Intelligent networks storage interface system and devices

Abstract

An interface device (22) is connected to a host computer (20) by an I / O bus (40) and provides hardware and processing mechanisms for accelerating data transfers between a network (25, 28) and a storage unit (66, 70), while controlling the data transfers by the host (20). The interface device includes hardware circuitry (52, 58, 60) for processing network packet headers, and can use a dedicated fast-path for data transfer between the network (25, 28) and the storage unit (66, 70), the fast-path set up by the host(20). The host CPU (30) and protocol stack (38) avoids protocol processing for data transfer over the fast-path, freeing host bus bandwidth, and the data need not cross the I / Obus (40), freeing I / O bus bandwidth. The storage unit (66, 70) may include RAID or other multiple drive configurations and may be connected to the interface device (22) by a parallel channel such as SCSI or by a serial channel such as Ethernet of Fibre Channel. The interface device (22) contains a file cache (80) that stores data transferred between the network and the storage unit, with organization of data in the interface device file cache (80) controlled by a file system (23) on the host. Additional interface devices (303, 310, 420, 490) may be connected to the host (20) via the I / O bus (40), with each additional interface device (303, 310, 420, 490) having a file cache controlled by the host file system (23), and providing additional network connections (305, 313, 414, 416, 418, 420, 492, 494) and / or being connected to additional storage units (308, 315). Realtime audio and video communication can also be provided when the interface device is coupled by an audio / video interface (666,677) to appropriate communication devices, such as microphone (670, 680), a speaker (668, 678), a camera (674, 684) and / or a display (672, 682).

Description

technical field [0001] The present invention relates to network communication and storage. Background technique [0002] Over the past decade, the advantages and advances in network computing have fueled the tremendous growth of computer networks, which in turn has spurred more advances, growth, and advantages. As computer networks grow, confusion and bottlenecks arise in utilizing traditional network devices. For example, a computer's CPU connected to a network may spend proportionally more time processing network communications, resulting in less time available for other work. In particular, the need to transfer file data between a network and a computer's storage unit has accelerated. The above data is usually divided into packets for transmission on the network, each packet is encapsulated in layers of control information, and the CPU of the receiving computer processes the control information one layer at a time. Despite the ever-increasing speed of CPUs, protocol pr...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

However, increasing the number of storage units connected to a server using, for example, a SAN layout will increase the amount of protocol processing that the server must perform

As mentioned above, this protocol processing already burdens most advanced servers

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