Storage Policies and Optimal Shape of a Storage System

The response time of a storage system is mainly influenced by its shape (configuration), the storage assignment and retrieval policies, and the location of the input/output (I/O) points. In this paper, we show that the optimal shape of a storage system, which minimises the response time for single command cycles, is independent of the used storage policy and the location of the I/O point. This means decisions on the shape of the storage system and storage policy can be decoupled. This simplifies system design since at the design stage little information on customer demand is available. The storage system can then be designed for optimality assuming a random storage policy. Such a system optimally accommodates other time-saving storage policies such as class-based or full-turnover-based storage without requiring configuration correction. © 2013 Taylor & Francis.