System for switching between two different operating systems by invoking the server to determine physical conditions to initiate a physical connection transparent to the user
First Claim
1. A terminal driver switching mechanism for enhancing the connectivity of a number of terminals in a data processing system comprising a first central processing unit (CPU) operating under the control of a first operating system, a second central processing unit operating under the control of a second operating system incompatible to said first operating system, a main memory and a plurality of controllers, said plurality of controllers including a number of multiline controllers connected to said number of terminals through a corresponding number of lines, said main memory, said plurality of controllers being tightly coupled to said first and second central processing units, said main memory including a communications area for establishing communications between said first and second operating systems;
- a first memory area for storing system and application components including a terminal driver (TTY) module including a low level driver for performing input/output operations for said applications running under said first operating system and a second memory area for storing system and application components of said second operating system including a server module and a network terminal driver (NTD) module used for performing input/output operations for user applications running under the control of said second operating system and for applications running under said first operating system in a virtual mode of operation for terminals connected to said lines of said controllers through said communications area, said TTY, server and NTD modules, said terminal driver switching mechanism comprising;
said TTY module further including an interface and driver selection means coupled to said low level driver and to said interface;
a multiplexer driver module included in said first operating system, said driver module being operatively coupled to said interface of said TTY module; and
,said server module including means coupled to said NTD module, said server means in response to a switching of any one of said terminals from said second operating system to said first operating system to operate in said virtual mode, causing said NTD module to obtain connection information for transfer to said TTY module, said connection information enabling said driver selection means to establish connection of said one of said terminals to said multiplexer driver module in lieu of connection to said low level driver for transparently handling user application input/output operations previously required to be handled by said second operating system thereby improving overall system performance.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A hybrid system environment includes a proprietary operating system and processing unit and a non-proprietary operating system (UNIX based) and processing unit. The systems tightly couple to a system bus in common with a main memory and a number of multiline communications controllers and communicate through a common area of main memory. The UNIX terminal connections to such controllers are virtual connections applied by a virtual terminal driver through the system proprietary communications software components. These components include a server, a network terminal driver (NTD) and a number of multiplexer driver modules. A multiplexer physical terminal driver is included in the UNIX-based operating system and a switching mechanism is incorporated into the virtual terminal driver for enabling switching to such physical terminal driver when a user switches via a switch command to the UNIX-based operating system. The server module upon being invoked upon such switching operates to establish a direct communications path between an application running under the UNIX-based operating system and the controller communications line paths through the multiplexer driver module and logically disconnects the virtual communications line path from the NTD module to the multiplexer driver module thereby improving system efficiency and terminal connectivity.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A terminal driver switching mechanism for enhancing the connectivity of a number of terminals in a data processing system comprising a first central processing unit (CPU) operating under the control of a first operating system, a second central processing unit operating under the control of a second operating system incompatible to said first operating system, a main memory and a plurality of controllers, said plurality of controllers including a number of multiline controllers connected to said number of terminals through a corresponding number of lines, said main memory, said plurality of controllers being tightly coupled to said first and second central processing units, said main memory including a communications area for establishing communications between said first and second operating systems;
- a first memory area for storing system and application components including a terminal driver (TTY) module including a low level driver for performing input/output operations for said applications running under said first operating system and a second memory area for storing system and application components of said second operating system including a server module and a network terminal driver (NTD) module used for performing input/output operations for user applications running under the control of said second operating system and for applications running under said first operating system in a virtual mode of operation for terminals connected to said lines of said controllers through said communications area, said TTY, server and NTD modules, said terminal driver switching mechanism comprising;
said TTY module further including an interface and driver selection means coupled to said low level driver and to said interface; a multiplexer driver module included in said first operating system, said driver module being operatively coupled to said interface of said TTY module; and
,said server module including means coupled to said NTD module, said server means in response to a switching of any one of said terminals from said second operating system to said first operating system to operate in said virtual mode, causing said NTD module to obtain connection information for transfer to said TTY module, said connection information enabling said driver selection means to establish connection of said one of said terminals to said multiplexer driver module in lieu of connection to said low level driver for transparently handling user application input/output operations previously required to be handled by said second operating system thereby improving overall system performance. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
- a first memory area for storing system and application components including a terminal driver (TTY) module including a low level driver for performing input/output operations for said applications running under said first operating system and a second memory area for storing system and application components of said second operating system including a server module and a network terminal driver (NTD) module used for performing input/output operations for user applications running under the control of said second operating system and for applications running under said first operating system in a virtual mode of operation for terminals connected to said lines of said controllers through said communications area, said TTY, server and NTD modules, said terminal driver switching mechanism comprising;
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20. A method for enhancing the connectivity of a number of terminals in a data processing system comprising a first central processing unit (CPU) operating under the control of a first operating system, a second central processing unit operating under the control of a second operating system incompatible to said first operating system, a main memory and a plurality of controllers, said plurality of controllers including a number of multiline controllers connected to said number of terminals through a corresponding number of lines, said main memory, said plurality of controllers being tightly coupled to said first and second central processing units, said main memory including a communications area for establishing communications between said first and second operating systems;
- a first memory area for storing system and application components including a terminal driver (TTY) module including a low level driver for performing input/output operations for said applications running under said first operating system and a second memory area for storing system and application components of said second operating system including a server module and a network terminal driver (NTD) module used for performing input/output operations for user applications running under the control of said second operating system and for applications running under said first operating system in a virtual mode of operation for terminals connected to said lines of said controllers through said communications area, said TTY, server and NTD modules, said method comprising the steps of;
(a) including in said TTY module, an interface and driver selection means which couples to said low level driver and to said interface; (b) including in said first operating system, a multiplexer driver module which operatively couples to said interface; (c) invoking said server module in response to each switch command issued to said second operating system from any one of said terminals for switching an application to said first operating system; (d) said server module determining according to preestablished criteria whether said application being switched can be driven physically by said multiplexer module; (e) when said application is determined in step (d) as capable of being driven by said multiplexer module, said server module initiating a physical connection between said multiplexer driver module and said application by passing connection information to said TTY driver; (f) said server module logically disconnecting said NTD driver from said application; and
,(g) said TTY driver module using said connection information to establish a connection between said application and said multiplexer module so that all input/output operations initiated by said application pass through said multiplexer module instead of said NTD driver of said second operating system thereby improving terminal connectivity. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23)
- a first memory area for storing system and application components including a terminal driver (TTY) module including a low level driver for performing input/output operations for said applications running under said first operating system and a second memory area for storing system and application components of said second operating system including a server module and a network terminal driver (NTD) module used for performing input/output operations for user applications running under the control of said second operating system and for applications running under said first operating system in a virtual mode of operation for terminals connected to said lines of said controllers through said communications area, said TTY, server and NTD modules, said method comprising the steps of;
Specification