Apparatus and method for analyzing bidirectional data exchanged between two electronic devices

• US 8,738,818 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2010
• Issued: 05/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: LSI Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Mahajan, Abhijit
• Primary Examiner(s): Huson, Zachary K
• Application Number:
  US12/973,906
• Publication Number:
  US 20120159007A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,253 Days
• Field of Search: 710/15, 710/20
• US Class Current: 710/15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/221 to test buses, lines or interfaces, e.g. stuck-at or open line faults

Abstract

An apparatus and method for analyzing bidirectional data exchanged between two electronic devices is disclosed. In one embodiment, received and transmitted data at a first physical layer interface (PHY) is tapped by a second PHY in a first electronic device substantially before the received data is processed in the first electronic device and substantially before the transmitted data is processed by a second electronic device. Further, the tapped received and transmitted data is output to an analyzer for analyzing the received and transmitted data by the second PHY in the first electronic device.

Claims

1. A method for analyzing bidirectional data exchanged between electronic devices, comprising:

tapping received and transmitted data at a first physical layer interface (PHY) by a second PHY in a first electronic device substantially before the received data is processed in the first electronic device and substantially before the transmitted data is processed by a second electronic device, wherein the first electronic device and the second electronic device are end points in a communication network and exchanges the data via a bidirectional serial data link, and wherein the first electronic device comprises a peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe); and

outputting the tapped received and transmitted data to an analyzer for analyzing the received and transmitted data by the second PHY in the first electronic device without breaking the bidirectional serial data link.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein tapping the received and transmitted data at the first PHY by the second PHY in the first electronic device comprises:

receiving data sent by the second electronic device at the first PHY located in the first electronic device;

tapping the received data at the first PHY by the second PHY located in the first electronic, device substantially before the data is processed by the first electronic device;

outputting the tapped received data to the analyzer for analyzing the received data by the second PHY;

tapping the transmitted data from the first electronic device to the second electronic device by the second PHY substantially before the transmitted data by the first electronic device is processed by the second electronic device; and

outputting the tapped transmitted data to the analyzer for analyzing the transmitted data by the second PHY.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second PHY in the first electronic device is selected from the army consisting of a new PHY in the first electronic device or an existing PHY in the first electronic device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the analyzer, in analyzing the received and the transmitted data, performs a link level protocol analysis to debug and diagnose protocol problems.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first PHY and the second PHY comprises a transmit unit and a receive unit.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the second electronic device is selected from the group consisting of a peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe), a serial attached small computer system interface (SAS) device and a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the bidirectional data received and transmitted between the first electronic device and the second electronic device comprises the bidirectional serial data link.

8. An apparatus for analyzing bidirectional data exchanged between electronic devices, comprising:

a first electronic device including a first physical layer interface (PHY) and a second PHY;

a second electronic device coupled to the first electronic device via a bidirectional serial data link to the first PHY, wherein the first electronic device and the second electronic device are end points in a communication network and exchanges the data via the bidirectional serial data link, wherein the first electronic device comprises a peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe), wherein the second PHY taps received and transmitted data at the first PHY substantially before the received data is processed in the first electronic device and substantially before the transmitted data is processed by the second electronic device, and wherein the second PHY outputs the tapped received and transmitted data to an analyzer for analyzing the received and transmitted data without breaking the bidirectional serial data link.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first PHY receives the data sent by the second electronic device, wherein the second PHY taps the received data at the first PHY substantially before the data is processed by the first electronic device, wherein the second PHY outputs the tapped received data to the analyzer for analyzing the received data, wherein the second PHY taps the transmitted data from the first electronic device to the second electronic device substantially before the transmitted data by the first electronic device is processed by the second electronic device, and wherein the second PHY outputs the tapped transmitted data to the analyzer for analyzing the transmitted data.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the second PHY in the first electronic device is selected from the group consisting of a new PHY in the first electronic device or an existing PHY it the first electronic device.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the analyzer analyzes the received and the transmitted data for a link level protocol analysis to debug and diagnose protocol problems.

12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein each of the first PHY and the second PHY comprises a transmit unit and a receive unit.

13. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the second electronic device is selected from the group consisting of a PCIe, a SAS device and a SATA device.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the bidirectional data received and transmitted between the first electronic device and the second electronic, device comprises the bidirectional serial data link.