The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 28, 2010
Filed:
Feb. 12, 2005
Thomas Dean Lovett, Portland, OR (US);
Sharad Mehrotra, Saratoga, CA (US);
Cosmos Nicolaou, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Nakul Pratap Saraiya, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Shreyas B. Shah, San Jose, CA (US);
Myron H. White, Hillsboro, OR (US);
Rajesh K. Jagannathan, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Mangesh Shingane, San Jose, CA (US);
Thomas Dean Lovett, Portland, OR (US);
Sharad Mehrotra, Saratoga, CA (US);
Cosmos Nicolaou, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Nakul Pratap Saraiya, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Shreyas B. Shah, San Jose, CA (US);
Myron H. White, Hillsboro, OR (US);
Rajesh K. Jagannathan, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Mangesh Shingane, San Jose, CA (US);
Habanero Holdings, Inc., Saratoga, CA (US);
Abstract
Virtual Network Interface Controllers (vNICs) provide for communication among modules of Enterprise Server (ES) embodiments via a switch fabric dataplane. Processes executing on compute complexes of the servers exchange data as packets or messages by interfaces made available through vNICs. The vNICs further provide for transparent communication with network and storage interfaces. vNIC provisioning capabilities include programmable bandwidth, priority scheme selection, and detailed priority control (such as round-robin weights). In some embodiments, vNICs are implemented in Virtual Input/Output Controllers (VIOCs). In another aspect, Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs) enable access to layer-2 and selected layer-3 network functions while exchanging the packets and messages. VLAN identification is provided in each vNIC, and VLAN processing is partially performed in VIOCs implementing vNICs. The compute complexes and interfaces are typically configured as pluggable modules inserted into a backplane included in a chassis.