Remote shared server peripherals over an Ethernet network for resource virtualization
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A system for virtualizing I/O resources, comprising:
- a first Ethernet network;
a second Ethernet network;
a plurality of servers connected with the first Ethernet network, the plurality of servers comprising one or more processors and memory; and
an I/O director connected with the first Ethernet network and the second Ethernet network, the I/O director providing one or more common, shared Network Interface Controllers (NICs) and Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) to the plurality of servers, the I/O director comprising;
a plurality of Ethernet network interfaces connected to the plurality of servers over the first Ethernet network, the plurality of servers associated with a plurality of virtual network interface cards executed by the I/O director and shared by the plurality of servers;
a first plurality of output ports connected to a first plurality of external devices over the second Ethernet network;
a network processor operable to map the plurality of virtual network interface cards with the first plurality of output ports, wherein the network processor is further operable to maintain a plurality of media access control (MAC) addresses for the plurality of servers;
a management module communicating with each of the plurality of servers using a management protocol over the first Ethernet network, wherein the servers;
establish communication with the I/O director using the management protocol; and
discover remote I/O resources on the second Ethernet network using the management protocol;
a directory service communicating with each of the plurality of servers using the management protocol over the first Ethernet network, wherein;
the plurality of servers each comprise virtual network interface card drivers;
the plurality of servers discover the remote I/O resources of the second Ethernet network by transmitting multicast discovery packets according to the management protocol from the virtual network interface card drivers to the directory service, the multicast discovery packets comprising server identifiers and corresponding server attributes; and
the directory service processes the multicast discovery packets, creates server objects based at least in part on the multicast discovery packets, determines whether the I/O director retains corresponding server profiles, and responds to the plurality of servers with unicast packets containing first information facilitating establishment of connections with a session manager of the I/O director;
a virtual network interface card module comprising learning logic configured to establish a mapping of the plurality of virtual network interface cards to the one or more MAC addresses, at least in part by populating a mapping table as data packets arrive from one or more servers of the plurality of servers; and
the session manager of the I/O director, in response to one server of the plurality of servers establishing a connection with the session manager using the first information of the unicast packets, uploads to the one server of the plurality of servers second information on one or more of the virtual network interface cards and/or virtual host bus adapters allocated to the one server.
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Abstract
Provided is a novel approach for connecting servers to peripherals, such as NICs, HBAs, and SAS/SATA controllers. Also provided are systems for arranging peripherals within one or more I/O directors, which are connected to the servers over an Ethernet network. Such arrangement allows sharing the same resource among multiple servers.
290 Citations
34 Claims
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1. A system for virtualizing I/O resources, comprising:
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a first Ethernet network; a second Ethernet network; a plurality of servers connected with the first Ethernet network, the plurality of servers comprising one or more processors and memory; and an I/O director connected with the first Ethernet network and the second Ethernet network, the I/O director providing one or more common, shared Network Interface Controllers (NICs) and Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) to the plurality of servers, the I/O director comprising; a plurality of Ethernet network interfaces connected to the plurality of servers over the first Ethernet network, the plurality of servers associated with a plurality of virtual network interface cards executed by the I/O director and shared by the plurality of servers; a first plurality of output ports connected to a first plurality of external devices over the second Ethernet network; a network processor operable to map the plurality of virtual network interface cards with the first plurality of output ports, wherein the network processor is further operable to maintain a plurality of media access control (MAC) addresses for the plurality of servers; a management module communicating with each of the plurality of servers using a management protocol over the first Ethernet network, wherein the servers; establish communication with the I/O director using the management protocol; and discover remote I/O resources on the second Ethernet network using the management protocol; a directory service communicating with each of the plurality of servers using the management protocol over the first Ethernet network, wherein; the plurality of servers each comprise virtual network interface card drivers; the plurality of servers discover the remote I/O resources of the second Ethernet network by transmitting multicast discovery packets according to the management protocol from the virtual network interface card drivers to the directory service, the multicast discovery packets comprising server identifiers and corresponding server attributes; and the directory service processes the multicast discovery packets, creates server objects based at least in part on the multicast discovery packets, determines whether the I/O director retains corresponding server profiles, and responds to the plurality of servers with unicast packets containing first information facilitating establishment of connections with a session manager of the I/O director; a virtual network interface card module comprising learning logic configured to establish a mapping of the plurality of virtual network interface cards to the one or more MAC addresses, at least in part by populating a mapping table as data packets arrive from one or more servers of the plurality of servers; and the session manager of the I/O director, in response to one server of the plurality of servers establishing a connection with the session manager using the first information of the unicast packets, uploads to the one server of the plurality of servers second information on one or more of the virtual network interface cards and/or virtual host bus adapters allocated to the one server. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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Specification