Methodology for pull model invocation

• US 5,950,014 A
• Filed: 03/21/1997
• Issued: 09/07/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies General IP PTE Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: LSI Logic Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hickerson, Roger, Henry, Russell J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MASHAAL, MOHAMED M
• Application Number:
  US08/828,204
• Time in Patent Office: 900 Days
• Field of Search: 395/834, 395/651, 395/200.44, 395/200.45, 395/200.46, 395/200.32, 395/200.49, 395/200.61, 395/680, 395/683, 395/182.16, 395/185.5, 348/7, 711/114
• US Class Current: 710/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/126 and has means for transferring I/O instructions and statuses between control unit and main processor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/90 Buffering arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method for dynamic reconfiguration of a message-passing interface from a Push model to a Pull model is disclosed. In the Push model, a host computer device moves data stored in a host local memory to an I/O peripheral shared memory, whereas in the Pull model, the I/O peripheral moves data from the host'"'"'s shared memory to a local memory of the I/O peripheral. To dynamically reconfigure the message passing interface from the Push to the Pull model, the hosts waits for the I/O peripheral to cycle through power-on/reset, locates the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound and outbound queues in memory, directs the I/O peripheral to clear its outbound queue of messages from previous inbound messages and initializes the allocated message frames as free messages. The host then posts a message to the I/O peripheral inbound queue instructing the I/O peripheral to initialize in the Pull model. The I/O peripheral then posts any messages currently being processed to the I/O peripheral outbound queue. Thereafter, the host posts the allocated free messages to the I/O peripheral inbound queue, and the I/O peripheral makes the free messages available as free messages for the host inbound queue.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically switching between a Push model in which a host computer device moves data stored in a host local memory to an I/O peripheral shared memory, to a Pull model in which the I/O peripheral moves data from a shared memory of the host to a local memory of the I/O peripheral, comprising the steps of:

flushing an outbound queue of the I/O peripheral;

initializing the I/O peripheral in the Pull model;

posting messages currently being processed by the I/O peripheral to the I/O peripheral outbound queue; and

sending at least one message to the inbound queue of the I/O peripheral;

whereby the I/O peripheral recognizes the at least one message sent to the inbound queue as a free message available for further processing and not as requests from the host computer device.

2. A dynamic switching method according to claim 1, wherein the host, prior to the flushing step, carries out a step of locating the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound and outbound queues in memory.

3. A dynamic switching method according to claim 1, wherein the flushing step is initiated by the host, which carries out a step of posting a message on the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue, directing the I/O peripheral to flush its outbound queue, to clear the outbound queue of all messages from previous inbound messages.

4. A dynamic switching method according to claim 1, wherein the host, prior to the sending step, carries out a step of allocating at least one message frame in host memory, the at least one allocated message frame to be used to initialize the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue.

5. A dynamic switching method according to claim 4, wherein the host further carries out a step of initializing each of the at least one allocated message frame as a NULL message.

6. A dynamic switching method according to claim 1, wherein the Pull model initializing step is carried out at the request of the host, which further carries out a step of posting a Pull model initialization request message to the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue.

7. A dynamic switching method according to claim 1, wherein the I/O peripheral, upon initializing to the Pull model, further carries out a step of posting any messages currently being processed to the I/O peripheral outbound queue.

8. A method for dynamic reconfiguration of a message-passing interface from a Push model to a Pull model in a computer system comprising at least a host device and an I/O peripheral, comprising the steps of:

locating an inbound queue and an outbound queue of the I/O peripheral in memory;

clearing the outbound queue of the I/O peripheral of any messages from previous inbound messages;

initializing the I/O peripheral in the Pull model;

posting messages currently being processed by the I/O peripheral to the I/O peripheral outbound queue; and

posting at least one message that will be recognized as a free message to the I/O peripheral inbound queue;

whereby the I/O peripheral recognizes that the at least one message is not a request from the host, and that the at least one message is available for further processing by the I/O peripheral.

9. A dynamic reconfiguration method according to claim 8, wherein the host, prior to the locating step, carries out a waiting step to insure that the I/O peripheral has finished cycling through power-on/reset and has initialized in the Push model.

10. A dynamic reconfiguration method according to claim 8, wherein the clearing step is initiated by the host, which carries out a step of posting a message on the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue, directing the I/O peripheral to flush its outbound queue.

11. A dynamic reconfiguration method according to claim 8, wherein the host, prior to the free message posting step, carries out a step of allocating at least one message frame in host memory, the at least one allocated message frame being used to initialize the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue.

12. A dynamic reconfiguration method according to claim 11, wherein the host further carries out a step of initializing each of the at least one allocated message frame as a NULL message, to thereby cause the I/O peripheral to recognize each of the at least one allocated and NULL initialized messages as a free message.

13. A dynamic reconfiguration method according to claim 8, wherein the Pull model initializing step is carried out at the request of the host, which further carries out a step of posting a Pull model initialization request message to the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue.

14. A method for Pull model invocation, comprising the steps of:

locating an inbound queue and an outbound queue of an I/O peripheral in memory;

directing the I/O peripheral to clear its outbound queue of messages from previous inbound messages;

posting a message to the I/O peripheral inbound queue instructing the I/O peripheral to initialize in the Pull model;

posting messages currently being processed by the I/O peripheral to the I/O peripheral outbound queue; and

posting at least one message to the I/O peripheral inbound queue;

whereby, starting from a Push model in which a host computer device moves data in a host local memory to an I/O peripheral shared memory, the Pull model is dynamically invoked, in which the I/O peripheral moves data from the host'"'"'s shared memory to a local memory of the I/O peripheral.

15. The Pull model invocation method of claim 14, wherein the I/O peripheral further carries out the step of making the at least one message available as a free message, and not as a request for further processing by the host.

16. The Pull model invocation method of claim 14, wherein the host, prior to the locating step, carries out a waiting step to insure that the I/O peripheral has finished cycling through power-on/reset and has initialized in the Push model.

17. The Pull model invocation method of claim 14, wherein the directing step is initiated by the host, which carries out a step of posting a message to the inbound queue of the I/O peripheral, which message directs the I/O peripheral to flush its outbound queue.

18. The Pull model invocation method of claim 14, wherein the host, before the at least one message posting step, carries out a step of allocating at least one message frame in host memory, the at least one allocated message frame being used to initialize the I/O peripheral'"'"'s inbound queue.

19. The Pull model invocation method of claim 18, wherein the host further carries out a step of initializing each of the at least one allocated message frames as a NULL message, to thereby cause the I/O peripheral to recognize each of the at least one allocated and NULL initialized messages as a free message, and not as a request.

20. The Pull model invocation method of claim 14, wherein the message instructing the I/O peripheral to initialize in the Pull model is posted by the host.