Blade center KVM distribution

• US 8,839,339 B2
• Filed: 04/15/2008
• Issued: 09/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Buckler, Gerhard N., Kern, Eric, Nieves, Johnny
• Primary Examiner(s): FLYNN, RANDY A
• Application Number:
  US12/103,219
• Publication Number:
  US 20090260047A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,345 Days
• Field of Search: 725 91- 93, 725/103, 725114-116, 725144-146
• US Class Current: 725/143
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 Multichannel or multilink protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols

Abstract

A system and method for providing redundant video signals from a server blade in a blade center. A blade center is described that includes a capture system for capturing a video stream off a PCI-x bus in a server blade and delivering the pair of video streams to a midplane in the blade center; and a switch module that inputs the pair of video streams and generates an unroutable video signal and a routable video signal.

Claims

1. A system for providing redundant video signals from a server blade in a blade center, comprising:

a capture system for capturing a video signal from a video chipset in the server blade, wherein the capture system duplicates and encapsulates the video signal into a pair of video streams and transmits the pair of video streams to a midplane in the blade center; and

a switch module that decapsulates the pair of video streams and generates an unroutable video signal by combining the pair of video streams with an adder, wherein the pair of video streams are duplicate streams, and processing a resulting output stream of the adder with a local interface, and a routable video signal from one of the pair of video streams, wherein the unroutable video signal comprises a proprietary signal with point-to-point communication with a local blade client, and wherein the unroutable video signal and the routable video signal comprise different formats of the captured video signal.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the capture system comprises a daughter card that reads the video signal off a PCI-x bus.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the routable video signal is generated by passing the pair of video streams through a pair of compressors, combining a result using a lossy compressor, and packetizing a resulting stream using a TCP/IP packetization system.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the video signal is generated from a KVM (keyboard, video, mouse) application.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the unroutable video signal and routable video signal are decodable at a blade client.

6. A blade center having a plurality of server blades, each capable of running a KVM (keyboard video mouse) application for a blade client, comprising:

a plurality of daughter cards each coupled to an associated server blade that reads a video signal off a bus in the server blade and diverts the video signal to a midplane; and

a switch module that reads the video signal from the midplane and generates a first video signal using a first communication protocol and a second video signal using a second communication protocol, wherein the first video signal is processed to generate a routable video signal and wherein the first video signal and the second video signal are combined with an adder, wherein the first video signal and the second video signal are duplicate signals, and a resulting output stream from the adder is processed at a local interface in order to generate an unroutable video signal which comprises a proprietary signal with point-to-point communication with a local blade client, and wherein the routable video signal and the unroutable video signal comprise different formats of the video signal.

7. The blade center of claim 6, wherein the first communication protocol comprises TCP/IP.

8. The blade center of claim 7, wherein the second communication protocol comprises a point-to-point protocol.

9. The blade center of claim 6, wherein video signal is generated by a hardware chipset on the server blade.

10. A method of providing redundant video signals from a server blade in a blade center, comprising:

reading a video signal off a bus generated by a hardware chipset in the server blade;

duplicating and encapsulating the video signal into a pair of video streams;

delivering the pair of video streams to a switch module via a midplane in the blade center;

decapsulating the pair of video streams; and

generates an unroutable video signal by combining the pair of video streams with an adder adder, wherein the pair of video streams are duplicate streams, and processing a resulting output stream of the adder with a local interface, and a routable video signal from one of the pair of video streams, wherein the unroutable video signal comprises a proprietary signal with point-to-point communication with a local blade client, and wherein the unroutable video signal and the routable video signal comprise different formats of the captured video signal.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein reading the video signal off the bus utilizes a daughter card that reads the video signal off a PCI-x bus.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the routable video signal is generated by passing the pair of video streams through a pair of compressors, combining a result using a lossy compressor, and packetizing a resulting stream using a TCP/IP packetization system.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the video signal is controlled by a KVM (keyboard, video, mouse) application.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the unroutable video signal and routable video signal are decodable at a blade client.