Communicating transaction types between agents in a computer system using packet headers including format and type fields
First Claim
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1. An apparatus comprising:
- a general input/output communication port to implement a communication stack including a physical layer, a data link layer and a transaction layer, the transaction layer to assemble a packet header for a transaction packet, the packet header to include;
a format field to indicate whether the transaction packet includes a data payload and to specify a size of the packet header; and
a type field to specify a transaction type, the transaction type to be selected from a group consisting of;
a memory request, an input/output request, a configuration request and a message request,wherein the format field and the type field together indicate a transaction layer packet format associated with a packet type.
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Abstract
A transmitting device and a receiving device are coupled via a high-speed serial interface within a computer system. The transmitting device transmits a packet that includes a format field to partially specify the packet header format and a type field to specify a transaction type. The format field and the type field together specify the packet header format and the format field indicates the size of the packet header.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. An apparatus comprising:
a general input/output communication port to implement a communication stack including a physical layer, a data link layer and a transaction layer, the transaction layer to assemble a packet header for a transaction packet, the packet header to include; a format field to indicate whether the transaction packet includes a data payload and to specify a size of the packet header; and a type field to specify a transaction type, the transaction type to be selected from a group consisting of;
a memory request, an input/output request, a configuration request and a message request,wherein the format field and the type field together indicate a transaction layer packet format associated with a packet type. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. An apparatus comprising:
a general input/output communication port to implement a communication stack including a physical layer, a data link layer and a transaction layer, the transaction layer to disassemble a packet header for a packet to be received at the general input/output communication port, the packet header to include; a format field to specify whether the packet includes a data payload and to specify a size of the packet header; and a type field to specify a message transaction type in response to holding a message value and to specify a non-message request transaction type in response to holding a request value, an additional field to hold message code information in response to the type field holding the message value and to hold byte enable information in response to the type field holding the request value. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6)
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7. A system comprising:
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a transmitting device to include a general input/output communication port to implement a communication stack including a physical layer, a data link layer and a transaction layer, the transaction layer to assemble a packet header for a transaction packet , the packet header to include; a format field to indicate whether the transaction packet includes a data payload; a type field to indicate a transaction type, the transaction type to include at least one selected from the following group of;
a memory request, an input/output request, a configuration request and a message request, wherein the format field and the type field together specify the format for the packet header;
a length field to indicate a length of the data payload in response to the format field indicating the transaction packet includes the data payload, andan extension field to be disposed between the type field and the length field capable of extending the type field or the length field in response to the transaction type; and a receiving device to receive the packet header from the transmitting device the receiving device to implement the communication stack that includes the data link layer, the physical layer and the transaction layer, wherein the transaction layer is to disassemble the packet header. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
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10. An apparatus comprising:
a general input/output communication port to implement a communication stack including a physical layer, a data link layer and a transaction layer, the transaction layer to assemble a packet header for a packet to be transmitted on a serial point-to-point link, the packet header to include; a first field to indicate a size of the packet header and to indicate whether the packet is to include a data payload; a second field to indicate a transaction type of the packet; and a third field to represent a length of the data payload, in response to the first field indicating the packet is to include a data payload. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
Specification