Detection of SCSI devices at illegal locations

• US 5,938,776 A
• Filed: 06/27/1997
• Issued: 08/17/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Digital Equipment Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Hare, Mike, Sardeson, Bruce, Nemeth, Frank M., Schow, Brian, Sicola, Stephen J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Beausoliel, Jr., Robert W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shaw, Brian H.
• Application Number:
  US08/883,782
• Time in Patent Office: 781 Days
• Field of Search: 395/183.01, 395/829, 395/823, 395/822, 395/281, 395/306
• US Class Current: 714/25
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/22 Detection or location of defective computer hardware by testing during standby operation or during idle time, e.g. start-up testing

Abstract

In a SCSI subsystem having mixed wide and narrow SCSI devices installed, a method and apparatus is provided for detecting a narrow SCSI device illegally installed at a slot assigned to a wide SCSI device. To detect the narrow SCSI device installed at an illegal location, high ID and low ID SCSI bus address pairs are set as test pairs for the SCSI subsystem. The low ID is the alias of the high ID if a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID slot. To detect a conflict with a controller ID, a non-responsive ID bus address corresponding to a slot known to be unused is called. A response to this call indicates a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID of the test pair and the narrow SCSI device at the high ID has configured to an alias bus address matching the controller ID. To detect a present conflict between SCSI devices, the low ID bus address in the test pair is called. A conflict in responses indicates a SCSI device is installed at the low ID and a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID of the test pair. To detect a future conflict between a narrow SCSI device at a high ID and a SCSI device installed in the future at an unused low ID, both the low ID and the high ID are called. No response to the high ID call in combination with a response to the low ID call indicates a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID and the narrow SCSI device would conflict in the future with a SCSI device subsequently installed at the unused low ID.

Claims

1. In a computing system having a plurality of computing system interface devices connected to a host computer through a computing system interface bus and one or more controllers on the bus, said plurality of devices being configurable to actual or alias bus addresses depending on whether the device is installed in a correct or illegal slot attached to the bus, a method for detecting computing system interface devices installed in illegal slots, said method comprising the computer implemented steps of:

first detecting a computing system interface device installed in an illegal slot that configures the device to an alias bus address that conflicts with a controller bus address; and

second detecting a computing system interface device installed in an illegal slot that configures the device to an alias bus address that conflicts with an actual bus address corresponding to the alias bus address.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said first detecting step further comprises the computer implemented steps of:

addressing a non-responsive bus address;

detecting a response to said addressing step whereby the response indicates a computing system interface device installed in a slot, where the device configures to an controller bus address.

3. The method of claim 2 and in addition the step of:

isolating from the bus the computing system interface device configured to the controller bus address.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said second detecting step further comprises the computer implemented steps of:

conflict detecting a conflict between a response from a computing system interface device installed in a slot, where the device configures to an actual bus address, and a response from a computing system interface device installed in a slot where the device configures to an alias bus address that matches said actual bus address; and

potential conflict detecting a potential future conflict between a response from a computing system interface device installed in a slot, where the device configures to an alias bus address, and a future response from a computing system interface device installed in the future at a present empty slot at an actual bus address corresponding to the alias bus address.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said potential conflict detecting step comprises the steps of:

first addressing a first actual bus address corresponding to the alias bus address and detecting a response in response to said first addressing step;

second addressing a second actual bus address where a computing system interface device illegally installed at the second bus address would configure to the first actual bus address and detecting no response to said second addressing step; and

detecting no computing system interface device installed at the first actual bus address.

6. In a computing system having small computing system interface (SCSI) subsystem connecting a plurality of SCSI devices through a SCSI bus to a subsystem controller in the computing system;

said plurality of SCSI devices being of at least two types, wide and narrow, wide SCSI devices configurable to an actual ID bus address when the wide SCSI device is installed at either a low ID slot or a high ID slot attached to the SCSI bus, narrow SCSI devices configurable to an actual low ID bus addresses when installed in a low ID slot and configurable to an alias low ID bus address when installed in a high ID slot;

a method for detecting narrow SCSI devices installed in high ID slots comprising the steps of;

first detecting a narrow SCSI device installed at a high ID and aliasing to a low ID that matches a controller ID bus address for the controller attached to the SCSI bus;

second detecting a narrow SCSI device installed at a high ID and aliasing to a low ID address corresponding to a slot where another SCSI device is installed; and

third detecting a narrow SCSI device installed at a high ID and aliasing to a low ID address corresponding to an unused slot where another SCSI device may be installed in the future.

7. The method of claim 6 and in addition the step of:

setting high ID and low ID address pairs as test pairs for the SCSI subsystem, said low ID being the alias of the high ID if a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID slot.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said first detecting step comprises the steps of:

detecting the low ID in the test pair matches the controller ID;

calling a non-responsive ID bus address corresponding a slot known to be unused; and

testing for a response to said addressing step, the response indicating a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID of the test pair and the narrow SCSI device has configured to an alias bus address matching the controller ID.

9. The method of claim 8 and in addition the step of:

isolating the narrow SCSI device at the high ID to disconnect this narrow SCSI device from the SCSI bus.

10. The method of claim 9 and in addition the step of:

marking the narrow SCSI device at the high ID and indicating the high ID is unusable.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein said second detecting step comprises the steps of:

calling the low ID bus address in the test pair;

detecting a conflict in responses to said calling step, the conflict indicating a SCSI device is installed at the low ID and a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID of the test pair.

12. The method of claim 11 and in addition the steps of:

marking the narrow SCSI device at the high ID; and

marking the high ID and low ID in the test pair as unusable.

13. The method of claim 7 wherein said third detecting step comprises the steps of:

first calling the low ID bus address in the test pair;

second calling the high ID bus address in the test pair;

detecting no response to said second detecting step; and

detecting a response to said first detecting step, a combination of response to said first calling step and no response to said second calling step indicating a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID and would conflict in the future with a SCSI device subsequently installed at the unused low ID.

14. The method of claim 13 and in addition the steps of:

marking the narrow SCSI device at the high ID; and

marking the high ID and low ID in the test pair as unusable.

15. The method of claim 7 and in addition the steps of:

updating the test pairs to a new test pair after completing said detecting steps for a previous test pair; and

repeating the updating and detecting steps until all test pairs have been tested.

16. In a computing system having small computing system interface (SCSI) subsystem connecting a plurality of SCSI devices through a SCSI bus to a subsystem controller in the computing system;

said plurality of SCSI devices being of at least two types, wide and narrow, wide SCSI devices configurable to an actual ID bus address when the wide SCSI device is installed at either a low ID slot or a high ID slot attached to the SCSI bus, narrow SCSI devices configurable to an actual low ID bus addresses when installed in a low ID slot and configurable to an alias low ID bus address when installed in a high ID slot;

apparatus in the controller for detecting narrow SCSI devices installed in high ID slots comprising;

a set module setting high ID and low ID address pairs as test pairs for the SCSI subsystem, said low ID being the alias of the high ID if a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID slot;

a first address module calling a non-responsive ID bus address corresponding a slot known to be unused;

first test module detecting a response when said first address module calls the non-responsive ID bus address, the response indicating a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID of the test pair and the narrow SCSI device has configured to an alias bus address matching the controller ID;

a second address module generating a call to the low ID bus address in the test pair;

a second test module detecting a conflict in responses when said second address module calls the low ID, the conflict indicating a SCSI device is installed at the low ID and a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID of the test pair;

a third address module generating a call to the high ID bus address in the test pair;

a third test module detecting no response to the call from said third address module and detecting a response to the call from said second address module, this combination of response and no response indicating a narrow SCSI device is installed at the high ID and the narrow SCSI device would conflict in the future with a SCSI device subsequently installed at the unused low ID.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 and in addition:

a module marking the narrow SCSI device at the high ID.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 and in addition:

a module responsive to said first test module for isolating the narrow SCSI device at the high ID conflicting with the controller ID in order to disconnect this narrow SCSI device from the SCSI bus.

19. The apparatus of claim 16 and in addition:

a module updating the test pair to a new test pair until all test pairs have been tested.