Dell Products Inc.

Jonathan Foster Lewis

Lee Eric Ballard

Andrew Thomas Sultenfuss

Corey Dean Hartman

Kevin Warren Mundt

Wade Andrew Butcher

Robert Boyd Curtis

Kevin Allen Hughes

Mukund Purshottam Khatri

Shree Ramakrishna Rathinasamy

Shawn Joel Dube

Hendrich M Hernandez

Andrew Lafayette McAnally

Philip John Brisky

Jason Garth Pearce

William A Moyes

Jason Christopher Rock

Elizabeth Raymond

Kevin E Locklear

Curtis D Bunch

Florence Gilberte Dorsey

A receptacle connector may include a receptacle for receiving a corresponding edge connector of a device, a plurality of electrically-conductive pins configured to electrically couple to associated pins of the corresponding edge connector when the receptacle connector is populated with the device, an optical transmitter at a first end of the receptacle, and an optical receiver at a second end of the receptacle opposite the first end and arranged relative to the optical transmitter such that in an absence of misshape of the receptacle connector, the optical receiver receives at least a significant portion of electromagnetic energy generated by the optical transmitter.

Systems and methods for detecting misshapen receptacle connector

Managing failover between information handling systems, including receiving, at an interface of a smart network interface card (smartNIC) of a primary information handling system, a packet, the primary information handling system communicatively couped to a secondary information handling system; determining whether the packet was transmitted by a network interface card (NIC) of the secondary information handling system; determining that the packet was transmitted by the NIC of the secondary information handling system, and in response, determining whether the packet is an address resolution protocol (ARP) request; determining that the packet is an ARP request, and in response, cloning a medium access control (MAC) address of the NIC of the secondary information handling system at the smartNIC of the primary information handling system; and forwarding the ARP request to a uplink connection.

Managing failover between information handling systems

Methods and systems for managing the operation of data processing systems are disclosed. To manage the operation of data processing systems, a management controller hosted by a data processing system may communicate with other components of the data processing system via sideband communications. To facilitate sideband communications between the management controller and other devices, the data processing system may include a sideband communication system. The sideband communication system may facilitate sideband communications between devices over large distances and/or under conditions that may otherwise render the sideband communications infeasible.

System and method for supporting communications between management controllers and devices

Methods and systems for performing timekeeping by a data processing system are disclosed. To perform timekeeping, the data processing system may include an oscillator that provides signals upon which time keeping is based. The signal provided by the oscillator may be impacted by the temperature of the oscillator. During periods of time when the data processing system may communicate with other devices, the data processing system may perform cooperative timekeeping synchronization through exchange of data with the other devices. During periods of time when the data processing system may not perform cooperative timekeeping synchronization, the data processing system may perform independent timekeeping synchronization by attempting to thermally stabilize the oscillator.

System and method to maintain clock stability in a complex computing platform

Systems and methods are provided that may be implemented to use compute capabilities of a network interface controller (NIC) to broker a secure connection across a network between a target information handling system (e.g., such as a server) and one or more other entities (e.g., such as other information handling systems implementing a cloud service or private network, and/or that are providing other remote service/s across the network). This secure connection may be brokered by the NIC at a hardware level in a manner that is separate from a host programmable integrated circuit of the same target information handling system, and in a way that is agnostic and independent of any host operating system or other logic that is executing on the host programmable integrated circuit of the target information handling system.

Systems and methods using a network interface controller (NIC) to broker a secure remote connection at the hardware layer

In one or more embodiments, one or more systems, one or more methods, and/or one or more processes may determine, via a baseboard management controller (BMC) of an information handling system, to provide firmware to a component of the information handling system; may provide, via the BMC, first data to the component via a first bus; based at least on the first data, may provide, via a communications bridge of the component, a first signal to a non-volatile memory medium (NVMM) of the component, a multiplexer of the component, and an integrated circuit of the component, in which the first signal causes the integrated circuit to be held in a reset state, causes a write protection of the NVMM to be cleared, and causes the multiplexer to couple the BMC to the NVMM; and may provide, via the BMC, the firmware to the NVMM via the multiplexer.

System and method of utilizing a component of an information handling system

A network interface card includes a memory configured to store a credential associated with one of a manufacturer of the network interface card, a particular manufacturer of the server that includes the network interface card, or another manufacturer of an enclosure that holds the network interface card. A processor performs network discovery to identify devices in a local area network, performs port configuration, and establishes a secure network connection with a cloud service broker. Subsequent to the establishment of the secure network connection, the processor submits a provisioning request to the cloud service broker, receives a response to the provisioning request, and applies the security policies to the network interface card, wherein the security policies are for the devices of the local area network.

System and method for providing remote site security for information handling systems in a protected network

An active device module may include an active device, a housing configured to house the active device, and heat-rejecting media thermally coupled to the active device and mechanically coupled to the housing such that when the active device module is coupled to an input/output interface of an information handling system, at least a portion of the heat-rejecting media resides external to a chassis enclosing components of the information handling system such that physical shape and size of the heat-rejecting media is not constrained by the chassis.

Systems and methods for providing heat-rejecting media on a cable assembly

An information handling system includes a memory to store BIOS, a processor, a BMC, and an add-in device. The BMC updates the BIOS in a first system state and prevents BIOS updates in a second system state. The add-in device is configured to update firmware in a first device state and to prevent firmware updates in a second device state. The add-in device enters the first device state when the add-in device receives a power-on reset. The add-in device receives a lockdown command, sets the add-in device to the second device state in response to the lockdown command, and prevents the add-in device from reentering the first device state until the add-in device receives a second power-on reset subsequent to the first power-on reset.

Method and apparatus for securing add-in cards from firmware and configuration changes

Components installed on a topside of printed circuit board (PCB), such as a motherboard, are provided airflow cooling by a plurality of cooling fans located on a proximal end of the PCB. A hardware component is installed on the topside of a distal end of the PCB, furthest from the cooling fans. The hardware component includes cooling elements that extend to the underside of the PCB. Cooling the hardware component is complicated by the distance from the cooling fans and the cooling elements that extend below the PCB. A plenum extending from the proximal end of the PCB towards the distal end of the PCB is installed on the underside of the PCB. The plenum draws airflow from the cooling fans and delivers the airflow to the hardware component along the underside of the PCB, thus avoiding heating by the components on the topside of the PCB.

Under-motherboard air cooling plenum

A network adapter, includes a first transceiver module with a transceiver that operates according to a first network protocol and a memory element that includes information that identifies the first network protocol, a second transceiver module with a transceiver that operates according to a second network protocol and a memory element that includes information that identifies the second network protocol, and a controller that reads the information from the first memory element, directs an information handling system to invoke a first network driver associated with the first network protocol based upon the information, reads the second information from the second memory element, and directs the information handling system to invoke a second network driver associated with the second network protocol based upon the second information.

System and method for providing dynamic personalities for network ports

A sled mounted processing node apparatus includes a first processing node sled. A first printed circuit board (PCB) is coupled to the processing node sled. Electronic components, including at least one processor, are coupled to the PCB. The apparatus includes a second processing node sled having a second PCB connected to the second processing node sled and a second set of electronic components, including at least one second processor, coupled to the second PCB. The at least one processor and second processor collectively enables increased processing density within a single server chassis. Each processing node sled is configured to be slideably inserted and removed from a server chassis that accommodates concurrent insertion of multiple processing node sleds in respective sled bays of the server chassis.

Sled mounted processing nodes for an information handling system

A combination connector may include a first connector housed within a housing and configured to be communicatively coupled to an information handling resource, the first connector configured to receive connectors of a first form factor and to communicatively couple a corresponding connector of the first form factor received by the first connector to the information handling resource, and a second connector housed within the housing and configured to be communicatively coupled to the information handling resource, the second connector configured to receive connectors of a second form factor and to communicatively couple a corresponding connector of the second form factor received by the second connector to the information handling resource. A first footprint of the corresponding connector of the first form factor as engaged with the first connector may be overlapping with a second footprint of the corresponding connector of the second form factor as engaged with the second connector.

Systems and methods for providing a combination connector assembly in an information handling system

In accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, a device for persistent cached image download may include a memory, an input/output interface, and a network interface. The memory may be configured to store therein an image database, the image database comprising a boot image for each of one or more information handling systems. The input/output interface may be communicatively coupled to the memory and configured to couple to a corresponding input/output port of an information handling system. The network interface may be configured to couple to an image server. In response to an information handling system coupled to the input/output interface determining that the updated version of the particular boot image exists at the image server, the memory may store the updated version in the memory as the particular boot image.

Systems and methods for persistent cached image download

A method, system and device are disclosed for compensating or tuning one or more communication pathways between an external network and an information handling system. In one aspect, one or more inductive devices may be coupled to one or more transmission lines coupling a physical layer transceiver (PHY) to one of a plurality of external network communication ports via a board-mounted communication switch. Selection and placement, such as serial placement, of the one or more inductive devices depends, at least in part, upon one or more electrical characteristics of the transmission lines, the PHY, the communication switch and requirements of the external network.

Growing community of inventors

Pflugerville, TX, United States of America

Jonathan Foster Lewis