Sun Microsystems, Inc.

Sunil Shanthaveeraiah

Raghavendra J Rao

Aseem Rastogi

A fabric driver on a host system connected to a fabric may include an API for an administration application to query and obtain a list of devices connected to a fabric host adapter port(s). The fabric driver may execute this query and obtain the list of devices by querying a fabric name server. One or more direct attach devices may also be discovered. For direct attach devices, like private loop topologies, operating system device nodes may be created during driver attach. However, for fabric topologies the fabric driver provides a list of devices visible through the fabric host adapter port by querying the fabric name server and supplies this list to the administration application in response to the administration application's request. A user may then select devices from this list to be onlined. A dynamic persistent repository may be maintained of devices onlined using this on-demand node creation process.

System and method for on-demand node creation for fabric devices

An application may query a fabric driver to obtain a list of devices visible through a fabric host adapter port(s). The fabric driver may obtain the list of devices by querying a fabric name server. For direct attach devices, device nodes may be created during driver attach. However, for fabric topologies the fabric driver is queried on-demand to provide a list of devices visible through the fabric host adapter port(s). A user (e.g. through an application) may then select devices from this list to be onlined. An indication of the fabric devices that are online for the host system are stored in a persistent repository. Following a reboot of the host system, the persistent repository may be read to determine which fabric devices were online prior to the reboot. The fabric devices that were online prior to the reboot to be may again be brought online for the host system.

Growing community of inventors

Santa Clara, CA, United States of America

Sunil Shanthaveeraiah