been set. If the bit has been set and such disk access inhibitor flag has been set, the system maintains the drive in the inaccessible condition; otherwise, the drive is accessible to the system. If, during a polling event, the bit has been set but that drive has not had a bit set during a relatively long period of time, the system maintains the drive accessible to the system unless the drive sets the bit during a subsequent predetermined wait period, after which the system sets the flagdisk access inhibitor flag and places the drive in the inaccessible condition.