Computing nodes and computing devices

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a kind of computing node and computing device, it is related to computing device technical field.The computing node includes: shell, mainboard and network card, mainboard is housed in the inside of shell, network card is set to the outside of shell, the inside of shell is also used to house liquid cooling working substance;Network card is electrically connected with mainboard by wall cable that penetrates shell wall, wall cable and shell wall are sealed between arrangement.Thereby, network card and the liquid cooling working substance in the inside of shell can be isolated, to avoid the influence of liquid cooling working substance on backplane connector on network card, and then be conducive to guarantee the high-speed transmission rate between network card and backplane.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of computing device technology, and in particular to a computing node and computing device. Background Technology

[0002] Servers possess high-speed computing power, long-term reliable operation capabilities, strong external data throughput, and better scalability, enabling them to provide computing or application services to other clients on the network. A server cluster brings together multiple servers to provide services. These servers can perform parallel computing to achieve high computing speeds, or they can back each other up to ensure that the failure of any one server does not affect the normal operation of the entire cluster.

[0003] In related technologies, server clusters include a backplane. The server includes a housing and a motherboard and network interface cards (NICs) housed within it. The NICs connect to the motherboard via a PCIe interface and have QSFP (or OSFP) connectors. These QSFP (or OSFP) connectors connect to the backplane connectors via cables, and the backplane connectors connect to the backplane. In immersion liquid cooling scenarios, both the motherboard and NICs are submerged in the liquid coolant within the housing. The impedance of the QSFP (or OSFP) connectors on the NICs drops in the liquid coolant, affecting the transmission rate between the NIC and the backplane.

[0004] Therefore, improving the transmission rate between the network card and the backplane in immersion liquid cooling scenarios has become an urgent problem to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a computing node and computing device that can solve the problem of low transmission rate between network card and backplane in immersion liquid cooling scenarios.

[0006] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a computing node, the computing node comprising: a housing, a motherboard, and a network interface card (NIC), the motherboard being housed inside the housing, the NIC being disposed outside the housing, and the housing being further used to house a liquid cooling medium; the NIC being electrically connected to the motherboard via a through-wall cable penetrating the housing wall, the through-wall cable being sealed to the housing wall.

[0007] The computing node provided in this application includes a housing, a motherboard, and a network card. By housing the motherboard inside the housing and placing the network card outside the housing, the network card is electrically connected to the motherboard through a through-wall cable that passes through the housing wall. The through-wall cable and the housing wall are sealed, thereby isolating the network card from the liquid cooling medium inside the housing. This prevents the backplane connector on the network card from being affected by the liquid cooling medium, which in turn helps to ensure a high-speed transmission rate between the network card and the backplane.

[0008] As described above, the computing node may optionally include a top wall and a bottom wall disposed opposite to each other, and a side wall surrounding the top wall and the bottom wall; a portion of the side wall is recessed toward the interior of the housing to form a mounting groove; wherein the bottom wall or the top wall exposed outside the housing serves as the side groove wall of the mounting groove; the network card is disposed on the side groove wall.

[0009] By setting a recess in part of the side wall of the housing to form a mounting groove, the network card is placed on the side wall of the mounting groove, which not only facilitates the installation of the network card, but also allows the mounting groove to protect the network card.

[0010] As described above, in the computing node, optionally, the network interface card (NIC) includes a NIC circuit board and a network chip; the NIC circuit board includes a first surface and a second surface disposed opposite to each other; wherein the second surface of the NIC circuit board faces the side slot wall; the network chip is disposed on the first surface and electrically connected to the NIC circuit board; the computing node further includes an elastic element; the NIC is connected to the side slot wall through the elastic element; wherein one end of the elastic element is connected to the second surface of the NIC circuit board; and the other end of the elastic element is connected to the side slot wall.

[0011] By configuring the network card to be connected to the side groove wall via an elastic element, one end of the elastic element is connected to the second surface of the network card circuit board, and the other end of the elastic element is connected to the side groove wall, so that the network card can float relative to the housing, so as to facilitate the connection between the network card and the backplane.

[0012] As described above, the computing node may optionally have a first opening and a second opening on the shell wall. The first opening is connected to an inlet pipe, and the second opening is connected to an outlet pipe. The inlet pipe is used to deliver liquid cooling medium into the shell. The outlet pipe is used to deliver liquid cooling medium to the outside of the shell. The network chip is equipped with a liquid cooling radiator, which is connected in series in the path of the inlet pipe.

[0013] By placing a liquid cooler on the network chip and connecting it in series in the liquid inlet pipe, not only can the heat dissipation of the network chip be guaranteed, but also the liquid cooler does not need to be provided with a separate liquid inlet and outlet pipe, which simplifies the structure of the computing node.

[0014] As described above, the computing node may optionally include a first pipe section and a second pipe section; one end of the first pipe section is connected to the liquid inlet of the liquid-cooled radiator; the other end of the first pipe section is connected to a liquid-cooled working fluid distribution device; one end of the second pipe section is connected to the first opening; the other end of the second pipe section is connected to the liquid outlet of the liquid-cooled radiator; wherein, in the first pipe section, at least a portion of the pipe section near the liquid inlet of the liquid-cooled radiator is a flexible pipe; and in the second pipe section, at least a portion of the pipe section near the liquid outlet of the liquid-cooled radiator is a flexible pipe.

[0015] By setting at least a portion of the first pipe section near the liquid cooler inlet as a flexible pipe, and setting at least a portion of the second pipe section near the liquid cooler outlet as a flexible pipe, the flexible pipes can ensure the free floating of the network card when it is floatingly connected to the housing.

[0016] Optionally, the network chip in the computing node described above is equipped with a wind-cooled heat sink.

[0017] By installing a heatsink on the network chip, the network chip can dissipate heat through the heatsink, thus ensuring the performance of the network chip.

[0018] Optionally, in the computing node described above, the network interface card (NIC) is encased in a metal shell, and the network chip contacts the metal shell via a thermal interface material; the NIC is connected to the side groove wall through the metal shell.

[0019] By encasing the network card in a metal shell, the network chip comes into contact with the metal shell through a thermal interface material. This not only allows the network chip to dissipate heat through the metal shell, eliminating the need for a heat sink, but also provides protection for the network card circuit board and the network chip.

[0020] As described above, the elastic element may optionally include at least one of a spring, a coil spring, a coiled spring, or an elastic rope.

[0021] By incorporating elastic elements, including at least one of springs, coil springs, or elastic ropes, the choice of elastic elements can be tailored to specific needs, thereby increasing the flexibility in manufacturing computational nodes.

[0022] Optionally, in the computing node described above, the network card is fixedly provided with a backplane connector at one end away from the through-wall cable, and the backplane connector is used for detachable connection between the computing node and the backplane.

[0023] By fixing a backplane connector at the end of the network card away from the through-wall cable, the backplane connector is used to detachably connect the computing node to the backplane. This shortens the high-speed link channel between the network card and the backplane to the network chip-backplane connector. Compared with the high-speed link channel between the network card and the backplane in related technologies, the loss of the high-speed link channel in this embodiment is greatly reduced, thereby improving the high-speed transmission rate and reducing the implementation cost of high-speed transmission.

[0024] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a computing device, including a backplane and a computing node as described in any of the preceding claims; the computing node is connected to the backplane via a backplane connector.

[0025] The computing device provided in this application embodiment includes the aforementioned computing node. The beneficial effects of the aforementioned computing node are also present in the computing device of this application embodiment, and will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0026] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0027] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure connecting a computing node to a backplane in a related technology.

[0028] Figure 2 A top view of a computing node provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1 ;

[0029] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A side view diagram of the computing node provided in the diagram;

[0030] Figure 4 A top view of a computing node provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 2 ;

[0031] Figure 5 A top view of a computing node provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 3 ;

[0032] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a computing device provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0033] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0034] 110' - Motherboard; 111' - Main circuit board; 112' - CPU; 113' - PCIe slot;

[0035] 120' - Network interface card (NIC); 121' - NIC circuit board; 122' - Network chip; 123' - PCIe connector; 124' - QSFP connector; 125' - Connector cable; 126' - Backplane connector;

[0036] 210' - Backplane cable; 220' - Backplane connector;

[0037] 100 - Computation nodes;

[0038] 110 - Motherboard; 111 - Main circuit board; 112 - CPU;

[0039] 120 - Network interface card (NIC); 121 - NIC circuit board; 122 - Network chip; 1231 - Through-wall cable; 1232 - Cable connector; 126 - Backplane connector;

[0040] 130 - Housing; 131 - Mounting slot; 132 - Liquid inlet pipe; 133 - Liquid outlet pipe; 134 - Spring; 1351 - First quick connector; 1352 - Second quick connector;

[0041] 140 - Liquid-cooled radiator;

[0042] 150-Air-cooled radiator;

[0043] 200 - Backplane; 300 - Computing device; 400 - Switching node. Detailed Implementation

[0044] The terminology used in the implementation section of this application is for the purpose of explaining specific embodiments of this application only, and is not intended to limit this application.

[0045] Printed circuit boards (PCBs), also known as circuit boards or printed circuit boards, provide electrical connections for passive electronic devices. Processor chips are the most crucial component of electronic devices, responsible for logic processing and controlling the normal operation of the entire system. In electronic devices, these chips are primarily fixed to the PCB in the form of chip packages to ensure stable conductivity between the chip inside the package and the external PCB. Flip chip technology is both a chip interconnection technology and an ideal chip bonding technology, and it has become a commonly used packaging method in high-end devices and high-density packaging fields.

[0046] The high-speed serial computing node expansion bus standard (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express, or PCIe for short) allows the PCIe interface to be located on the motherboard for inserting network cards or other expansion cards.

[0047] Network Interface Card (NIC): A single board used for communication between servers. It typically uses a quad small form-factor pluggable (QSFP) interface or an eight-channel small form-factor pluggable (OSFP) interface to achieve 400G / 800G bandwidth network connections, with a single channel signal rate of up to 112G.

[0048] Quick-connect couplings: These are connectors that allow for water-based connections and disconnections, maintaining a liquid seal in both connected and disconnected states, and supporting single-board plug-and-play maintenance. Their operation typically includes self-locking and blind-mating types. Self-locking quick-connect couplings require manual insertion and disconnection of both ends; blind-mating couplings are operated directly via a housing slide rail and have a separate positioning mechanism.

[0049] Immersion liquid cooling is a typical direct contact liquid cooling method. It involves immersing heat-generating electronic components in a liquid cooling medium, relying on the flow and circulation of the liquid cooling medium to remove heat.

[0050] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure in the related technology where computing nodes are connected to a backplane.

[0051] Reference Figure 1 As shown, the computing node includes a housing (not shown) and a motherboard 110' and a network interface card 120' housed inside the housing. The motherboard 110' includes a main circuit board 111' and a central processing unit (CPU) 112' and a PCIe slot 113' electrically connected to the main circuit board 111'. The CPU 112' and the PCIe slot 113' are connected via metal traces in the main circuit board 111'. The main circuit board 111' can also be electrically connected to electronic components used to implement server functions, such as a graphics processing unit (GPU), memory, capacitors, resistors, and a power supply.

[0052] The network interface card (NIC) 120' includes a NIC circuit board 121' and a network chip 122' electrically connected to the NIC circuit board 121'. The NIC circuit board 121' has a PCIe connector 123', which connects to the network chip 122' via traces within the NIC circuit board 121'. The NIC 120' is plugged into the PCIe slot of the main circuit board 111' via the PCIe connector 123'. The NIC circuit board 121' also has a QSFP connector 124' (or OSFP connector), which connects to the network chip 122' via traces within the NIC circuit board 121'. The QSFP connector 124' (or OSFP connector) is electrically connected to the backplane connector 126' via connector cable 125'. The backplane connector 220' corresponding to the backplane connector 126' is electrically connected to a backplane (not shown) via backplane cable 210'.

[0053] However, in Figure 1 In the related technologies shown, firstly, the high-speed link between the network card 120' and the backplane is network chip 122'—QSFP connector 124' (or OSFP connector)—connector cable 125'—backplane connector 126', and this high-speed link has relatively high loss. Secondly, when the server operates in an immersion liquid-cooled environment, the casing contains liquid cooling medium, and both the motherboard 110' and the network card 120' are immersed in the liquid cooling medium. The impedance of the QSFP connector 124' (or OSFP connector) on the network card 120' drops in the liquid cooling medium, resulting in a decrease in transmission rate.

[0054] In view of this, embodiments of this application provide a computing node, which includes a housing, a motherboard, and a network interface card (NIC). By housing the motherboard inside the housing and placing the NIC outside the housing, the NIC is electrically connected to the motherboard through a through-wall cable that passes through the housing wall. The through-wall cable and the housing wall are sealed, thereby isolating the NIC from the liquid cooling medium inside the housing. This prevents the backplane connector on the NIC from being affected by the liquid cooling medium, thus helping to ensure a high-speed transmission rate between the NIC and the backplane.

[0055] In addition, by fixing the backplane connector on the network card, the computing node can be detachably connected to the backplane through the backplane connector, thereby shortening the high-speed link channel between the network card and the backplane to the network chip-backplane connector. Compared with the high-speed link channel between the network card and the backplane in related technologies, the loss of the high-speed link channel in the embodiment of this application is greatly reduced, thereby improving the high-speed transmission rate and reducing the implementation cost of high-speed transmission.

[0056] To make the objectives, features, and advantages of the embodiments of this application more apparent and understandable, the technical solutions of the computing nodes and computing devices provided in the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are merely a part of the implementation methods of the technical solutions of this application, and not all of them. Therefore, based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application. In the absence of conflict, the following embodiments and features can be combined with each other.

[0057] Figure 2 A top view of a computing node provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1 .

[0058] Reference Figure 2 As shown, this application embodiment provides a computing node 100, which includes a housing 130 and a motherboard 110. The housing 130 may include a top wall, a bottom wall, and a side wall fixedly connected between the top wall and the bottom wall. The top wall, bottom wall, and side wall can enclose a receiving space, and the motherboard 110 can be received within the receiving space of the housing 130. It should be noted that... Figure 2 The diagram shown is a top view of the computation node 100 after removing the top wall of the shell 130.

[0059] The motherboard 110 includes a main circuit board 111 and electronic components electrically connected to the main circuit board 111. These electronic components may include, but are not limited to, a CPU 112, GPU, memory, capacitors, resistors, and power supplies used to implement the corresponding functions of the computing node 100. For example, some electronic components may be electrically connected to the main circuit board 111 by soldering, while others may be electrically connected to the main circuit board 111 by plugging in.

[0060] When the computing node 100 is powered on, the CPU 112, memory, and other high-power electronic components on the main circuit board 111 generate a large amount of heat. To ensure the reliable operation of the computing node 100, it is necessary to dissipate the heat generated by the electronic components inside the casing 130 of the computing node 100 in a timely manner to prevent the temperature of the electronic components from continuously rising and affecting the normal operation of the computing node. In this embodiment, the computing node 100 can use immersion liquid cooling to cool the electronic components inside the casing 130. In the immersion liquid cooling scenario, the housing space of the casing 130 contains a liquid cooling medium, and the main circuit board 111 and the electronic components electrically connected to the main circuit board 111 are immersed in the liquid cooling medium. The flow of the liquid cooling medium can carry away the heat generated by the electronic components in the casing 130.

[0061] It is understood that a sealed accommodating space can be formed inside the housing 130. The housing 130 can be provided with a first opening for the liquid cooling medium to enter its accommodating space and a second opening for the liquid cooling medium to exit its accommodating space. The first opening and the second opening can be provided on the side wall of the housing 130 to avoid increasing the height of the housing 130. For example, the first opening and the second opening can be provided on the same side wall of the housing 130, or the first opening and the second opening can be provided on different side walls of the housing 130.

[0062] The first opening can be fitted with a first quick connector 1351, which extends partly or entirely to the outside of the housing 130. The end of the first quick connector 1351 opposite to the first opening is connected to the inlet pipe 132, and the first quick connector controls whether the inlet pipe 132 is connected to or disconnected from the first opening. The second opening can be fitted with a second quick connector 1352, which extends partly or entirely to the outside of the housing 130. The end of the first quick connector 1351 opposite to the second opening is connected to the outlet pipe 133, and the second quick connector controls whether the outlet pipe 133 is connected to or disconnected from the second opening.

[0063] The liquid cooling medium can enter the housing 130 through the inlet pipe 132 and the first quick connector 1351, and can leave the housing 130 through the second quick connector 1352 and the outlet pipe 133, thereby removing heat from the housing 130 and cooling the electronic components housed in the housing 130, thus ensuring the stable operation of the computing node 100.

[0064] The computing node 100 in this embodiment further includes a network interface card (NIC) 120, which is disposed outside the housing 130. Specifically, the NIC 120 includes a NIC circuit board 121 and a network chip 122. The network chip 122 can be electrically connected to the first surface of the NIC circuit board 121. For example, the network chip 122 can be soldered to the NIC circuit board 121 to achieve electrical connection. The second surface of the NIC circuit board 121 can be fixedly connected or floatingly connected to the housing 130. It is understood that the first and second surfaces of the NIC circuit board are two surfaces arranged opposite to each other.

[0065] In one possible implementation, the sidewall of the housing 130 may be provided with a mounting groove 131 recessed towards the interior of the housing 130. The second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be fixedly connected to or floatingly connected to one side wall of the mounting groove 131. For example, the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be fixedly connected to one side wall of the mounting groove 131 by means of screw connection, adhesive connection or snap-fit ​​connection; or, the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be floatingly connected to one side wall of the mounting groove 131 by elastic elements such as helical spring, tower spring, coil spring, elastic rope, etc., so as to facilitate the connection between the network card 120 and the backplate 200.

[0066] In one possible implementation, the bottom or top wall exposed outside the housing can serve as the side wall of the mounting slot; the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 can be connected to this side wall by means of screw connection, adhesive bonding or snap-fit ​​connection.

[0067] In another possible implementation (not shown), the housing 130 may not have a mounting slot, and the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be directly fixedly connected to or floatingly connected to the housing 130. For example, the housing 130 may include a top wall, a bottom wall, and a side wall surrounding and connected between the top and bottom walls; the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be fixedly connected to or floatingly connected to any one of the top wall, bottom wall, or side wall.

[0068] The network card circuit board 121 and the main circuit board 111 of the motherboard 110 can be electrically connected via a through-wall cable 1231 that passes through the wall of the housing 130 to enable signal transmission between the network card 120 and the motherboard 110. For example, the side wall of the housing 130 can be provided with a through hole, through which the through-wall cable 1231 extends from the outside of the housing 130 to the inside of the housing 130. The through-wall cable 1231 can be flexible, thus facilitating not only flexible wiring of the through-wall cable 1231 inside and outside the housing 130, but also facilitating the floating configuration of the network card 120.

[0069] Optionally, the first end of the wall-penetrating cable 1231 can be electrically connected to the network card circuit board 121 by soldering, or the first end of the wall-penetrating cable 1231 can be electrically connected to the network card circuit board 121 via a connector. It is understood that the first end of the wall-penetrating cable 1231 and the network chip 122 can be connected via traces in the network card circuit board 121. The second end of the wall-penetrating cable 1231 can be electrically connected to the main circuit board 111 of the motherboard 110 via cable connector 1232, or the second end of the wall-penetrating cable 1231 can be electrically connected to the main circuit board 111 of the motherboard 110 by soldering.

[0070] Understandably, to ensure the airtightness of the housing 130 and prevent the liquid cooling medium contained in the housing 130 from flowing out through the through hole in the wall of the housing 130 for the through-wall cable 1231, a seal can be provided between the edge of the housing 130 wall near the through hole and the through-wall cable 1231. For example, an annular sealing ring can be provided between the edge of the housing 130 wall near the through hole and the through-wall cable 1231 for sealing; alternatively, a ring of hot melt adhesive can be provided between the edge of the housing 130 wall near the through hole and the through-wall cable 1231 for sealing; or, the insulating sheath of the through-wall cable 1231 can be press-fitted with the through hole to achieve a seal.

[0071] A backplane connector 126 is also fixedly mounted on the network card circuit board 121, which is used for detachable connection with the backplane 200. For example, the backplane connector 126 can be soldered to the edge of the network card circuit board 121 for detachable connection with the backplane 200; the backplane connector 126 and the first end of the through-wall cable 1231 can be electrically connected to opposite ends of the network card circuit board 121 to facilitate the arrangement and connection of the network card 120 between the motherboard 110 and the backplane 200. It is understood that the backplane connector 126 and the network chip 122 can be connected via traces in the network card circuit board 121.

[0072] The backplane 200 mentioned in this application embodiment can be a circuit board backplane 200 or a cable backplane 200. The backplane 200 can be connected to the backplane 200 plug through the backplane 200 cable. The backplane connector 126 is detachably connected to the backplane 200 plug to realize signal transmission between the network card 120 and the backplane 200.

[0073] In this embodiment, by placing the network card 120 outside the housing 130 and sealing the through-wall cable 1231 connecting the network card 120 and the motherboard 110 with the housing wall of the housing 130, the network card 120 can be isolated from the liquid cooling medium inside the housing 130, so as to avoid the backplane connector 126 on the network card 120 being affected by the liquid cooling medium, thereby helping to ensure the high-speed transmission rate between the network card 120 and the backplane 200.

[0074] In addition, by fixing the backplane connector 126 on the network card 120, the backplane connector 126 is used to detachably connect to the backplane 200. This shortens the high-speed link channel between the network card 120 and the backplane 200 to the network chip 122—backplane connector 126. Compared with the high-speed link channel between the network card 120 and the backplane 200 in the related art, the loss of the high-speed link channel in this embodiment is greatly reduced, which not only helps to improve the high-speed transmission rate, but also helps to reduce the implementation cost of high-speed transmission.

[0075] Figure 3 for Figure 2 The diagram shows the side view of the computing node 100 provided in the diagram.

[0076] Reference Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment of the application, the side wall of the housing 130 of the computing node 100 may be provided with a mounting groove 131 recessed towards the interior of the housing 130, and the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be floatingly connected to one side wall of the mounting groove 131. For example, the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 may be floatingly connected to the bottom wall or top wall of the mounting groove 131 via a spring 134, wherein the bottom wall of the mounting groove 131 may be part of the bottom wall of the housing 130, and the top wall of the mounting groove 131 may be part of the top wall of the housing 130.

[0077] In one specific embodiment, the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 can be parallel to and spaced apart from the bottom (top) groove wall of the mounting groove 131. One end of the opposite ends of the spring 134 can be connected to the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 by screw connection or snap-fit, and the other end of the opposite ends of the spring 134 can be connected to the side of the bottom (top) groove wall of the mounting groove 131 facing the network card circuit board 121 by screw connection or snap-fit. There can be four springs 134, which can be arranged in a rectangular pattern between the second surface of the network card circuit board 121 and the groove wall of the mounting groove 131 near the bottom wall of the housing 130.

[0078] The number of springs 134 can be set to one, two, three, or other quantities according to actual needs. The arrangement of two, three, or other quantities of springs 134 can be set to a straight line, a ring, a triangle, or a quadrilateral, which will not be elaborated here. In this embodiment, the network card 120 is floatingly connected to the mounting groove 131 outside the housing 130, which not only facilitates the reliable connection of the network card 120 to the backplate 200, but also helps to protect the network card 120.

[0079] In other possible implementations (not shown), the second surface of the network interface card (NIC) circuit board 121 can be fixedly connected to the side wall of the mounting groove 131 near the bottom wall of the housing 130. For example, the second surface of the NIC circuit board 121 can be fixedly connected to the side wall of the mounting groove 131 near the bottom wall of the housing 130 by means of screws, adhesive, or snap-fit ​​connections. In this case, a reliable connection between the NIC 120 and the backplate 200 can be ensured by moving the backplate 200 or the connector extending from the backplate 200.

[0080] Figure 4 A top view of a computing node provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 2 .

[0081] Reference Figure 4 As shown in the embodiment of this application, a computing node 100 is also provided, which is connected to... Figure 2 The main difference of the computing node 100 shown is that the computing node 100 in this embodiment of the application also includes a liquid cooling radiator 140.

[0082] Specifically, the computing node 100 in this embodiment includes a housing 130, a motherboard 110, and a network card 120. The motherboard 110 is housed inside the housing 130, and the network card 120 is disposed outside the housing 130. The network card 120 and the motherboard 110 are electrically connected through a through-wall cable 1231 that passes through the wall of the housing 130. The through-wall cable 1231 and the edge of the housing 130 near the through-wall cable 1231 are sealed together, thereby enabling signal transmission between the network card 120 and the motherboard 110, and isolating the network card 120 from the liquid cooling medium inside the housing 130.

[0083] The network interface card (NIC) 120 includes a NIC circuit board 121, a network chip 122, and a backplane connector 126. The network chip 122 is electrically connected to the first surface of the NIC circuit board 121, and the backplane connector 126 can be disposed at the edge of the NIC circuit board 121. The network chip 122 and the backplane connector 126 are connected by metal traces in the NIC circuit board 121. The second surface of the NIC circuit board 121 can be fixedly connected to or floatingly connected to the housing 130.

[0084] The liquid cooling heat sink 140 of this application embodiment can be disposed on the side of the network chip 122 away from the network card circuit board 121. A thermal interface material can be disposed between the liquid cooling heat sink 140 and the network chip 122 so that the network chip 122 and the liquid cooling heat sink 140 are in close contact, so that the heat generated by the network chip 122 can be quickly conducted to the liquid cooling heat sink 140, thereby facilitating the heat dissipation of the network chip 122.

[0085] In one possible implementation, when the computing node 100 of this embodiment uses immersion liquid cooling to cool the electronic components inside the housing 130, the housing 130 is provided with a first opening for the liquid cooling medium to enter and a second opening for the liquid cooling medium to exit. The first and second openings can be located on the side wall of the housing 130 to avoid increasing the height of the housing 130. For example, the first and second openings can be located on the same side wall of the housing 130, or the first and second openings can be located on different side walls of the housing 130.

[0086] The first opening can be fitted with a first quick connector, which extends part or all of the first quick connector to the outside of the housing 130 for quick connection or disconnection with the external liquid inlet pipe 132; the second opening can be fitted with a second quick connector, which extends part or all of the second quick connector to the outside of the housing 130 for quick connection or disconnection with the external liquid outlet pipe 133.

[0087] The liquid-cooled radiator 140 of this embodiment can be connected in series in the liquid inlet pipe 132. For example, the liquid inlet pipe 132 may include a first pipe section and a second pipe section. The first pipe section connects the inlet end of the liquid-cooled radiator 140 and the liquid cooling working fluid distribution device (not shown in the figure), and the second pipe section connects the outlet end of the liquid-cooled radiator 140 and the first opening of the housing 130. For example, the portion of the first pipe section near the liquid-cooled radiator 140 or the entire first pipe section is a flexible pipe, and the portion of the second pipe section near the liquid-cooled radiator 140 or the entire second pipe section is a flexible pipe. This allows the flexible pipes to ensure the free floating of the network card 120 when it is floatingly connected to the housing 130.

[0088] In practical applications, the liquid cooling medium first enters the liquid cooler 140 through the first section of the inlet pipe 132, then leaves the liquid cooler 140 through the second section of the inlet pipe 132 and enters the internal accommodating space of the housing 130. Finally, it leaves the accommodating space of the housing 130 through the outlet pipe 133. This process removes heat from the network chip 122 and the accommodating space of the housing 130, thereby achieving the purpose of cooling the network chip 122 and the electronic components housed in the accommodating space of the housing 130, and thus ensuring the performance of the network card 120 and the motherboard 110.

[0089] In another possible implementation, the liquid cooler 140 may have independent pipes for inlet and outlet of the liquid coolant to cool the network chip 122.

[0090] Figure 5 A top view of a computing node provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 3 .

[0091] Reference Figure 5 As shown in the embodiment of this application, a computing node 100 is also provided, which is connected to... Figure 2 The main difference of the computing node 100 shown is that the computing node 100 in this embodiment of the application also includes an air-cooled heat sink 150.

[0092] Specifically, the computing node 100 in this embodiment includes a housing 130, a motherboard 110, and a network card 120. The motherboard 110 is housed inside the housing 130, and the network card 120 is disposed outside the housing 130. The network card 120 and the motherboard 110 are electrically connected through a through-wall cable 1231 that passes through the wall of the housing 130. The through-wall cable 1231 and the edge of the housing 130 near the through-wall cable 1231 are sealed together, thereby enabling signal transmission between the network card 120 and the motherboard 110, and isolating the network card 120 from the liquid cooling medium inside the housing 130.

[0093] The network interface card (NIC) 120 includes a NIC circuit board 121, a network chip 122, and a backplane connector 126. The network chip 122 is electrically connected to the first surface of the NIC circuit board 121, and the backplane connector 126 can be disposed at the edge of the NIC circuit board 121. The network chip 122 and the backplane connector 126 are connected by metal traces in the NIC circuit board 121. The second surface of the NIC circuit board 121 can be fixedly connected to or floatingly connected to the housing 130.

[0094] The air-cooled heat sink 150 of this application embodiment can be disposed on the side of the network chip 122 away from the network card circuit board 121. A thermal interface material can be disposed between the air-cooled heat sink 150 and the network chip 122 so that the network chip 122 and the air-cooled heat sink 150 are in close contact, so that the heat generated by the network chip 122 can be quickly conducted to the air-cooled heat sink 150, thereby facilitating the heat dissipation of the network chip 122.

[0095] For example, the side of the air-cooled heat sink 150 away from the network chip 122 can be provided with multiple heat dissipation fins to increase the area of ​​convection heat transfer, thereby improving the heat dissipation effect.

[0096] This application embodiment also provides a computing node (not shown), which is connected to... Figure 2 The main difference in the computing node shown is that the network interface card (NIC) of the computing node in this embodiment further includes a metal casing. Both the NIC circuit board and the network chip are housed within the metal casing, and the side of the network chip facing away from the NIC circuit board is bonded to the metal casing. For example, a thermal interface material can be provided between the network chip and the metal casing to ensure a tight bond between them. This allows the heat generated by the network chip to be conducted to and dissipated from the metal casing, thus helping to ensure the performance of the network chip. The NIC can be fixedly or floatingly connected to the casing of the computing node via the metal casing.

[0097] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a computing device provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0098] Reference Figure 6As shown in the illustration, this application embodiment also provides a computing device 300, which may include a backplane 200 and a plurality of computing nodes 100. The backplane connectors of the network interface cards (NICs) of the computing nodes 100 are connected to the backplane 200. The backplane 200 may be a circuit board backplane or a cable backplane. The backplane 200 may have a backplane connector led out from the backplane cable, and the backplane connector is detachably connected to the backplane connector to realize signal transmission between the NIC and the backplane.

[0099] The computing device 300 may further include a switching node 400, which is connected to the backplane 200. Signal exchange between the computing node 100 and the switching node 400 can be achieved through the backplane 200. The switching node 400 can be a switch. (Shell wall)

[0100] In the description of the embodiments of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in the embodiments of this application according to the specific circumstances.

[0101] The terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” or any other variations thereof are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus comprising a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase “comprising one…” does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0102] The terms "first," "second," "third," "fourth," etc. (if present) in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence.

[0103] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and are not intended to limit them. Although the embodiments of this application have been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features. These modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A computing node, characterized in that, The computing node includes: a housing, a motherboard, and a network interface card (NIC). The motherboard is housed inside the housing, and the NIC is disposed outside the housing. The housing also houses a liquid cooling medium. The NIC has a backplane connector. The network card is electrically connected to the motherboard via a through-wall cable that passes through the housing wall. The through-wall cable and the housing wall are sealed together to isolate the network card and the backplane connector from the liquid cooling fluid. The housing includes a top wall and a bottom wall disposed opposite to each other, and a side wall surrounding the top wall and the bottom wall; a portion of the side wall is recessed toward the interior of the housing to form a mounting groove; The bottom wall or the top wall exposed outside the housing serves as the side wall of the mounting groove; the network card is disposed on the side wall. The network card includes a network card circuit board, which includes a first surface and a second surface disposed opposite to each other; the second surface of the network card circuit board is floatingly connected to the housing wall; the through-wall cable is a flexible cable. The shell wall of the housing is provided with a first opening and a second opening. The outside of the first opening is connected to a liquid inlet pipe, and the outside of the second opening is connected to a liquid outlet pipe. The liquid inlet pipe is used to deliver liquid cooling medium into the housing. The liquid outlet pipe is used to deliver liquid cooling medium to the outside of the housing. The network card also includes a network chip; the network chip is equipped with a liquid cooling heat sink, which is connected in series in the path of the liquid inlet pipe; The liquid inlet pipe includes a first pipe section and a second pipe section. The first pipe section is connected between the inlet end of the liquid cooler and the liquid cooling working fluid distribution device, and the second pipe section is connected between the outlet end of the liquid cooler and the first opening of the shell. The first pipe section and the second pipe section are flexible pipes. The flexible pipes are used to enable the network card to float freely.

2. The computing node according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second surface of the network card circuit board faces the side groove wall; the network chip is disposed on the first surface and is electrically connected to the network card circuit board; The computing node also includes a flexible element; the network interface card is connected to the side groove wall through the flexible element. One end of the elastic element is connected to the second surface of the network card circuit board; the other end of the elastic element is connected to the side groove wall.

3. The computing node according to claim 2, characterized in that, The liquid inlet pipe includes a first pipe section and a second pipe section; one end of the first pipe section is connected to the liquid inlet of the liquid-cooled radiator; the other end of the first pipe section is connected to the liquid-cooled working fluid distribution device; and one end of the second pipe section is connected to the first opening. The other end of the second pipe section is connected to the liquid outlet of the liquid-cooled radiator; In the first pipe section, at least a portion of the pipe section near the liquid inlet of the liquid cooler is a flexible pipe; in the second pipe section, at least a portion of the pipe section near the liquid outlet of the liquid cooler is a flexible pipe.

4. The computing node according to claim 2, characterized in that, The network chip is equipped with a fan-cooled heat sink.

5. The computing node according to claim 2, characterized in that, The network card is covered by a metal casing, and the network chip is in contact with the metal casing through a thermal interface material; the network card is connected to the side groove wall through the metal casing.

6. The computing node according to any one of claims 2-5, characterized in that, The elastic element includes at least one of a spring, a coil spring, a coil spring, or an elastic rope.

7. The computing node according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The network card is fixedly equipped with a backplane connector at one end away from the through-wall cable. The backplane connector is used for detachable connection between the computing node and the backplane.

8. A computing device, characterized in that, It includes a backplane and a computing node as described in any one of claims 1-7; the computing node is connected to the backplane via a backplane connector.

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