System for providing an interrogating host with information including start-up processing status of a peripheral device stored in storing means

• US 6,049,840 A
• Filed: 01/29/1998
• Issued: 04/11/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Technologies Company, Ltd. (Ricoh Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Shibuya, Akiko, Imai, Tsuneo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): ELAMIN, ABDELMONIEM I
• Application Number:
  US08/913,690
• Time in Patent Office: 803 Days
• Field of Search: 710/5, 710/62, 710/72, 710/74
• US Class Current: 710/5
• 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: G06F 9/4406 Loading of operating system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4411 Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers

Abstract

An interface control system overcomes deficiencies of by adopting a structure comprising host computers connected with peripheral devices, each host computer including a start-up status recognition unit and each peripheral device having a start-up status notification unit. The start-up status recognition unit receives information about start-up processing progress status of a peripheral device of interest, and peripheral device information including identification information about a parent device causing the peripheral device to perform start-up processing. The peripheral device information is transmitted to host computers by the start-up status notification unit of each peripheral device. Before a host computer causes a peripheral device to perform start-up processing, the start-up status recognition unit of the host recognizes the start-up status of the peripheral device in question on the basis of the received start-up processing status information and peripheral device information. Knowing the peripheral device start-up status allows the host computer to determine the necessity of starting up the peripheral device in question, whereby unnecessary start-up processing is averted and the efficiency of system operation is enhanced.

Claims

1. An interface control system for use with an information processing system constituted by a bidirectionally communicable bus, a peripheral device connected to the bus, and a host computer connected to said bus for designating start-up processing of said peripheral device, said peripheral device comprising:

storage means for storing peripheral device information including the start-up processing status of said peripheral device; and

transmission means for transmitting said peripheral device information to said host computer in response to a request by said host computer;

wherein said host computer verifies the start-up processing status of said peripheral device on the basis of said peripheral device information received from said peripheral device.

2. An interface control system according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of host computers connected to said bus;

wherein said peripheral device holds in said storage means said peripheral device information including an identifier identifying a host computer having issued a start-up processing request to said peripheral device, said host computer using said peripheral device information as a basis for identifying the host computer designating start-up processing of said peripheral device.

3. An interface control system according to claim 2, wherein said host computer issues an information request command to request said peripheral device information before issuing a start-up processing request command to said peripheral device, and wherein said peripheral device includes said peripheral device information in return data transmitted in response to said information request command.

4. An interface control system according to claim 3, wherein said host computer issues a start-up processing request if said peripheral device has yet to perform start-up processing.

5. An interface control system according to claim 3, wherein, if said peripheral device is either performing or has completed start-up processing, said host computer checks to see if the host computer issuing said start-up processing request command is said host computer, said host computer further desisting from issuing a start-up processing request command if the host computer issuing said start-up processing request command is not said host computer.

6. An interface control system according to claim 3, wherein, if said peripheral device is performing start-up processing and if the host computer issuing said start-up processing request command is said host computer, said host computer resets said peripheral device and thereafter issues a start-up processing request command.

7. An interface control system according to claim 6, wherein said bus is an SCSI-2 bus and the peripheral device information request command is an inquiry command.

8. An interface control system for use with an information processing system constituted by a bidirectionally communicable bus, a peripheral device connected to the bus, and a host computer connected to said bus for designating start-up processing of said peripheral device, wherein:

said peripheral device comprises storage means for storing start-up status information indicating a start-up processing status of said peripheral device;

when initiating start-up processing upon receipt of a start-up processing request from said host computer, said peripheral device sets said start-up status information to indicate a start-up processing which is in progress, said peripheral device further setting, upon completion of start-up processing, said start-up status information to indicate the completion of start-up processing; and

said peripheral device transmits said start-up status information in response to said host computer.

9. An interface control system according to claim 8, further comprising a plurality of host computers connected to said bus, wherein:

said peripheral device holds an identifier identifying the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request; and

said peripheral device outputs said identifier in response to a request from said host computer.

10. An interface control system according to claim 9, wherein said bus is Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) bus and said identifier is an SCSI identification (ID) received from a host computer during a selection phase.

11. An interface control system according to claim 10, wherein said host computer issues an information request command to request said peripheral device information before issuing said start-up processing request to said peripheral device, and wherein said peripheral device has said peripheral device information included in return data transmitted in response to said information request command.

12. A start-up processing method for a host computer to start up a peripheral device connected to said host computer via a bidirectionally communicable bus, said start-up processing method comprising the steps of:

issuing a peripheral device status verification request to said peripheral device before issuing a start-up processing request to said peripheral device;

analyzing start-up status identification information included in return data transmitted from said peripheral device in response to the verification request, said start-up status identification information included in said return data indicating the status of start-up processing execution of said peripheral device;

issuing another start-up request to said peripheral device if said peripheral device has yet to execute startup processing; and

suppressing the issue of a start-up processing request if said peripheral device has completed the start-up processing.

13. A start-up processing method according to claim 12, wherein said return data includes parent device identification information for identifying a host computer which has issued a start-up processing request, said start-up processing method further comprising the steps of:

if said analyzing step finds that said peripheral device is performing the start-up processing, determining if the host computer which has issued the start-up processing request is said host computer;

if the host computer which has issued the start-up processing request is said host computer, resetting said peripheral device before issuing a start-up processing request; and

if the host computer which has issued the start-up processing request is not said host computer, suppressing the issue of a start-up processing request.

14. A start-up processing method for host computers to start up a peripheral device connected to said host computers via a bidirectionally communicable bus, said peripheral device including storage means for storing both start-up status information indicating a start-up processing status of said peripheral device and parent device information identifying a host computer having issued a start-up processing request to said peripheral device, said start-up processing method comprising the steps of:

upon receipt of a start-up processing request from a host computer, initiating start-up processing by storing an identifier of the host computer as said parent device information into said storage means;

changing said start-up status information in accordance with progress in start-up processing; and

upon receipt of a start-up status verification request from said host computer to said peripheral device, retrieving said start-up status information and said parent device information from said storage means for transmission back to said host computer.

15. A host computer connected to a peripheral device via a bidirectionally communicable bus and capable of starting up said peripheral device, said host computer comprising:

request issuance means for issuing a status verification request to said peripheral device before issuing a start-up processing request to said peripheral device;

analysis means for analyzing start-up status identification information included in return data transmitted from said peripheral device in response to said status verification request, said start-up status identification information indicating the status of start-up processing execution of said peripheral device, wherein;

if said peripheral device has yet to perform start-up processing, said host computer issues another start-up request to said peripheral device; and

if said peripheral device has completed start-up processing, said host computer suppresses the issue of any start-up processing request.

16. A host computer according to claim 15, wherein said return data further includes parent device identification information identifying the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request, said host computer further comprising:

judgment means for judging, when analysis by said analysis means reveals that said peripheral device is performing start-up processing, whether the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request is said host computer; and

request issuance means for issuing, when judgment by said judgment means shows that the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request is said host computer, said start-up processing request after resetting said peripheral device, said request issuance means further suppressing the issue of a start-up processing request when judgment by said judgment means reveals that the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request is not said host computer.

17. A peripheral device connected to a host computer via a bidirectionally communicable bus, said peripheral device comprising:

storage means for storing both start-up status information indicating start-up processing status of said peripheral device and parent device information identifying a host computer which has issued a start-up processing request to said peripheral device;

start-up initiation means acting when a start-up processing request is received from a host computer, said start-up initiation means thereupon initiating start-up processing by storing an identifier of the host computer into said storage means as said parent device information;

information change means for changing said start-up status information in accordance with progress in start-up processing; and

information retrieval and returning means acting upon receipt of a start-up status verification request from a host computer, said information retrieval and returning means thereupon retrieving said start-up status information and said parent device information from said storage means for transmission back to said host computer.

18. A peripheral device according to claim 17, wherein said host computer comprises:

request issuance means for issuing said status verification request to said peripheral device before issuing said start-up processing request to said peripheral device; and

analysis means for analyzing the start-up status identification information included in said return data transmitted from said peripheral device in response to said status verification request, said start-up status identification information indicating the status of start-up processing execution of said peripheral device.

19. A peripheral device according to claim 18, wherein said host computer issues another start-up request to said peripheral device when said peripheral device has yet to perform start-up processing, and suppresses the issue of any start-up processing request when said peripheral device has completed the start-up processing.

20. A peripheral device according to claim 19, wherein said return data includes parent device identification information for identifying the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request, and wherein said host computer further comprises:

judgment means for judging, when analysis by said analysis means reveals that said peripheral device is performing start-up processing, whether the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request is said host computer; and

request issuance means for issuing, when judgment by said judgment means shows that the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request is said host computer, said start-up processing request after resetting said peripheral device, said request issuance means further suppressing the issue of a start-up processing request when judgment by said judgment means reveals that the host computer which has issued said start-up processing request is not said host computer.