A Data Management System for UNICORE 6

Abstract

Data produced in scientic and industrial applications is growing exponentially but most resource middleware systems lack of appropriate support for data and metadata management. In particular easy and intuitive retrieval of data for later use is a serious problem. In this context the paper proposes a pragmatic approach for data management of distributed data with focus on appropriate means for data organization improving data retrieval. The paper presents the key concepts and architecture of a dedicated data management system for sharing data located on heterogeneous storage resources. The dierent specics of storage systems such as data object names, data locations, and data access methods are abstracted to allow transparent data access. Moreover, the system provides means for data structuring and organization by supporting custom data models and annotation of individual metadata on data objects. Current development status of the system is illustrated by presenting an integration with the UNICORE Rich Client which has been validated in the context of the AeroGrid project.