Memory space management method, data transfer method, and computer device for distributed computer system

• US 6,081,833 A
• Filed: 07/08/1996
• Issued: 06/27/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Okamoto, Toshio, Tsuda, Yoshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Geckil, Mehmet B.
• Application Number:
  US08/676,970
• Time in Patent Office: 1,450 Days
• Field of Search: 395/200.47, 395/200.43, 709/217, 709/213, 709/215, 709/216, 709/227, 709/238, 709/245, 709/246, 710/10, 711/206, 711/203, 711/202, 711/208, 711/147, 711/148, 711/6
• US Class Current: 709/213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/309 Header conversion, routing tables or routing tags
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0478 Provisions for broadband connections

Abstract

A scheme for realizing a high speed data transfer between memory spaces shared among computers in a distributed computer system, without requiring a complicated and inefficient communication protocol processing at the computer side. One region which is at least a part of a virtual memory space or a real memory space managed by one computer and another region which is at least a part of a virtual memory space or a real memory space managed by another computer are shared between these two computers, and a dedicated virtual connection is set up between these two shared regions. Then, a data transfer between these two shared regions is carried out by using the dedicated virtual connection. A virtual connection identifier of the dedicated virtual connection is registered into a corresponding page table entry in the page table, so that this virtual connection identifier can be obtained at a time of the data transfer by referring to the page table alone.

Claims

1. A method of memory space management in a distributed computer system formed by a plurality of computers connected through virtual connections provided by a network, the method comprising:

sharing one region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space/real memory space managed by one computer and another region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space/real memory space managed by another computer;

setting up a dedicated virtual connection between said one region and said another region which are shared between said one computer and said another computer at the sharing step, the dedicated virtual connection being dedicated for data transfers between said one region and said another region; and

carrying out data transfers between said one region and said another region by using the dedicated virtual connection set up at the setting step.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

managing a virtual memory space by using a page table which registers a relation between a virtual address of the virtual memory space and a corresponding physical address of a real memory space or an information necessary in making an access to a computer which owns data to be accessed; and

registering a virtual connection identifier of the dedicated virtual connection set up at the setting step in an entry of the page table, as the information necessary in making an access to a computer which owns data to be accessed, such that the carrying out step carries out the data transfers using the dedicated virtual connection by referring to the virtual connection identifier registered in said entry of the page table.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the page table has one field for registering the virtual connection identifier, and the managing step registers a virtual connection identifier to be used in connecting to a name server which manages a correspondence between data and an owner computer of said data, as a default value for said one field.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the carrying out step carries out the data transfers when an actual access to the shared regions is made.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the carrying out step carries out the data transfers when said one region and said another region are shared at the sharing step.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the carrying out step carries out the data transfers before an actual access to the shared regions is made.

7. A computer in a distributed computer system formed by a plurality of computers connected through virtual connections provided by a network, said computer comprising:

a virtual memory space management unit configured to manage a virtual memory space by using a page table which registers a set of a virtual address of the virtual memory space and a corresponding physical address of a real memory space or an information necessary in making an access to a computer which owns data to be accessed;

a command unit configured to command a set up of a dedicated virtual connection between shared regions, the shared regions including one region among a plurality of regions in the virtual memory space managed by the virtual memory space management unit and another region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space/real memory space managed by another computer, the dedicated virtual connection being dedicated for data transfers among the shared regions;

a registration unit configured to register a virtual connection identifier of the dedicated virtual connection in an entry of the page table corresponding to said one region, as the information necessary in making an access to a computer which owns data to be accessed; and

a transfer unit configured to carry out data transfers by using the dedicated virtual connection set up between the shared regions, by referring to the virtual connection identifier registered in said entry of the page table before each data transfer between the shared regions is to be carried out, and specifying the dedicated virtual connection to be used for each data transfer according to the virtual connection identifier obtained from the page table.

8. The computer of claim 7, wherein the page table includes:

a frame number field for storing one of virtual connection identifier/virtual path identifier (VCI/VPI) data, frame data corresponding to a page frame, and sector data;

a processing bit field for storing a bit indicating whether or not a request for access to a corresponding page table entry in the page table has been completed;

a hard disk bit field for storing a bit indicating whether information stored in the corresponding frame number field is a sector in a hard disk of said computer; and

a remote host bit for storing a bit indicating whether information stored in the corresponding frame number field is VCI/VPI data.

9. The computer of claim 8, wherein the page table further includes:

an existence bit field for storing a bit indicating whether the page frame in the corresponding frame number field is loaded on the real memory space.

10. The computer of claim 7, wherein the page table has one field for registering the virtual connection identifier, and the virtual memory space management unit registers a virtual connection identifier to be used in connecting to a name server which manages a correspondence between data and an owner computer of said data, as a default value for said one field.

11. A computer in a distributed computer system formed by a plurality of computers connected through virtual connections provided by a network, said computer comprising:

a set up unit configured to set up a dedicated virtual connection between shared regions, the shared regions including one region among a plurality of regions in a real memory space managed by said computer and another region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space/real memory space managed by another computer, the dedicated virtual connection being dedicated for data transfers among the shared regions;

a transfer unit configured to carry out data transfers by using the dedicated virtual connection set up between the shared regions, when said one region and said another region are shared, or before an actual access to the shared regions is made.

12. A data transfer method for transferring data between regions of virtual memory spaces shared by different computers in a distributed computer system formed by a plurality of computers connected through virtual connections provided by a network, the method comprising:

sharing one region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space managed by one computer and another region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space managed by another computer as shared regions, and allocating a plurality of real memory regions to at least one of the shared regions in virtual memory spaces;

setting up a dedicated virtual connection for the shared regions in virtual memory spaces which are shared at the sharing step, the dedicated virtual connection being dedicated for data transfers among the shared regions;

carrying out data transfers by using the dedicated virtual connection set up at the setting step, between real memory regions which are currently not mapped into the shared regions in virtual memory spaces; and

sequentially switching a real memory region which is mapped into said at least one of the shared regions in virtual memory spaces, by sequentially mapping a real memory region for which each data transfer at the carrying out step is completed, into said at least one of the shared regions in virtual memory spaces.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein at the sequentially switching step, a real memory region which is actually mapped into said one of the shared regions is sequentially switched by using a system call.

14. A computer usable medium having computer readable program code stored therein for causing a computer to function as a system for managing memory space in a distributed computer system formed by a plurality of computers connected through virtual connections provided by a network, the computer readable program code including:

a first computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to share one region among a plurality of regions a virtual memory space/real memory space managed by said computer and another region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space/real memory space managed by another computer;

a second computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to set up a dedicated virtual connection between said one region and said another region which are shared between said computer and said another computer by the first computer readable program code unit, the dedicated virtual connection being dedicated for data transfers between said one region and said another region; and

a third computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to carry out data transfers between said one region and said another region by using the dedicated virtual connection set up by the second computer readable program code unit.

15. A computer usable medium having computer readable program code stored therein for causing a computer to function as a system for transferring data between regions of virtual memory spaces shared by different computers in a distributed computer system formed by a plurality of computers connected through virtual connections provided by a network, the computer readable program code including:

a first computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to share one region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space managed by said computer and another region among a plurality of regions in a virtual memory space managed by another computer as shared regions, and for allocating a plurality of real memory regions to at least one of the shared regions in virtual memory spaces;

a second computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to set up a dedicated virtual connection for the shared regions in virtual memory spaces which are shared by the first computer readable program code unit, the dedicated virtual connection being dedicated for data transfers among the shared regions;

a third computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to carry out data transfers by using the dedicated virtual connection set up by the second computer readable program code unit, between real memory regions which are currently not mapped into the shared regions in virtual memory spaces; and

a fourth computer readable program code unit for causing said computer to sequentially switch a real memory region which is mapped into said at least one of the shared regions in virtual memory spaces, by sequentially mapping a real memory region for which each data transfer by the third computer readable program code unit is completed, into said at least one of the shared regions in virtual memory spaces.