Data protection system

• US 7,272,745 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2004
• Issued: 09/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Seto, Pak-Lung
• Primary Examiner(s): Iqbal; Nadeem
• Application Number:
  US10/881,648
• Publication Number:
  US 20060005061A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,175 Days
• Field of Search: 714/3, 714/27, 714/31, 714/43, 714/56, 714/15, 714/18, 709/203, 709/227, 712/26, 712/28, 710/33, 710/11
• US Class Current: 714/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0745 in an input/output transactions management context input/output processing in general G06F13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0793 Remedial or corrective actions recovery from an exception in an instruction pipeline G06F9/3861; by retry G06F11/1402; for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40

Abstract

A method according to one embodiment may include assigning a tag to at least one transactions in which at least one data frame is at least one of transmitted or received by at least one functional block. The method may also include discovering, by a functional block, if an error occurs in at least one data frame. The method may also include associating the error with the tag and generating a flush command to at least one functional block to flush data frames associated with said tag. Of course, many alternatives, variations, and modifications are possible without departing from this embodiment.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

assigning a tag to a transaction in which a data frame is at least one of transmitted or received by a source functional block, a destination functional block, and one or more intermediate functional blocks coupled along a data path such that the data frame is moved from one functional block to the next;

discovering, by at least one of said intermediate functional blocks, if an error occurs in said data frame; and

associating said error with said tag and generating a flush command that is propagated through the functional blocks to said at least one intermediate functional block to flush data frames associated with said tag.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

said tag comprises identification data associated with an input/output (I/O).

3. The method of claim 2, wherein:

said I/O comprises a transaction of at least one of a data read or data write.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

assigning a tag is performed, at least in part, by processor circuitry capable of exchanging at least one of commands or data with one or more of said functional blocks.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein:

said processor circuitry is also capable of receiving a transaction request, and further capable of assigning said tag to said at least one transaction in response to said transaction request.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

said functional block comprising circuitry capable of, at least one of, transmitting or receiving at least one said data frame.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating a command indicating that processing of said at least one data packet associated with said tag is complete.

8. An article, comprising:

a storage medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by a machine results in the following;

assigning a tag to a transaction in which a data frame is at least one of transmitted or received by a source functional block, a destination functional block, and one or more intermediate functional blocks coupled along a data path such that the data frame is moved from one functional block the next;

discovering, by at least one of said intermediate functional blocks, if an error occurs in said data frame; and

associating said error with said tag generating a flush command that is propagated through the functional blocks to said at least one intermediate functional block to flush data frames associated with said tag.

9. The article of claim 8, wherein:

said tag comprises identification data associated with an input/output (I/O).

10. The article of claim 9, wherein:

said I/O comprises a transaction of at least one of a data read or data write.

11. The article of claim 8, wherein:

assigning a tag is performed, at least in part, by processor circuitry capable of exchanging at least one of commands or data with one or more of said functional blocks.

12. The article of claim 11, wherein:

said processor circuitry is also capable of receiving a transaction request, and further capable of assigning said tag to said at least one transaction in response to said transaction request.

13. The article of claim 8, wherein:

at least one of said functional blocks comprises circuitry capable of, at least one of transmitting or receiving at least one said data frame.

14. The article of claim 8, further comprising:

generating a command indicating that processing of said at least one data packet associated with said tag is complete.

15. A system, comprising:

a circuit card including an integrated circuit, the circuit card capable of being coupled to a bus, the integrated circuit comprising processor circuitry capable of exchanging at least one of commands or data with a plurality of functional blocks including a source functional block, a destination functional block, and one or more intermediate functional blocks coupled along a data path such that the command or data is moved from one functional block to the next, each of said functional blocks being capable of at least one of transmitting or receiving a data frame,

said processor circuitry is further capable of

discovering, by at least one of said intermediate functional blocks, if an error occurs in said data frame,

assigning a tag to a transaction in which a data frame is at least one of transmitted or received by one or more of said plurality of functional blocks,

associating said error with said tag, and

generating a flush command that is propagated through the functional blocks to said at least one intermediate functional block to flush data frames associated with said tag.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein:

said source functional block is capable of starting a transmission of said data frame to said one or more intermediate functional blocks, and said destination functional block comprises a destination for said data frame.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein:

said processor circuitry is also capable of determining which functional block, among the plurality of said functional blocks, discovered said error, said processor circuitry further capable of commanding said source functional block to flush at least one data frame associated with said tag and propagating a command to flush a data frame associated with said tag to at least one of said intermediate functional blocks and said destination functional block.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein:

said processor circuitry is also capable of terminating said command to flush a data frame when said command to flush a data frame is transmitted to said functional block responsible for discovering said error.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein:

said tag comprises identification data associated with an input/output (I/O).

20. The system of claim 19, wherein:

said I/O comprises a transaction of at least one of a data read or data write in which said data frame is at least one of transmitted or received by at least one functional block.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein:

said processor circuitry is also capable of receiving a transaction request from at least one of said plurality of functional blocks, and further capable of assigning said tag to a transaction in response to said transaction request.

22. The system of claim 15, wherein:

at least one of said plurality of functional blocks comprises circuitry capable of, at least one of, transmitting or receiving a data frame.

23. The system of claim 15, wherein:

said processor circuitry is further capable of terminating said flush command when said flush command reaches a functional block that discovered said error.

24. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

generating, by said functional block that discovered said error, a command indicating that data processing for said transaction is complete, and propagating said a command indicating that data processing for said transaction is complete to said destination functional block.