Self-identifying peripheral device

• US 6,272,560 B1
• Filed: 10/13/1998
• Issued: 08/07/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unisys Corporation
• Inventors: Miller, Edward A., Saunders, Michael, Stell, Jeffery A., Coffman, Richard A. Jr., Kenton, Kenneth A.
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, DIEU MINH T
• Application Number:
  US09/170,341
• Time in Patent Office: 1,029 Days
• Field of Search: 710/8, 710/15, 710/62, 710/104, 710/102, 710/103, 714/3, 714/5
• US Class Current: 710/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4411 Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers

Abstract

A method and apparatus enables a newly installed peripheral device such as a disk device to be used with a computer system without changing the operating system. The peripheral device is identified as a type which is not recognized by an operating system operating in conjunction with the computer system. A value which identifies at least one logical attribute of said peripheral device is obtained from said peripheral device. A determination is made as to whether the operating system and the peripheral device are compatible based on the logical attribute obtained from the peripheral device. The operating system and the peripheral device communicate if it is determined that the operating system and the peripheral device are compatible (i.e., can operate together).

Claims

1. A method for connecting a peripheral memory device to a computer system operating under the control of an operating system, wherein the operating system maintains an identification table containing entries corresponding to different types of peripheral memory devices that the operating system is pre-programmed to recognize, said method comprising:

(a) determining that said peripheral memory device is unrecognized by the operating system of the computer system, and thereafter;

(b) obtaining, from predetermined information stored on said peripheral memory device, an indication of the formatted capacity of said peripheral memory device;

(c) determining whether the operating system of the computer system supports peripheral memory devices having the formatted capacity obtained in said step (b); and

if so,

(d) creating a new entry in the identification table of the operating system for said peripheral memory device and enabling communications between said peripheral memory device and said operating system.

2. The method recited in claim 1, wherein said predetermined information stored on said peripheral memory device further comprises at least one of a vendor identification value and a product identification value, and wherein said step (a) comprises the steps of:

(a1) reading from said peripheral memory device at least one of said vendor identification value and said production identification value; and

(a2) determining, based on said at least one value, whether said peripheral memory device is recognized by the operating system.

3. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising performing the following additional steps prior to step (c);

issuing an operation to said peripheral memory device to obtain an indication of a block size of said peripheral memory device;

determining whether said operating system supports peripheral memory devices having the obtained block size, and continuing to step (c) only if the obtained block size is supported.

4. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising performing the following additional steps prior to step (c):

issuing an operation to said peripheral memory device to obtain an indication of a block size and a total number of blocks of said peripheral memory device;

calculating from said obtained block size and said obtained total number of blocks a maximum physical capacity of said peripheral memory device;

comparing the indication of the formatted capacity of said peripheral memory device obtained in step (b) to the calculated maximum physical capacity of said peripheral memory device; and

continuing to step (c) only if the formatted capacity is not greater than the calculated maximum physical capacity of said peripheral memory device.

5. The method recited in claim 4, further comprising, prior to step (c), determining whether said operating system supports peripheral memory devices having the obtained block size, and continuing to step (c) only if the obtained block size is supported.

6. The method recited in claim 4, wherein the entry created in said step (d) comprises at least one of the formatted capacity, the block size, the total number of blocks, and the maximum physical capacity of the peripheral memory device.

7. Apparatus for enabling a new peripheral memory device to be connected to a computer system operating under the control of an operating system, wherein the operating system maintains an identification table containing entries corresponding to different types of peripheral memory devices that the operating system is pre-programmed to recognize, said apparatus comprising:

means for determining that said peripheral memory device is unrecognized by the operating system of the computer system, and thereafter;

means for obtaining, from predetermined information stored on said peripheral memory device, an indication of the formatted capacity of said peripheral memory device;

means for determining whether the operating system of the computer system supports peripheral memory devices having the formatted capacity obtained by said obtaining means; and

if so,

means for creating a new entry in the identification table of the operating system for said peripheral memory device and enabling communications between said peripheral memory device and said operating system.

8. The apparatus recited in claim 7, wherein said predetermined information stored on said peripheral memory device further comprises at least one of a vendor identification value and a product identification value, and wherein said apparatus further comprises means for reading from said peripheral memory device at least one of said vendor identification value and said production identification value, and wherein said means for determining whether said peripheral memory device is recognized by said operating system comprises means for determining, based on said at least one value, whether said peripheral memory device is recognized by the operating system.

9. The apparatus recited in claim 7, further comprising:

means for issuing an operation to said peripheral memory device to obtain an indication of a block size of said peripheral memory device; and

means for determining whether said operating system supports peripheral memory devices having the obtained block size.

10. The apparatus recited in claim 7, further comprising:

means for issuing an operation to said peripheral memory device to obtain an indication of a block size and a total number of blocks of said peripheral memory device;

means for calculating from said obtained block size and said obtained total number of blocks a maximum physical capacity of said peripheral memory device; and

means for comparing the indication of the formatted capacity of said peripheral memory device obtained by said obtaining means to the calculated maximum physical capacity of said peripheral memory device to determine whether the formatted capacity is not greater than the calculated maximum physical capacity.

11. The apparatus recited in claim 10, further comprising means for determining whether said operating system supports peripheral memory devices having the obtained block size.

12. The apparatus recited in claim 10, wherein an entry created in said identification table for said peripheral memory device comprises at least one of the formatted capacity, the block size, the total number of blocks, and the maximum physical capacity of the peripheral memory device.