International Business Machines Corporation

Netapp, Inc.

Adaptec, Inc.

Timothy Vincent Lee

Andrew Boyce McNeill, Jr

Douglas R Chisholm

Gary B Hoch

Ed Wachtel

Daniel C Kuhl

Joseph Kevin Farrell

Jeffrey Scott Gordon

Tony Edwin Parker

Radek Aster

Mark Elliot Andresen

Wayne A Booth

Robert V Jenness

Richard Christopher Fore

James Lin

John Fabrizio Bevilacqua

David Eduardo Vieira

Timothy Chin-Cheung Ng

Technology is disclosed for stack isolation in a storage system including a storage network switch and multiple storage sub-systems (e.g., storage stacks). The storage network switch includes multiple ports and at least one of the ports is configured to dynamically connect to a device that can be either a storage controller device or a storage sub-system. The technology can receive an identification message indicating that a device is connected to a port of a storage network switch, determine based on the identification message at the storage network switch whether the device is a storage controller device or a storage sub-system, and transfer messages between the ports of the storage network switch such that the storage network switch prevents communications between storage sub-systems connected to the storage network switch, but allows communications between the storage sub-systems and storage controller devices connected to the storage network switch.

Stack isolation by a storage network switch

A method and system for batching commands and status information between a host computer and an adapter installed on the host computer. The method for command batching includes the host storing command pointers, each command pointer pointing to a command in an array, and providing an array pointer to the array. When a predetermined threshold of stored commands has been reached, the host can deliver a multitude of commands via the array pointer with a single bus access. A method for status batching includes transferring command statuses from the adapter to the host computer and providing a pointer to the transferred statuses. When a predetermined threshold of statuses has been reached, the adapter interrupts the host computer once to fetch the pointer and the host can then read the statuses without requiring any more bus interrupts.

I2O command and status batching

The peripheral bus connector for improved aggregation of resources of a device on the peripheral bus includes a plurality of aggregation pins, in addition to the pins according to the peripheral bus standard. Signals from a controller on an extended peripheral bus adapter sends and receives signals in addition to standard signals of the peripheral bus through the aggregation pins. The aggregated device is hidden from third parties, and its existence is known only to the controller on the extended peripheral bus adapter. In this manner, resources are aggregated across a peripheral bus without needing the addition of another controller and without the need to redefine standard peripheral bus signals. In addition, standard peripheral bus adapters may still be used in the connector if resource aggregation is not desired.

Connector that enables aggregation of independent system resources across PCI/PCI-X bus and interlocked method for aggregating independent system resources across PCI/PCI-X bus

An information handling system transfers command blocks between a host processing side having a host processing unit and a host memory and a local processing side having a local processing unit and a local memory. The command blocks are transferred from the host processing side to the local processing side by storing the host address of the command block in a local side register set. Upon storing the host address a transfer signal is given to a command block transfer controller to start a command block transfer without the local processor unit intervention.

Information handling system for transfer of command blocks to a local

An information handling system transfers command blocks between a host processing side having a host processing unit and a host memory, and a local processing side having a local processing unit and a local memory. The local memory includes a command address queue portion for queuing local command address images containing the local addresses of the command blocks. A command block transfer controller is responsive to the local command address images for storing the transferred command block into a corresponding portion of the local memory.

Information handling system having a local address queue for local

An information handling system transfers data blocks between a host processing side having a host processing unit and a host memory and a local processing side having a local processing unit and a local memory. The host memory includes a status queue memory portion having a plurality of status queue images each image storing a status information relating to a corresponding data transfer. The status information relating to data block transfers are posted on the host processing side. The host processing unit, upon system initialization, sets up a status queue register set within the local processing side defining status queue parameters including the location of the status queue memory portion within the host memory and pointer values pointing to where status queue images are to be stored and from where they are to be retrieved.

Status handling for transfer of data blocks between a local side and a

An information handling system transfers data blocks between a host processing side having a CPU and a host memory and a local processing side having a local processing unit and a local memory. The local memory includes a DCB queue memory portion having a plurality of DCB images each image defining host and local addresses of a corresponding data transfer. The DCB images also store a default status condition representing the most likely condition of a data transfer which in the preferred embodiment is a no error condition. A data transfer status detector determines whether the default status condition is true or false. If true, the default status information relating to a corresponding data block transfer is posted on the host processing side without local processing unit intervention.

Information handling system using default status conditions for transfer

Growing community of inventors

Raleigh, NC, United States of America

Timothy Vincent Lee