Lsi Corporation

Lsi Logic Corporation

Avago Technologies General IP (singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Lawrence James Rawe

Roy Wade

Derick G Moore

Brett Henning

Samantha L Ranaweera

Stephen B Johnson

Gerald Edward Smith

Brad D Besmer

Edoardo Daelli

Sayantan Battacharya

Disclosed is a system and method for generating IO in PCIe devices and flow management of the IO.

Method and system for I/O flow management using RAID controller with DMA capabilitiy to directly send data to PCI-E devices connected to PCI-E switch

Disclosed is a method and a SAS controller device that abstract access from one or more virtual machines operating on a host system to SAS physical devices connected to the SAS controller without a routing table for port-to-port messaging on the SAS controller. An embodiment may create a virtual expander for each physical port of the SAS controller and further create virtual ports within the virtual expanders to provide abstracted access to SAS physical devices for the virtual machines. The SAS physical devices may be replicated/cloned within the virtual ports. Each replicated/cloned SAS physical device may be assigned a unique SAS address for the SAS controller (i.e., unique for the SAS controller such that other replicates/clones on other virtual ports have a different SAS address). If a physical expander that supports zoning is connected to a SAS controller port, an embodiment may further selectively replicate/clone the SAS physical devices for a virtual port based on whether or not a SAS physical device is included in a zoning group associated with the virtual port. An embodiment may further abstract access to SAS physical devices through a virtual function that permits access to one virtual port per virtual expander in order to permit access for the virtual machine associated with the virtual function to more than one physical port of the SAS controller.

Method for selective replication of physical devices on a virtual self-configuring zoning expander

A customizable option ROM image that allows a user to modify certain features of a ROM image is described. In one embodiment, a plurality of configuration ROM image modules is provided to a user. These modules may be bundled in a single file along with a software interface application that allows the user to customize one or more of the modules. In particular, the software application provides a simple interface so that a user may identify and change particular ROM image features. Thereafter, a ROM image is built using the modules, some of which may have been modified, so that it may be installed within the customer's system.

Customization of option ROM images

A method and apparatus are disclosed in a data processing system for dynamically selecting one of multiple different I/O firmware images for booting a particular I/O controller that is included in the data processing system. Multiple different I/O firmware images are provided. A configuration of the I/O controller is determined. One of the I/O firmware images is identified that supports the configuration of the particular I/O controller. The identified I/O firmware image is then dynamically selected for booting said I/O controller.

Method and apparatus for dynamically selecting one of multiple firmware images for booting an I/O controller

The present invention provides a method of packaging, storing, uploading, and executing a DOS based software module capable for being utilized as applications of a PCI device. The present invention may deliver both a binary image and a DOS executable of an application provided by the PCI device. The DOS executable may be utilized by a source level debugger for the development of the application of the PCI device as any changes to the configuration utility can easily be viewed, debugged and corrected. As a result, testing changes become simple operation that does not require building a bundled binary image with the PCI option ROM. The present invention may provide a method for additional modules to be utilized during system startup time. Further, the present invention may provide an independent tool running under DOS without the presence of the PCI option ROM. Independent DOS executable module may be used to demonstrate the application for internal reviews.

Apparatus and method for building, storing, uploading, relocating and executing DOS based software module during system startup time

An apparatus and method are described for identifying uncommitted memory in a system RAM during an initialization process of a computer system, such as a boot procedure or power-on self test, during which memory management is uncontrolled. In various embodiments of the invention, repeating patterns that are indicative of uncommitted memory blocks are identified within a conventional memory area of the system RAM. At least some of the uncommitted memory blocks are allocated for use by an option ROM or other BIOS data and a table is created identifying these uncommitted memory blocks. After the BIOS code exits the system RAM, the table is used to restore the uncommitted memory blocks into their previous data states.

Identification of uncommitted memory blocks during an initialization procedure

The present invention provides disk coercion by generating coercion percentages or values that can be used to coerce various disks according to each disk's particular labeled size or capacity. In one embodiment, a disk size is received and a base coercion scaling factor is provided such that the received disk size is coerced according to the base coercion scaling factor if the labeled disk capacity is below a disk size threshold. The coercion scaling factor increases for labeled disk capacity above the disk threshold. If the labeled disk capacity is above the disk size threshold, then a coercion scaling factor is provided according to the rate of increase of coercion scaling factors and the labeled disk capacity.

Scaled coercion of disk drive capacity

The present invention is a method for coercing disk drive capacity in a RAID configuration. The method includes the step of determining actual disk drive capacities of a first disk drive and a second disk drive in the RAID configuration. If the actual disk drive capacities of the first disk drive and the second disk drive differ, the method further includes multiplying the smaller actual disk drive capacity by a coercion ratio to establish an optimal disk drive capacity. The optimal disk drive capacity sets a minimum capacity threshold for any disk drive utilized within the RAID configuration. If the actual disk drive capacities of the first disk drive and the second disk drive are an equal value, the method further includes multiplying the value by the coercion ratio to establish the optimal disk drive capacity. The coercion ratio is a quotient of a first interpreted value for a number of bytes in a unit of disk drive capacity measurement and a second interpreted value for a number of bytes in the unit of disk drive capacity measurement.

System and method for coercion of disk drive size for use in a RAID volume

The present invention provides a method of packaging, storing, uploading, and executing a DOS based software module capable for being utilized as applications of a PCI device. The present invention may deliver both a binary image and a DOS executable of an application provided by the PCI device. The DOS executable may be utilized by a source level debugger for the development of the application of the PCI device as any changes to the CU can easily be viewed, debugged and corrected. As a result, testing changes become simple operation that does not require building a bundled binary image with the PCI option ROM. The present invention may provide a method for additional modules to be utilized during system startup time. Further, the present invention may provide an independent tool running under DOS without the presence of the PCI option ROM. Independent DOS executable module may be used to demonstrate the application for internal reviews.

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Colorado Springs, CO, United States of America

Lawrence James Rawe