Methods and devices for networking blade servers

• US 20070002883A1
• Filed: 06/15/2005
• Published: 01/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Edsall, Thomas, Desanti, Claudio
• Granted Patent: US 7,492,765 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/422
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/253 using establishment or release of connections between ports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/357 Fibre channel switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/45 Arrangements for providing or supporting expansion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/552 by ensuring the integrity of packets received through redundant connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1006 with static server selection, e.g. the same server being selected for a specific client
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1034 Reaction to server failures by a load balancer

Abstract

Some embodiments of the present invention provide blade servers having blade switches that function as switches in the data plane, but do not have a Domain_ID. Control plane switching functions are performed by a fabric switch (e.g., a core switch) to which the blade server is attached. A fabric switch to which a blade switch is attached may perform address assignment functions for blades of the blade server. The blade switch preferably converts FLOGI requests to FDISC requests that are forwarded to an attached fabric switch. Some implementations provide for the multiple fabric switches, all of which are configured for communication with at least one blade switch, to establish and maintain the state of a virtual Domain_ID.

Claims

1. A blade switch, comprising:

a first port in communication with a first blade of a plurality of blades;

a second port configured as an N_Port; and

a logic device configured to do the following;

receive a first FLOGI request from the first blade via the first port;

convert the first FLOGI request to a first FDISC request;

forward the FDISC request to an F_Port of a fabric switch that is in communication with the second port; and

receive an FDISC ACCEPT from the attached fabric switch, the FDISC ACCEPT including the address for the first blade.

2. The blade switch of claim 1, wherein the logic device is configured to designate the N_Port as a default satellite port.

3. A network, comprising:

a plurality of fabric switches; and

a blade server comprising a blade switch and a plurality of blades, the blade switch having a first port in communication with a second port of a first fabric switch of the plurality of fabric switches, wherein the first port is configured as an N_Port and the second port is configured as an F_Port.

4. The network of claim 3, wherein the blade switch comprises:

a third port in communication with a first blade of the plurality of blades; and

a logic device configured to do the following;

receive a first FLOGI request from the first blade via the third port;

convert the first FLOGI request to a first FDISC request; and

forward the FDISC request to the second port of the first fabric switch via the first port;

wherein the first fabric switch is configured to;

receive the first FDISC request via the second port;

determine a first address from a Domain_ID that will be used in an FDISC ACCEPT responsive to the FDISC request;

form the FDISC ACCEPT; and

send the FDISC ACCEPT to the first port of the blade switch, the FDISC ACCEPT including the first address.

5. The network of claim 4, wherein F_Ports of M cooperating fabric switches, including the first fabric switch, are configured for communication with M N_Ports of the blade switch, wherein the M cooperating fabric switches form a virtual Domain_ID and wherein the first fabric switch determines a first address of the virtual Domain_ID that will be used in the FDISC ACCEPT.

6. The network of claim 5, wherein, prior to sending the FDISC ACCEPT, the first fabric switch notifies all other cooperating fabric switches of the first address that will be used in the FDISC ACCEPT.

7. A method for controlling a blade switch, comprising:

receiving a first FLOGI request from a first blade of a blade server;

converting the first FLOGI request to a first FDISC request; and

obtaining a first address for the first blade via the first FDISC request.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the obtaining step comprises:

forwarding the first FDISC request from an N_Port of the blade switch to an F_Port of an attached fabric switch; and

receiving an FDISC ACCEPT from the attached fabric switch, the FDISC ACCEPT including the first address for the first blade.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving a 2^nd through N^th FLOGI requests from 2^nd through N^th blades;

converting the 2^nd through N^th requests to 2^nd through N^th FDISC requests; and

obtaining 2^nd through N^th addresses for the 2^nd through N^th blades via the 2^nd through N^th FDISC requests.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of designating an N_Port to which a fabric switch is attached as a default satellite port.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of forming a virtual Domain_ID via cooperation between a plurality of fabric switches that are configured for communication with the blade switch, wherein the obtaining step comprises assigning an address from a virtual Domain_ID as the first address.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of populating a forwarding table of the blade switch with the first through N^th addresses.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the assigning step is performed by one of the plurality of fabric switches.

14. A method of controlling a blade server, comprising:

forming a virtual Domain_ID via cooperation between a plurality of fabric switches that are configured for communication with a blade switch of a blade server;

assigning a plurality of addresses from the virtual Domain_ID to the blade server; and

updating a forwarding table of each of the plurality of fabric switches according to the addresses assigned in the assigning step.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving, by an F_Port of one of the plurality of fabric switches, an address request from an N_Port of a blade switch;

determining an address from the virtual Domain_ID that will be used in a response to the address request;

notifying the other switches of the plurality of fabric switches of the address that will be used in the response to the address request; and

sending the response to the blade switch.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising the step of designating at least one N_Port by which the plurality of fabric switches are attached to the blade switch as a default satellite port.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising the step of designating each port by which the plurality of fabric switches are attached to the blade switch as a default satellite port.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the request is an FLOGI request or an FDISC request.

19. A blade switch, comprising:

means for receiving a first FLOGI request from a first blade of a blade server;

means for converting the first FLOGI request to a first FDISC request; and

means for obtaining a first address for the first blade via the first FDISC request.

20. A blade server, comprising:

a plurality of blades; and

a blade switch, comprising;

a first port in communication with a first blade of the plurality of blades;

a second port configured as an N_Port; and

a logic device configured to do the following;

receive a first FLOGI request from the first blade via the first port;

convert the first FLOGI request to a first FDISC request;

forward the FDISC request to an F_Port of a fabric switch that is in communication with the second port; and

obtain a first address from the fabric switch for the first blade via the first FDISC request.

21. A network management method, comprising:

forming a connection between a first port of a blade switch of a blade server and a second port of a Fibre Channel fabric switch; and

configuring the blade switch as a logical extension of the Fibre Channel fabric switch, wherein the configuring step comprises assigning addresses from a Domain_ID of the fabric switch to blades of the blade server.

22. The network management method of claim 21, wherein the Domain_ID comprises a virtual Domain_ID.