Bus isolation mechanism for sharing keyboard controller, super input output controller, and embedded controller devices

• US 20020099899A1
• Filed: 01/25/2001
• Published: 07/25/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Shaw, Ronald D.
• Granted Patent: US 6,732,216 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/316
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4022 using switching circuits, e.g. switching matrix, connection or expansion network G06F13/4009 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/023 Arrangements for converting discrete items of information into a coded form, e.g. arrangements for interpreting keyboard generated codes as alphanumeric codes, operand codes or instruction codes

Abstract

In order to allow a computer system in a multiple system architectures to continue operating while another system has control over common devices, a set of registers is provided for that computer system and the other computer systems in the computer architecture. A switch isolates the set of registers from other computer systems that do not need to access the particular register set. The switch also provides isolation of the computer system from the commonly controlled input and output peripheral devices. The computing systems may utilize similar processors or CPUs or they may be dissimilar processors or CPUs.

Claims

1. A computing system comprising:

two or more computing systems, each computing system comprised of a processor and memory;

a set of common peripheral devices;

two or more sets of registers, each set of registers dedicated to a particular computing system;

whereby the dedicated set of registers provides control information to the particular computing system and allows each computing system to operate continuously while a particular computing system has control of the common peripheral devices.

2. The computing system of claim 1 further comprising:

a switch device connecting the computing systems, that isolates the respective computing systems wherein a particular computing system is chosen to control the set of common devices.

3. The computing system of claim 2 wherein the switch device isolates a set of registers from the computing systems which the set of registers is not dedicated to.

4. The computing system of claim 1 further comprising:

an embedded controller that provides interface to the common peripheral devices.

5. The computing system of claim 2 further comprising:

an embedded controller that provides interface to the common peripheral devices.

6. The computing system of claim 3 further comprising:

an embedded controller that provides interface to the common peripheral devices.

7. The computing system of claim 1 wherein the peripheral devices are input output devices.

8. The computing system of claim 2 wherein the peripheral devices are input output devices.

9. The computing system of claim 3 wherein the peripheral devices are input output devices.

10. The computing system of claim 4 wherein the peripheral devices are input output devices.

11. The computing system of claim 5 wherein the peripheral devices are input output devices.

12. The computing system of claim 6 wherein the peripheral devices are input output devices.

14. The method of maintaining computing capability in a computer system of claim 13 further comprising:

providing control to a set of commonly controlled peripherals when the computer system is in control.

13. A method of maintaining computing capability in a computer system in a multiple system architecture comprised of:

continuously updating a processor in the computer system of control status of required register information related to controlled peripheral devices;

isolating register sets that are not required by the computer system;

providing control when the computer system is requested to have control; and

isolating the computer system when another computer system is requested to have control, while maintaining computing power in the processor in the computer system.