Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.P.

Darda Chang

Michael Sean McGee

Mark Christopher Stratton

Matthew S Reeves

Daniel Nathan Cripe

Nambi Madhi

Mark Richard Enstone

Christopher L Hughes

Roland G Horstman

Nambi K Madhi, Ii

An implementation of an apparatus in one example may have: a network component, coupled with a communication network, having a plurality of network ports and a plurality of visual indicators that correspond respectively to the plurality of network ports; and a message received over the communication network by the network component, wherein the network component triggers a respective visual indicator, of the plurality of visual indicators, that corresponds to a selected port, of the plurality of network ports, based on the message received over the communication network.

Remotely associating network ports to a server

A method is implemented in a network that comprises a plurality of ports and an indicator associated with each port. The method comprises forming a frame. The frame passes through the network. The frame causes indicators of multiple ports to illuminate to provide an indication of a path through the network Each of the ports remain illuminated for at least a period of time after the frame passes through each such port to enable a person to concurrently visualize all of the ports comprising the path.

Network path identification

A system comprises a first host bus adapter (HBA) that uses a first context to facilitate the transmission of packets through a logical connection through the first HBA. The system also comprises a second HBA and memory in which the first context is stored. The memory is accessible by both of the first and second HBAs. Upon receiving a packet associated with the logical connection, the second HBA accesses the memory to use the first context to process the packet in accordance with the first context.

Sharing of host bus adapter context

A method comprises on a first port, receiving a frame from a network device and determining whether the received frame includes a system identifier (ID) that matches a system ID corresponding to a second port. If the received frame's system ID matches the second port's system ID, the method further comprises discontinuing an aggregation protocol that otherwise enables multiple ports to be operated together as a virtual port.

Discontinuing the implementation of an aggregation protocol

A computer system teams its network resources by apportioning each of the resources into one of two or more groups. One or more resources make up each of the groups having a link operative to be coupled together as a port trunk to a different one of two or more coupling devices providing connectivity between the system and a network. A unique layer2 address is assigned to each one of the groups. The one or more resources of each group are programmed to receive on their group's assigned layer2 address. A response is generated to a communication request received from the network. The responses specify one of the assigned layer2 addresses.

Network resource teaming providing resource redundancy and transmit/receive load-balancing through a plurality of redundant port trunks

A method and system of transmit load balancing across multiple physical ports. At least some of the illustrative embodiments are methods comprising teaming a first and second communication ports to create a teamed communication port, creating a plurality of virtual ports which abstract the first and second communication ports (and wherein a number of virtual ports utilizing each communication port is based on parameters associated with the communication ports), selecting one of the plurality of virtual ports out which to send a message packet thus designating a select virtual port (the selecting implements transmit load balancing across plurality of virtual ports) and sending the message packets out the first or second communication port utilized by the selected virtual port.

Method and system of transmit load balancing across multiple physical ports

A method and system of distributing multicast group join requests in computer systems operating with teamed communication ports. At least some of the illustrative embodiments are computer-readable media storing a program that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to intercept multicast group join requests sent from a network layer program executed by the processor, and distribute the multicast join requests across a plurality of communication ports operating as a single virtual port.

Method and system of distributing multicast group join request in computer systems operating with teamed communication ports

A system comprising a computer including a plurality of network interface controllers (NICs), the plurality of NICs associated with an address. The system further comprises a switching apparatus coupled to the computer and an echo device coupled to the switching apparatus. The echo device is adapted to send a packet to the switching apparatus to verify connectivity with the plurality of NICs. The packet comprises the address. The switching apparatus compares the address with a data structure to locate a matching address. If no matching address is located, the switching apparatus sends copies of the packet to each of the plurality of NICs coupled to the switching apparatus.

Verifying network connectivity

A method of operating a network computer system provides redundant Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast traffic flow on a group of physical ports and comprises virtualizing the group of physical ports into a single virtual Network Interface Controller (NIC), validating network connectivity in a logical group comprising at least one of the physical ports in the virtualized group, and responding to failure of a physical port that is actively receiving on an IP Multicast traffic flow by instigating failover of the actively received IP Multicast traffic flow to a physical port in the logical group with validated network connectivity.

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Darda Chang