SIMULATING A LARGE NETWORK LOAD

• US 20160196366A1
• Filed: 01/06/2015
• Published: 07/07/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Astigarraga, Tara, DeRobertis, Christopher V., Dickens, Louie A., Starling, Michael E., Winarski, Daniel J.
• Granted Patent: US 10,229,230 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2119/06 Power analysis or power optimisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/367 Design verification, e.g. using simulation, simulation program with integrated circuit emphasis [SPICE], direct methods or relaxation methods

Abstract

A SAN testing application may be provided to restrict the utilization of one or more SAN device resources. The restricted, or throttled, resource(s) enables a smaller load to stress a SAN switch to effectively emulate a larger load. Resource throttling may, for example, result in the rapid filling of switch buffers and corresponding computational stress. The emulated load allows for all ports of a SAN switch to be simultaneously tested without the need or expense of a large number computing devices stressing the SAN. The SAN device with throttled resource(s) may be located within a testing environment or may be located in a functioning SAN to determine SAN bottlenecks prior to critical loading.

Claims

1. A method of simulating a large storage area network (SAN) load comprising:

receiving an instruction with a SAN switch that identifies a SAN switch resource and an utilization metric associated with the SAN switch resource;

restricting the utilization of the SAN switch resource as enumerated by the utilization metric;

receiving a plurality of frames upon a plurality of SAN switch ports, and;

emulating a large SAN load by buffering the received frames within the SAN switch.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein restricting the utilization of the SAN switch resource as enumerated by the utilization metric further comprises:

allowing a portion of the SAN switch resource to be utilized and blocking a remaining portion of the SAN switch resource from being utilized.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the instruction with the SAN switch that identifies the SAN switch resource and the utilization metric associated with the SAN switch resource is received from a SAN device implementing a SAN test application.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the SAN switch resource is a SAN switch buffer and the utilization metric is a quantity of the buffer that may be utilized.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the SAN switch resource is a plurality of SAN switch ports and the utilization metric is the number of ports that may accept or send frames.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the SAN switch resource is the SAN switch and the utilization metric is a buffer credit count.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of frames are Fibre Channel frames.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of frames are Fibre Channel frames.

8. A method of simulating a large storage area network (SAN) load comprising:

receiving an instruction with a SAN switch chassis that identifies a SAN switch chassis resource and an utilization metric associated with the SAN switch chassis resource;

restricting the utilization of the SAN switch chassis resource as enumerated by the utilization metric;

receiving a plurality of frames upon a plurality of SAN switch ports of a SAN switch within the SAN switch chassis, and;

emulating a large SAN load by buffering the received frames within the SAN switch.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein restricting the utilization of the SAN switch chassis resource as enumerated by the utilization metric further comprises:

allowing a portion of the SAN switch chassis resource to be utilized and blocking a remaining portion of the SAN switch chassis resource from being utilized.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving an instruction with the SAN switch chassis that identifies the SAN switch chassis resource and the utilization metric associated with the SAN switch chassis resource is received from a SAN device implementing a SAN test application.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the SAN switch chassis resource is the SAN switch.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a portion of a buffer within the SAN switch is accessible and a remaining portion of the buffer is inaccessible.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein a portion of ports of the SAN switch are accessible and a remaining portion of ports of the SAN switch are inaccessible.

15. A computer program product for simulating a large storage area network (SAN) load, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions readable by a SAN switch to cause the SAN switch to:

receive an instruction that identifies a SAN switch resource and an utilization metric associated with the SAN switch resource;

restrict the utilization of the SAN switch resource as enumerated by the utilization metric;

receive a plurality of frames upon a plurality of SAN switch ports, and;

emulate a large SAN load by buffering the received frames within the SAN switch.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the program instructions for restricting the utilization of the SAN switch resource as enumerated by the utilization metric further cause the SAN switch to:

allow a portion of the SAN switch resource to be utilized and block a remaining portion of the SAN switch resource from being utilized.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the instruction that identifies the SAN switch resource and the utilization metric associated with the SAN switch resource is received from a SAN device implementing a SAN test application.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the SAN switch resource is a SAN switch buffer and the utilization metric is a quantity of the buffer that may be utilized.

19. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the SAN switch resource is a plurality of SAN switch ports and the utilization metric is the number of ports that may accept or send frames.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the SAN switch resource is the SAN switch and the utilization metric is a buffer credit count.