Multi Path File System

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In computing MPFSi or MPFS - Multi Protocol File System is a technology which allows many computer clients to access shared computer data with increased speed and performance. MPFSi allows hundreds to thousands of client computer nodes to access shared computer data with up to four times the performance of conventional NAS file sharing protocols such as NFS.

Contents

[edit] Application

MPFSi technology is intended for HPC (High Performance Computing) environments. In these environments many computer nodes require concurrent access to data sets. This technology can be used to store and access data for grid computing, where the individual computing power of many systems is combined to perform a single process. Example uses include processing geological data, voice recognition datasets, and modal processing. Virtualized computing environments will also benefit from high performance shared storage.

[edit] Benefits

  • MPFSi provides a 3-4X performance increase over conventional NAS.
  • No modifications to the client application need to be made to leverage this technology.
  • Files can be shared between NAS clients with or without NFS simultaneously.
  • NAS data can be accessed at speeds limited only by the storage device.
  • Reduced fiel system and protocol overhead

Image:MPFSi protocol overhead.gif‎

[edit] How It Works

MPFSi consists of an agent on the client system and a compatible NAS storage system. The client agent splits the data and meta data for the file being requested. This is done using an FMP (File Mapping Protocol) Requests for the data and it's location is sent over conventional NFS to the NAS system. Data is sent and retrieved directly from the storage device via iSCSI or Fibre Channel. Retrieving the data directly from the storage device increases performance by eliminating the file system and protocol overhead associated with NFS or CIFS.


Image:MPFSi overview.gif‎

[edit] Where It's From

The MPFS protocol was developed by EMC2 for use in NAS storage environments using EMC Celerra and back end storage environments using EMC CLARiiON and Symetrix.