SYNCHRONIZATION OF PHYSICAL FUNCTIONS AND VIRTUAL FUNCTIONS WITHIN A FABRIC

• US 20160077847A1
• Filed: 09/16/2014
• Published: 03/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Inventors: Cavanagh, Edward T., Huynh, Sung V., Hunter, James R., Landis, John A.
• Application Number:
  US14/487,200
• Publication Number:
  US 20160077847A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/20 for access to input/output bus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45579 I/O management, e.g. providing access to device drivers or storage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects

Abstract

Methods and systems for instantiating a virtual function in a partition of a multi-partition virtualization system implemented at least in part on a computing device are disclosed. One method includes initializing a partition on the computing device, including determining a virtual function to be associated with the partition, the virtual function associated with a physical function of an I/O device, and, prior to attaching a processor to the partition, determining if the physical function is in a ready state and capable of being associated with the virtual function. The method further includes, upon determining that the physical function is in the ready state and capable of being associated with the virtual function, attaching the processor to the partition, thereby allowing the partition to begin execution.

Claims

1. A method of instantiating a virtual function in a partition of a multi-partition virtualization system implemented at least in part on a computing device, the method comprising:

initializing a partition on the computing device, including determining a virtual function to be associated with the partition, the virtual function associated with a physical function of an I/O device;

prior to attaching a processor to the partition, determining if the physical function is in a ready state and capable of being associated with the virtual function; and

upon determining that the physical function is in the ready state and capable of being associated with the virtual function, attaching the processor to the partition, thereby allowing the partition to begin execution.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, until determining that the physical function is in the ready state, preventing the processor from being attached to the partition, thereby preventing the partition from beginning execution.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the partition comprises a guest partition.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising, upon determining that the physical function is not in a ready state, reinstantiating the physical function within an interconnect service partition on the computing device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein reinstantiating the physical function comprises resetting the interconnect service partition.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the interconnect service partition completes initialization after the physical function is in the ready state.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the partition comprises an I/O service partition that manages local data storage on the computing system.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining if the physical function is in :

ready state comprises checking a device descriptor of the physical function.

9. A system comprising:

a first partition implemented on a computing system including a plurality of processors, memory, and at least one I/O device having an associated physical function, the physical function having a plurality of operational states including a ready state;

a second partition implemented on the computing system, the second partition capable of having at least one of the plurality of processors associated therewith to initiate execution of the second partition and having a virtual function associated with the physical function;

wherein the system is configured to determine, prior to associating the at least one of the plurality of processors therewith, whether the physical function is in at least the ready state;

wherein, if the physical function is not in at least the ready state, the system prevents association of any of the plurality of processors with the second partition.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein preventing association of any of the plurality of processor with the second partition prevents operation of the second partition until the physical function is in at least the ready state.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the physical function has a plurality of states including an enabled state, an active state, an alive state, a channels assigned state, a processor assigned state, a memory assigned state, a processors attached state, a processors scheduled state, a channels attached state, a channels scheduled state, a memory image state, a channel image state, a processor image state, a processors operating state, and a channels operating state.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the first partition comprises an interconnect service partition, and the device comprises a communication interface.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the second partition comprises a guest partition.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the second partition comprises an I/O service partition that manages local data storage on the computing system.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein, if the physical function is not in at least the ready state, the second partition waits in a processors-attached state until the physical function is in a ready state.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein, upon determining that the physical function is in the ready state, the second partition continues to boot into an operating system hosted within that partition.

17. A computer readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform a method of instantiating a virtual function in a partition of a multi-partition virtualization system implemented at least in part on a computing device, the method comprising:

initializing a partition on the computing device, including determining a virtual function to be associated with the partition, the virtual function associated with a physical function of an I/O device of the computing system;

prior to attaching a processor to the partition, determining if the physical function is in at least a ready state;

while the physical function is not in at least the ready state, maintaining the partition in a processors attached state, thereby preventing instantiation of an operating system within the partition;

upon determining that the physical function is in at least the ready state, attaching the processor to the partition, thereby allowing the partition to begin execution.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the physical function is managed within an interconnect service partition separate from the partition.

19. The computer readable storage medium of claim 18, attaching the processor to the partition occurs prior to completed instantiation of the interconnect service partition.

20. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the partition comprises at least one of a guest partition or an I/O service partition.