Atomic Access to Object Pool over RDMA Transport Network

• US 20170255590A1
• Filed: 02/28/2017
• Published: 09/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mellanox Technologies Limited (NVIDIA Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mellanox Technologies Limited (NVIDIA Corporation)
• Inventors: Shuler, Shahaf, Bloch, Noam, Bloch, Gil
• Granted Patent: US 10,642,780 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/28 using burst mode transfer, e.g. direct memory access DMA, cycle steal G06F13/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/17331 Distributed shared memory [DSM], e.g. remote direct memory access [RDMA]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/526 Mutual exclusion algorithms
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

In a fabric of network elements one network element has an object pool to be accessed stored in its memory. A request for atomic access to the object pool by another network element is carried out by transmitting the request through the fabric to the one network element, performing a remote direct memory access to a designated member of the object pool, atomically executing the request, and returning a result of the execution of the request through the fabric to the other network element.

Claims

1. A method of communication comprising the steps of:

in a fabric of network elements including a first network element and a second network element, the second network element having a memory and a pool of objects in the memory;

initiating a request in the first network element for a remote direct memory access to the memory;

transmitting the request through the fabric to the second network element;

accessing a designated member of the pool by atomically executing the request; and

returning a result of the execution of the request through the fabric to the first network element.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein accessing comprises an atomic get operation that retrieves one of the objects of the pool.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the pool is arranged as a first-in-first-out queue having a next object, and returning a result comprises retrieving the next object.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein returning a result further comprises dequeuing the next object.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the pool is arranged as a last-in-first-out queue having a next object, and returning a result comprises retrieving the next object.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein returning a result further comprises dequeuing the next object.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein accessing comprises adding a new object to the pool in an atomic push operation.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the pool is arranged as a first-in-first-out queue and adding a new object comprises enqueuing the new object.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the pool is arranged as a last-in-first-out queue and adding a new object comprises enqueuing the new object.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein atomically executing the request is controlled independently by a device connected to a host computer.

11. An apparatus of communication comprising the steps of:

a fabric of network elements including a first network element and a second network element, the second network element having a memory and a pool of objects in the memory, the first network element operative for;

initiating a request for a remote direct memory access to the memory;

transmitting the request through the fabric to the second network element;

accessing a designated member of the pool by atomically executing the request; and

returning a result of the execution of the request through the fabric to the first network element.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein accessing comprises an atomic get operation that retrieves one of the objects of the pool.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the pool is arranged as a first-in-first-out queue having a next object, and accessing comprises dequeuing the next object.

14. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the pool is arranged as a last-in-first-out queue having a next object, and accessing comprises dequeuing the next object.

15. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein accessing comprises adding a new object to the pool in an atomic push operation.

16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the pool is arranged as a first-in-first-out queue and adding a new object comprises enqueuing the new object.

17. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the pool is arranged as a last-in-first-out queue and adding a new object comprises enqueuing the new object.

18. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the network element is a network interface card.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18, further comprising an atomic controller in the network interface card for independently controlling executing the request.