Signaling packet

• US 20040190557A1
• Filed: 03/27/2003
• Published: 09/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Barron, Dwight L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,023,520 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/496
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/161 Implementation details of TCP/IP or UDP/IP stack architecture; Specification of modified or new header fields

Abstract

The disclosed embodiments relate to a signaling packet that includes an indication that the packet is not part of a data transmission. The signaling packet may also include a specific value that is adapted to signal a condition. The indication may be purposely set to indicate that the signaling packet is not part of the data transmission to facilitate examination of the specific value by a receiver of the signaling packet.

Claims

1. A signaling packet, comprising:

an indication that the signaling packet is not part of a data transmission;

a specific value that is adapted to signal a condition; and

wherein the indication is purposely set to indicate that the signaling packet is not part of the data transmission to facilitate examination of the specific value by a receiver of the signaling packet.

2. The signaling packet set forth in claim 1, wherein the indication that the signaling packet is not part of a data transmission is contained in a sequence number field.

3. The signaling packet set forth in claim 1, wherein the signaling packet is adapted to be transmitted according to the transmission control protocol (“

TCP”

).

4. The signaling packet set forth in claim 1, wherein the condition is enablement for communication under a remote direct memory access (“

RDMA”

) protocol.

5. The signaling packet set forth in claim 1, wherein the receiver is adapted to initiate a communication protocol in response to the signaling packet.

6. The signaling packet set forth in claim 1, wherein the receiver is adapted to respond to the signaling packet based on the presence or absence of the condition in the receiver.

7. The signaling packet set forth in claim 1, wherein the receiver is adapted to discard the signaling packet if the receiver does not exhibit the condition.

8. A computer network, comprising:

a plurality of computer systems;

at least one input/output device;

a switch network that connects the plurality of computer systems and the at least one input/output device for communication; and

wherein the plurality of computer systems and the at least one input/output device are adapted to employ a signaling packet, the signaling packet comprising;

an indication that the signaling packet is not part of a data transmission;

a specific value that is adapted to signal a condition; and

wherein the indication is purposely set to indicate that the signaling packet is not part of the data transmission to facilitate examination of the specific value by a receiver of the signaling packet.

9. The computer network set forth in claim 8, wherein the indication that the signaling packet is not part of a data transmission is contained in a sequence number field.

10. The computer network set forth in claim 8, wherein the signaling packet is adapted to be transmitted according to the transmission control protocol (“

TCP”

).

11. The computer network set forth in claim 8, wherein the condition is enablement for communication under a remote direct memory access (“

RDMA”

) protocol.

12. The computer network set forth in claim 8, wherein the receiver is adapted to initiate a communication protocol in response to the signaling packet.

13. The computer network set forth in claim 8, wherein the receiver is adapted to respond to the signaling packet based on the presence or absence of the condition in the receiver.

14. The computer network set forth in claim 8, wherein the receiver is adapted to discard the signaling packet if the receiver does not exhibit the condition.

15. A method of signaling a condition, the method comprising:

setting an indication in a signaling packet that the signaling packet is not part of a data transmission; and

including a specific value indicative of a condition in the signaling packet.

16. The method set forth in claim 15, comprising:

examining the specific value to determine the presence of the indication;

responding to the signaling packet based on the presence or absence of the condition in a receiver of the signaling packet.

17. The method set forth in claim 15, comprising discarding the signaling packet if the condition is not present in a receiver of the signaling packet.

18. The method set forth in claim 15, comprising initiating a communication channel in response to the signaling packet if the condition is present in a receiver of the signaling packet.

19. The method set forth in claim 15, comprising identifying whether a receiver of the signaling packet is enabled for communication under a remote direct memory access (“

RDMA”

) protocol in response to the signaling packet.

20. The method set forth in claim 15, comprising transmitting the signaling packet according to the transmission control protocol (“

TCP”

).