Basic Research for Developing SSD-based Caching and Hybrid Storage Systems

本项目解决了与基于固态设备（SSD）的闪存相关的几个基本研究问题，为有效地将SSD集成到存储层次结构中奠定了基础和技术基础。这项研究将分三个步骤进行。首先，PI将对不同类型的最先进的SSD进行密集的实验和测量，从低端到高端设备，旨在深入了解意外的性能动态和不确定的行为。其次，调查将收集和放置应用程序，SSD和硬盘的动态信息，包括数据访问模式和它们的位置，到操作系统的地图上，并考虑它们的固有特性（优点和限制），用于系统设计和实现。设计了一套缓存算法和存储管理策略。最后，将使用分析和监控的信息以及开发的算法来实现、测试和评估混合存储原型。该项目的广泛和变革性影响可能是显著的：（1）它可以为系统设计人员和数据密集型应用程序用户提供关键指导;（2）该研究可提供技术解决方案，以缩小CPU操作和存储访问之间的速度差距;（3）所开发的技术和源代码将在网上提供给其他研究人员;（4）本研究将有助于本科生和研究生的培养，为学术界和工业界未来的计算机科学人才做准备。

This project addresses several basic research issues related to solid state device (SSD) based flash memory to lay out a foundation and technical basis for efficiently integrating SSDs into the storage hierarchy. The research will be done in a sequence of three steps. First, the PI will conduct intensive experiments and measurements on different types of state-of-the-art SSDs, from low-end to high-end devices aiming at providing insights into unexpected performance dynamics and uncertain behavior. Second, the investgation will collect and place dynamic information of applications, SSDs, and hard disks, including data access patterns and their localities, onto the map of operating systems, and consider their inherent features (both merits and limits) for systems design and implementation. A set of caching algorithms and storage management policies will be designed. Finally, implemention, testing, and evaluation of a hybrid storage prototype will be done by using the profiled and monitored information and developed algorithms.The broader and transformative impact of the project can be significant: (1) It can provide critical guidance to system designers and data-intensive application users; (2) The research can provide technical solutions to narrow the speed gap between CPU operations and storage accesses;(3) The developed techniques and source code will be available online for other researchers; and (4) The research will facilitate undergraduate and graduate student traing to prepare future computer science talents in academia and industries.