System for configuring switches in a network

• US 20070097881A1
• Filed: 10/28/2005
• Published: 05/03/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: QNX Software Systems Company (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Craig, Robert, Jenkins, Timothy
• Granted Patent: US 7,680,096 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/02 Topology update or discovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/42 Centralised routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/54 Organization of routing tables
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/15 Interconnection of switching modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/35 Switches specially adapted for specific applications

Abstract

A network is set forth that comprises a plurality of multiple port switches, a plurality of endpoint devices connected to the ports of the plurality of switches, and an enumerating endpoint device that is connected to at least one of the multiple port switches. The enumerating endpoint device configures the routing through the multiple port switches based on whether the multiple port switch is on path with respect to a newly discovered processing element or off path with respect to the newly discovered processing element. Each off path switch may be configured so that communication packets destined for the new processing element are routed through the port of the off path switch that the off path switch uses for communications with the enumerating endpoint device. Each on path switch may be configured so that communication packets destined for the newly discovered processing element are routed through the port of the on path switch at which the enumerating endpoint device discovered the new processing element. In one example, the network is implemented as a RapidIO network.

Claims

1. A network comprising:

a plurality of multiple port switches;

a plurality of endpoint devices connected to the ports of the multiple port switches;

an enumerating endpoint device connected to at least one of the multiple port switches, where the enumerating endpoint device configures internal routing of communication packets between the ports of each multiple port switch based on whether the multiple port switch is on path with respect to a detected processing element or off path with respect to the detected processing element.

2. The network of claim 1 where the enumerating endpoint device configures each off path switch so that communications for the detected processing element are routed through the port of the off path switch that the off path switch uses for communications with the enumerating endpoint device.

3. The network of claim 1 where the switches and endpoint devices comply with the RapidIO standard.

4. A network comprising:

an enumerating endpoint device;

a plurality of switches, each switch having a plurality of I/O ports and at least one routing table, where the enumerating endpoint device is connected to at least one of the plurality of switches;

a plurality of endpoint devices connected to the plurality of switches;

where the enumerating endpoint device updates the routing tables of the switches upon detection of an endpoint device based on whether the switch is on path with respect to the detected endpoint device or off path with respect to the detected endpoint device.

5. The network of claim 4 where the detection of the endpoint device occurs during an initial enumeration process executed by the enumerating endpoint device.

6. The network of claim 4 where the detection of the endpoint device occurs during a polling process in which the enumerating endpoint device searches the network to discover endpoint devices.

7. The network of claim 5 where the detection of the endpoint device occurs during a polling process in which the enumerating endpoint device searches the network to discover endpoint devices added alter completion of the initial enumeration process, the polling process occurring on a repeating basis.

8. The network of claim 4 where the enumerating endpoint device updates the routing table of an on path switch so that communications with the detected endpoint device are routed through the port of the on path switch at which the enumerating endpoint device discovered the detected endpoint device.

9. The network of claim 4 where the enumerating endpoint device updates the routing table of an off path switch so that communications for the detected endpoint device are routed through the port of the off path switch that the off path switch uses to communicate with the enumerating endpoint device.

10. The network of claim 4 where the enumerating endpoint device assigns unique device identification values to each of the endpoint devices, and where the unique device identification values are used as indices in the routing tables.

11. The network of claim 4 where the switches and endpoint devices comply with the RapidIO standard.

12. A network comprising:

a plurality of endpoint devices;

a plurality of switches, each switch having a plurality of I/O ports, each I/O port having at least one routing table;

an enumerating endpoint device connected to a port on at least one of the plurality of switches, where the enumerating endpoint device responds to detection of an endpoint device by updating the routing tables of the plurality of switches, and where the routing table of an on path switch is updated so that communications with the detected endpoint device are routed to the port of the on path switch at which the detected endpoint device was discovered by the enumerating endpoint device, and where the routing table of an off path switch is updated so that communications with the detected endpoint device are routed through the port of the off path switch that the off path switch uses to communicate with the enumerating endpoint device.

13. The network of claim 12 where the detection of the endpoint device occurs during an initial enumeration process executed by the enumerating endpoint device.

14. The network of claim 12 where the detection of the endpoint device occurs during a polling process in which the enumerating endpoint device searches the network to discover endpoint devices.

15. The network of claim 13 where the detection of the endpoint device occurs during a polling process in which the enumerating endpoint device searches the network to discover endpoint devices added after completion of the initial memorization process, the polling process occurring on a repeating basis.

16. The network of claim 12 where the enumerating endpoint device assigns unique device identification values to each of the endpoint devices, and where the unique device identification values are used as indices in the routing tables.

17. A network comprising:

an enumerating endpoint device;

a first switch having first, second and third ports, where the first port is connected for communication with the enumerating endpoint device;

a second switch having first, second and third ports, where the first port of the second switch is connected for communication with the second port of the first switch;

an endpoint device connected for communication with the third port of the first switch;

where the enumerating endpoint device configures the first switch to direct communications for the endpoint device through the third port of the first switch; and

where the enumerating endpoint device configures the second switch to direct communications for the endpoint device through the first port of the second switch.

18. In a network having an enumerating endpoint and an endpoint device that is detected by the enumerating endpoint, a switching structure comprising:

a plurality of multiple port switches that are on path with the detected endpoint device, each of the on path switches routing communications for the detected endpoint device to the port of the on path switch at which the detected endpoint device was discovered by the enumerating endpoint device; and

a plurality of multiple port switches that are off path to the detected endpoint device, where at least one off path switch is connected to route network communications to at least one on path switches, and where each off path switch routes communications for the detected endpoint device to the port of the off path switch that the off path switch uses to communicate with the enumerating endpoint device.