A device and method for multiple machines to share RAID function

Abstract

The present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, the device comprising: a first server, the first server having a first hard disk; an I / O board, the I / O board connected to the first server; wherein the I / O board comprises: a PCIe bridge chip, the PCIe bridge chip connected to the first server; a RAID chip, the RAID chip connected to the PCIe bridge chip; a first controller, the first controller is arranged inside the RAID chip, wherein the first hard disk is configured by the first controller. By adding a PCIe bridge chip, the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, the utilization efficiency is increased, the cost is reduced, and the RAID chip configuration resources are dynamically allocated by software.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of RAID chips, and in particular to a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions. Background Art

[0002] Normally, a RAID chip is built into one machine and can only be used by one machine. However, since the RAID chip has multiple external interfaces, it can also be connected to another machine through a cable, so that the other machine can also use this RAID card.

[0003] However, the inventors of this application found that the above-mentioned prior art has at least the following technical problems in the process of implementing the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application:

[0004] In the prior art, since the RAID card is connected to multiple machines via cables, there are technical problems that the machine into which the RAID card is inserted must be powered on, the cover cannot be closed, and the connected machine must be close to the RAID card. Summary of the invention

[0005] The embodiment of the present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, which is used to solve the technical problem in the prior art that the machine with the RAID card inserted must be turned on, the cover cannot be closed, and the connected machine must be close to the RAID card because the RAID card is connected to multiple machines through cables. By adding a PCIe bridge chip, the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, increasing utilization efficiency, reducing costs, and dynamically allocating RAID chip configuration resources through software.

[0006] In view of the above problems, the embodiments of the present application are proposed to provide a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions.

[0007] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a device for multiple machines to share RAID functions, the device comprising: a first server, the first server having a first hard disk; an I / O board, the I / O board connected to the first server; wherein the I / O board comprises: a PCIe bridge chip, the PCIe bridge chip connected to the first server; a RAID chip, the RAID chip connected to the PCIe bridge chip; a first controller, the first controller being arranged inside the RAID chip, wherein the first hard disk is configured through the first controller.

[0008] Preferably, the device further includes: a second server, the second server is connected to the PCIe bridge chip, and the second server has a second hard disk.

[0009] Preferably, the RAID chip further includes: a second controller, wherein the second controller is arranged inside the RAID chip, wherein the second hard disk is configured through the second controller.

[0010] Preferably, the PCIe bridge chip is communicatively connected with the first server and the second server through NTB technology.

[0011] Preferably, the second server is arranged in parallel with the first server.

[0012] In the second aspect, the present invention also provides a system configuration method based on PCIe switch, the method comprising: obtaining the number information of servers to be connected; obtaining the number information of hard disks to be combined based on the number information of servers to be connected; setting a corresponding number of controllers inside the RAID chip based on the number information of hard disks to be combined; the RAID chip configures the hard disks to be combined into a logical hard disk through the controller; the servers to be connected send data to the PCIe bridge chip; the PCIe bridge chip transmits the received data to the RAID chip; the RAID chip stores the data to the logical hard disk through the controller.

[0013] Preferably, the number of the servers to be accessed is at least one.

[0014] Preferably, the communication connection between the PCIe bridge chip and the server to be connected is dynamically adjusted through NTB technology.

[0015] The above one or more technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application have at least one or more of the following technical effects:

[0016] The embodiment of the present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, the device comprising: a first server, the first server having a first hard disk; an I / O board, the I / O board connected to the first server; wherein the I / O board comprises: a PCIe bridge chip, the PCIe bridge chip connected to the first server; a RAID chip, the RAID chip connected to the PCIe bridge chip; a first controller, the first controller is arranged inside the RAID chip, wherein the first hard disk is configured by the first controller. The technical problem in the prior art that the machine with the RAID card inserted must be turned on and the cover cannot be closed due to the RAID card connecting multiple machines through cables is solved. By adding a PCIe bridge chip, the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, the utilization efficiency is increased, the cost is reduced, and the RAID chip configuration resources are dynamically allocated by software.

[0017] The above description is only an overview of the technical solution of the present invention. In order to more clearly understand the technical means of the present invention, it can be implemented according to the contents of the specification. In order to make the above and other purposes, features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and easy to understand, the specific implementation methods of the present invention are listed below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a device for multiple machines to share RAID functions according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 The figure is a flow chart of a method for multiple machines to share RAID functions according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Explanation of the accompanying drawings: first server 1, first hard disk 2, second server 3, second hard disk 4, PCIe bridge chip 5, RAID chip 6, first controller 7, second controller 8. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The embodiment of the present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, which solves the technical problem in the prior art that because the RAID card connects multiple machines through cables, the machine with the RAID card inserted must be turned on, the cover cannot be closed, and the connected machine needs to be close to the RAID card.

[0022] The overall idea of ​​the technical solution provided by the present invention is as follows: An embodiment of the present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, the device comprising: a first server, the first server having a first hard disk; an I / O board, the I / O board connected to the first server; wherein the I / O board comprises: a PCIe bridge chip, the PCIe bridge chip connected to the first server; a RAID chip, the RAID chip connected to the PCIe bridge chip; a first controller, the first controller is arranged inside the RAID chip, wherein the first hard disk is configured by the first controller. By adding a PCIe bridge chip, the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, increasing utilization efficiency and reducing costs, and the technical effect of dynamically allocating RAID chip configuration resources by software is achieved.

[0023] The technical solution of the present invention is described in detail below through the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application and the specific features in the embodiments are detailed descriptions of the technical solution of the present application, rather than limitations on the technical solution of the present application. In the absence of conflict, the embodiments of the present application and the technical features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0024] The term "and / or" in this article is only a description of the association relationship of the associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in this article generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0025] Embodiment 1

[0026] The embodiment of the present invention provides a device for multiple machines to share RAID functions, such as Figure 1 As shown, the device comprises:

[0027] A first server 1, wherein the first server 1 has a first hard disk 2;

[0028] An I / O board, the I / O board is connected to the first server 1;

[0029] Wherein, the I / O board includes:

[0030] A PCIe bridge chip 5, wherein the PCIe bridge chip 5 is connected to the first server 1;

[0031] A RAID chip 6, wherein the RAID chip 6 is connected to the PCIe bridge chip 5;

[0032] A first controller 7 , wherein the first controller 7 is disposed inside the RAID chip 6 , wherein the first hard disk 2 is configured through the first controller 7 .

[0033] Furthermore, the device also includes: a second server 3 , the second server 3 is connected to the PCIe bridge chip 5 , and the second server 3 has a second hard disk 4 .

[0034] Furthermore, the RAID chip 6 also includes: a second controller 8, which is arranged inside the RAID chip 6, wherein the second hard disk 4 is configured through the second controller 8.

[0035] Furthermore, the second server 3 is arranged in parallel with the first server 1 .

[0036] Furthermore, the PCIe bridge chip 5 is communicatively connected with the first server 1 and the second server 3 through NTB technology.

[0037] Specifically, RAID is the abbreviation of Redundant Arrays of Independent Disks, which is sometimes referred to as disk array. Simply put, the RAID is a technology that combines many independent disks in different ways to form a disk group with huge capacity, thereby providing higher storage capacity and data backup than a single hard disk. Its data backup function is that once the user data is damaged, the damaged data can be restored using the backup information, thereby ensuring the security and reliability of the user data. For the user, the composed disk group is like a hard disk, which can be partitioned and formatted, etc. The operation of the disk array is the same as that of a single hard disk. The difference is that the storage speed of the disk array is much higher than that of a single hard disk, and it can also provide automatic data backup function. In traditional technology, the RAID chip 6 is built into a machine. In order to enable the RAID chip 6 to be used by multiple machines, such as Figure 1As shown, in the embodiment of the present invention, an I / O board (dashed line part) is designed separately, and then the PCIe bridge chip 5 and the RAID chip 6 are built into the I / O board, wherein the I / O board is an input / output circuit board, which is powered separately; PCIe is called peripheral component interconnect express in English, which is a high-speed serial computer expansion bus standard proposed by Intel in 2001 to replace the old PCI, PCI-X and AGP bus standards. PCIe bridge chip 5 is a PCIe Switch chip, which, as the most advanced productivity, has been widely used in traditional storage systems and a small number of brands / models of server platforms. The PCIe bridge chip 5 communicates with multiple servers through NTB technology, where NTB is the abbreviation of the English letters Non-transparent bridge, which means "non-transparent bridge". In traditional technology, the multiple servers connected cannot communicate directly because they are in different partitions. In order to meet this demand, NTB technology has emerged. Its basic principle is address translation. Because two different systems have their own address spaces and overlap, as long as the corresponding data packets are mapped and translated within the PCIe bridge chip 5, communication between the two parties can be achieved. The NTB technology can control the signals on the PCIe bridge chip 5 by software, can support multiple servers at the same time, and can also concentrate the PCIe signals connected to other servers on a certain server to increase the transmission bandwidth. In the embodiment of the present invention, the example of connecting to two servers is used for explanation. Specifically, the first server 1 and the second server 3 are both connected to the PCIe bridge chip 5, and the RAID chip 6 is externally mounted on the PCIe bridge chip 5, so that the first server 1 and the second server 3 can both establish a connection with the RAID chip 6, and the RAID chip 6 can respectively configure resources for the first hard disk 2 and the second hard disk 4 through the internal first controller 7 and the second controller 8. Thus, the technical effect of realizing that the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, increasing utilization efficiency, reducing costs, and dynamically allocating RAID chip configuration resources through software is achieved.

[0038] Embodiment 2

[0039] The embodiment of the present invention also provides a method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, such as Figure 2 As shown, the method includes:

[0040] Step 110: Obtaining the number information of the servers to be accessed;

[0041] Step 120: Obtaining the quantity information of the hard disks to be combined according to the quantity information of the servers to be connected;

[0042] Step 130: According to the information about the number of hard disks to be combined, a corresponding number of controllers are set inside the RAID chip 6;

[0043] Step 140: The RAID chip 6 configures the hard disks to be combined into a logical hard disk through the controller;

[0044] Step 150: the server to be connected sends data to the PCIe bridge chip 5;

[0045] Step 160: the PCIe bridge chip 5 transmits the received data to the RAID chip 6;

[0046] Step 170: The RAID chip 6 stores the data to the logical hard disk through the controller.

[0047] Furthermore, the number of the servers to be accessed is at least one.

[0048] Furthermore, the communication connection between the PCIe bridge chip 5 and the server to be connected is dynamically adjusted through the NTB technology.

[0049] Specifically, first, the number of servers to be accessed is obtained, wherein the servers to be accessed may be one or more, and then the number of hard disks on the servers to be accessed is obtained according to the number of servers to be accessed, and then a corresponding number of controllers are added inside the RAID chip 6, and the RAID chip 6 configures the hard disks to be combined into a logical hard disk through several of the controllers. Specifically, the server to be accessed sends the processed data to the PCIe bridge chip 5, and the PCIe bridge chip 5 dynamically adjusts the communication connection with the server to be accessed through the NTB technology, and can support multiple servers at the same time, and can also concentrate the PCIe signals connected to other servers on a certain server to improve the transmission bandwidth. The PCIe bridge chip 5 then transmits the received data to the RAID chip 6, and finally the RAID chip 6 stores the data on the logical hard disk through several of the controllers, thereby achieving the technical effect of realizing that the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, increasing utilization efficiency, reducing costs, and dynamically allocating RAID chip configuration resources through software.

[0050] The above one or more technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application have at least one or more of the following technical effects:

[0051] An embodiment of the present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, the device comprising:

[0052] The embodiment of the present invention provides a device and method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, the device comprising: a first server, the first server having a first hard disk; an I / O board, the I / O board connected to the first server; wherein the I / O board comprises: a PCIe bridge chip, the PCIe bridge chip connected to the first server; a RAID chip, the RAID chip connected to the PCIe bridge chip; a first controller, the first controller is arranged inside the RAID chip, wherein the first hard disk is configured by the first controller. The technical problem in the prior art that the machine with the RAID card inserted must be turned on and the cover cannot be closed due to the RAID card connecting multiple machines through cables is solved. By adding a PCIe bridge chip, the RAID chip can be used by multiple machines at the same time without cables, the utilization efficiency is increased, the cost is reduced, and the RAID chip configuration resources are dynamically allocated by software.

[0053] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that embodiments of the present invention may be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present invention may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware. Moreover, the present invention may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0054] The present invention is described with reference to flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowchart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of processes and / or blocks in the flowchart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device generate instructions for implementing the processes in the flowchart and / or block diagram. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in a block or multiple blocks.

[0055] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture comprising an instruction device, which implements the process Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A function specified in one or more boxes.

[0056] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A step that specifies a function in one or more boxes.

[0057] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalents, the present invention is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A device for multiple machines to share RAID functions, characterized in that: The device comprises: A first server, wherein the first server has a first hard disk; An I / O board, the I / O board being connected to the first server; Wherein, the I / O board includes: A PCIe bridge chip, wherein the PCIe bridge chip is connected to the first server, and the server to be connected sends data to the PCIe bridge chip; A RAID chip, wherein the RAID chip is connected to the PCIe bridge chip, and the PCIe bridge chip transmits received data to the RAID chip; A first controller, wherein the first controller is disposed inside the RAID chip, wherein the first hard disk is configured by the first controller; The device also includes: a second server, the second server being connected to the PCIe bridge chip and having a second hard disk; The PCIe bridge chip is connected to the first server and the second server through NTB technology; The RAID chip also includes: a second controller, the second controller being disposed inside the RAID chip, wherein the second hard disk is configured by the second controller; The second server is arranged in parallel with the first server.

2. A method for multiple machines to share RAID functions, characterized in that: The method comprises: Obtain information on the number of servers to be accessed; According to the quantity information of the servers to be connected, obtaining the quantity information of the hard disks to be combined; According to the information about the number of hard disks to be combined, a corresponding number of controllers are set inside the RAID chip; The RAID chip configures the hard disks to be combined into a logical hard disk through the controller; The server to be connected sends the data to the PCIe bridge chip; The PCIe bridge chip transmits the received data to the RAID chip; The RAID chip stores the data to the logical hard disk through the controller; Dynamically adjust the communication connection between the PCIe bridge chip and the server to be connected through the NTB technology; The number of the servers to be accessed is at least one.

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