Coding Techniques for Repairability in Networked Distributed Storage Systems

The most commonly deployed multi-storage device systems are RAID housed in a single computing unit. The idea of distributing data across multiple disks has been naturally extended to multiple storage nodes which are interconnected over a network and are called Networked Distributed Storage Systems (NDSS). The simplest coding techniques based on replication are often used to ensure redundancy in these systems, but given the sheer volume of data that needs to be stored and the overheads of replication, other coding techniques are being developed. This book surveys coding techniques for NDSS, which aim at achieving (1) fault tolerance efficiently and (2) good repairability characteristics to replenish the lost redundancy, and ensure data durability over time. This is a vibrant research and this book is the first overview that presents the background required to understand the problems as well as covering the most important techniques currently being developed. It is essential reading for all researchers and engineers involved in designing and researching computer storage systems.