HARD DISK DRIVE WITH DISK EMBEDDED DOS BOOT IMAGE AND FIRMWARE DOWNLOAD METHOD

• US 20080091935A1
• Filed: 08/21/2007
• Published: 04/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seagate Technology International (Seagate Technology Holdings Plc)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: SONG, Jae-Ik
• Granted Patent: US 8,266,611 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2003/0697 device management, e.g. handlers, drivers, I/O schedulers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0601 Interfaces specially adapted for storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0607 by facilitating the process of upgrading existing storage systems, e.g. for improving compatibility between host and storage device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0632 by initialisation or re-initialisation of storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0638 Organizing or formatting or addressing of data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0674 Disk device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment

Abstract

A system, related hard disk drive (HDD) and method are disclosed in which a firmware download to the HDD is accomplished by receiving it from the host and storing it to a first region of a disk in the HDD. The value of a download flag is set once the firmware download is complete. After the system performs an OFF/ON power cycle, it checks the value of the download flag and changes a Logical Block Address mapping a second region of a non-user data region of the disk storing a DOS boot program. The firmware download is transferred from the first region to a third region of the disk or a non-volatile memory device following execution of a boot procedure by the host using the DOS boot program.

Claims

1. A hard disk drive (HDD) operable within a host, and comprising:

a disk having a user data region adapted to store user defined data and a non-user data region storing physical information data associated with the HDD and a DOS boot program.

2. The HDD of claim 1, further comprising:

a microprocessor configured to receive a firmware download from the host in response to a download command, store the firmware download to a first region of the disk, and set a download flag value; and

wherein,

following an OFF/ON power cycle, the microprocessor is further configured to reset Logical Block Address (LBA) mapping for a second region of the non-user data region storing the DOS boot program in relation to the value of the download flag and to control transfer of the firmware download from the first region to a third region of the non-user data region or to a non-volatile memory device following execution of a boot procedure run by the host using the DOS boot program.

3. The HDD of claim 2, wherein the firmware download comprises a data sector including data associated with a vendor-unique command.

4. The HDD of claim 3, wherein the microprocessor is further adapted to execute the vendor-unique command and set up at least one parameter value stored in the non-user region.

5. The HDD of claim 2, wherein the microprocessor is further configured to output a message to the host indicating an ongoing firmware download.

6. The HDD of claim 2, wherein the microprocessor is further configured to output a message to the host indicating the need for the OFF/ON power cycle.

7. A system comprising:

a host; and

a hard disk drive (HDD) operable in conjunction with the host, the HDD comprising a disk having a user data region adapted to store user defined data and a non-user data region storing physical information data associated with the HDD and a DOS boot program.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the HDD further comprises:

a microprocessor configured to receive a firmware download from the host in response to a download command, store the firmware download to a first region of the disk, and set a download flag value after storing the firmware download;

wherein following an OFF/ON power cycle,

the microprocessor is further configured to reset a Logical Block Address (LBA) mapping a second region of the non-user data region storing the DOS boot program in relation to the value of the download flag, and transfer the firmware download stored in the first region to a third region of the non-user data region or to a non-volatile memory device following execution of a boot procedure run by the host using the DOS boot program.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the microprocessor is further configured to output a message to the host indicating the need for the OFF/ON power cycle.

10. In a system including a hard disk drive (HDD) and a host, a method of downloading firmware to the HDD, comprising:

receiving a firmware download in the HDD from the host in response to a download command and storing the firmware download to a first region of a disk in the HDD;

setting the value of a download flag once the firmware download is complete;

performing a system OFF/ON power cycle; and

thereafter,

checking the value of the download flag and changing a Logical Block Address mapping a second region of a non-user data region of the disk storing a DOS boot program in relation to the value of the download flag; and

transferring the firmware download from the first region to a third region of the disk or a non-volatile memory device following execution of a boot procedure by the host using the DOS boot program.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising during the firmware download:

generating a message from the HDD to the host indicating that the firmware download is in progress.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

generating a message from the HDD to the host indicating the need for the OFF/ON power cycle following completion of the firmware download.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the firmware download comprises a data sector including data associated with a vendor-unique command.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein execution of the vendor-unique command sets up at least a parameter value stored in the non-user region.

15. A computer readable recording medium having embodied thereon a computer program to execute a method of downloading firmware to a hard disk drive (HDD), the method comprising:

receiving a firmware download in the HDD from the host in response to a download command and storing the firmware download to a first region of a disk in the HDD;

setting the value of a download flag once the firmware download is complete;

performing a system OFF/ON power cycle; and

thereafter,

checking the value of the download flag and changing a Logical Block Address mapping a second region of a non-user data region of the disk storing a DOS boot program in relation to the value of the download flag; and

transferring the firmware download from the first region to a third region of the disk or a non-volatile memory device following execution of a boot procedure by the host using the DOS boot program.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising during the firmware download:

generating a message from the HDD to the host indicating that the firmware download is in progress.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

generating a message from the HDD to the host indicating the need for the OFF/ON power cycle following completion of the firmware download.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the firmware download comprises a data sector including data associated with a vendor-unique command.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein execution of the vendor-unique command sets up at least a parameter value stored in the non-user region.