Providing at least one peer connection between a plurality of coupling facilities to couple the plurality of coupling facilities

• US 6,954,817 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2001
• Issued: 10/11/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Rao, Chitta L., Jordan, Michael J., Surman, David H., Elko, David A., Kurdt, Georgette L., Nick, Jeffrey M., Goss, Steven N., Brooks, Mark A., Jones, Steven B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Myers, Paul R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAN, RAYMOND NGAN
• Application Number:
  US09/968,244
• Publication Number:
  US 20030196016A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,471 Days
• Field of Search: 710305-306, 710311-317, 710 36- 42, 710104-106, 711111-115, 709223-233, 709201-202, 709213-219, 709235-238, 709248-249, 712 28- 31
• US Class Current: 710/306
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2007 using redundant communication media

Abstract

A coupling facility is coupled to one or more other coupling facilities via one or more peer links. The coupling of the facilities enables various functions to be supported, including the duplexing of structures of the coupling facilities. Duplexing is performed on a structure basis, and thus, a coupling facility may include duplexed structures, as well as non-duplexed or simplexed structures.

Claims

1. A method of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said method comprising:

selecting a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled, wherein at least one coupling facility of said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility comprise shared storage that includes active state information shareable by one or more distributed applications of the computing environment; and

providing at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an intersystem channel.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an integrated cluster bus.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an internal coupling link.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one peer connection comprises a plurality of peer connections, and wherein multiple peer connections of the plurality of peer connections are configured redundant connections between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility is a special purpose storage processor.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility executes code other than user application code.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein a peer connection comprises a protocol for command initiation that is capable of being initiated from the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

9. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

recognizing a failure of a peer connection of the multiple peer connections; and

maintaining an exchange of information on one or more surviving peer connections of the multiple peer connections.

10. A method of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said method comprising:

selecting a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled; and

providing at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility, wherein the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility are coupled to provide duplexing of one or more coupling facility structures.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein an instance of one coupling facility structure of said one or more coupling facility structures exists in said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility, providing a first coupling facility structure instance and a second coupling facility structure instance.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising maintaining synchronization of execution of commands issued against said first coupling facility structure instance and said second coupling facility structure instance.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said maintaining synchronization comprises exchanging one or more signals across one or more peer connections of said at least one peer connection.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein commands are issued against said first coupling facility structure and said second coupling facility structure in parallel.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein at least one coupling facility of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility includes one or more structures that are not duplexed.

16. A method of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said method comprising:

selecting a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled;

providing at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility; and

coupling a third coupling facility to one of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility via at least one peer connection, wherein the third coupling facility need not be couple to the other of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the third coupling facility includes a coupling facility structure that is duplexed in the coupling facility coupled thereto, and wherein the coupling facility coupled thereto includes a coupling facility structure that is duplexed in the other coupling facility coupled thereto.

18. A system of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said system comprising:

a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled, wherein at least one coupling facility of said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility comprises shared storage at includes active state information shareable by one or more distributed applications of the computing environment; and

at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an intersystem channel.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an integrated cluster bus.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an internal coupling link.

22. The system of claim 18, wherein the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility are coupled to provide duplexing of one or more coupling facility structures.

23. The system of claim 18, wherein said at least one peer connection comprises a plurality of peer connections, and wherein multiple peer connections of the plurality of peer connections are configure as redundant connections between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein an instance of one coupling facility structure of said one or more coupling facility structures exists in said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility, providing a first coupling facility structure instance and a second coupling facility structure instance.

25. The system of claim 22, wherein at least one coupling facility of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility includes one or more structures that are not duplexed.

26. The system of claim 24, further comprising means for maintaining synchronization of execution of commands issued against said first coupling facility structure instance and said second coupling facility structure instance.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein said means for maintaining synchronization comprises means or exchanging one or more signals across one or more peer connections of said at least one peer connection.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein commands are issued against said first coupling facility structure an said second coupling facility structure in parallel.

29. The system of claim 23, further comprising:

means for recognizing a failure of a peer connection of the multiple peer connections; and

means for maintaining an exchange of information on one or more surviving peer connections of the multiple peer connections.

30. A system of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said system comprising:

a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled;

at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility; and

at least one peer connection to couple a third coupling facility to one of the first coupling acuity and the second coupling facility, wherein the third coupling facility need not be coupled to the other of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein the third coupling facility includes a coupling facility structure that is duplexed in the coupling facility coupled thereto, and wherein the coupling facility coupled there includes a coupling facility structure that is duplexed in the other coupling facility coupled thereto.

32. A system of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said system comprising:

means for selecting first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled, wherein at least one coupling facility of said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility comprises shared storage that includes active state information shareable by one or more distributed applications of the computing environment; and

means for providing at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

33. At least one program storage device readable by a machine tangibly embodying at least one program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said method comprising:

selecting a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled, wherein at least one coupling facility of said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility comprises shared storage that includes active state information shareable by one or more distributed applications of the computing environment; and

providing at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

34. The at least one program storage device of claim 33, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an intersystem channel.

35. The at least one program storage device of claim 33, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an integrated cluster bus.

36. The at least one program storage device of claim 33, wherein a peer connection of the at least one peer connection comprises an internal coupling link.

37. The at least one program storage device of claim 33, wherein the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility are coupled to provide duplexing of one or more coupling facility structures.

38. The at least one program storage device of claim 33, wherein said at least one peer connection comprise a plurality of peer connections, and wherein multiple peer connections of the plurality of peer connections are configured as redundant connections between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

39. The at least one program storage device of claim 37, wherein an instance of one coupling facility structure of said one or more coupling facility structures exists in said first coupling facility and said second coupling facility, providing a first coupling facility structure instance and a second coupling facility structure instance.

40. The at least one program storage device of claim 38, wherein said method further comprises:

recognizing a failure of a peer connection of the multiple peer connections; and

maintaining an exchange of information on one or more surviving peer connections of the multiple peer connections.

41. The at least one program storage device of claim 39, wherein said method further comprises maintaining synchronization of execution of commands issued against said first coupling facility structure instance and said second coupling facility structure instance.

42. The at least one program storage device of claim 41, wherein said maintaining synchronization comprises exchanging one or more signals across one or more peer connections of said at least one peer connection.

43. The at least one program storage device of claim 41, wherein commands are issued against said first coupling facility structure and said second coupling facility structure in parallel.

44. The at least one program storage device of claim 37, wherein at least one coupling facility of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility includes one or more structures that are not duplexed.

45. At least one program storage device readable by a machine tangibly embodying at least one program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method of coupling a plurality of coupling facilities of a computing environment, said method comprising:

selecting a first coupling facility and a second coupling facility to be coupled;

providing at least one peer connection between the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility to couple the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility; and

coupling a third coupling facility to one of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility via at least one peer connection, wherein the third coupling facility need not be coupled to the other of the first coupling facility and the second coupling facility.

46. The at least one program storage device of claim 45, wherein the third coupling facility includes a coupling facility structure that is duplexed in the coupling facility coupled thereto, and wherein the coupling facility coupled thereto includes a coupling facility structure that is duplexed in the other coupling facility coupled thereto.