Identification method of external equipment and server

Abstract

The invention discloses an identification method of external equipment and a server, and relates to the technical field of data transmission. The pin information and the identification information of the external device are obtained through the switching device, the in-place information of the external device is ensured in the pin information processing process, detection is carried out through the target detection strategy, and the in-place information detection accuracy is improved. The identification information of the external equipment with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the final target external equipment, so that the accuracy of identifying the target external equipment is improved, the information of the target external equipment identified and detected by the system firmware is ensured not to change, and the system firmware does not need to be modified according to new hardware configuration information. The configuration information is sent to the pin extension device by using the unified first bus protocol, and the system firmware supports the first bus protocol, so that the interface compatibility of the target external firmware corresponding to the system firmware configuration is realized, and the stability and reliability of the system are improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of data transmission, and in particular to an external device identification method and a server. Background Art

[0002] The communication between the nose server and the tail server generally involves data exchange and control signal transmission. The nose server is used to operate and monitor the status of the server, and the tail server is used to connect to the server's external devices and network.

[0003] In the server architecture, the communication between the head server and the tail server may involve multiple protocols and interfaces, which can be internal communication or external network communication. The communication between the head server and the tail server requires specific hardware support, which will cause incompatibility of interface standards and interface protocols, resulting in transmission interruption or transmission errors during data transmission, reducing the stability and reliability of the system.

[0004] Therefore, how to make the communication interfaces of the head server and the tail server compatible to improve the stability and reliability of the system is an urgent problem to be solved by technical personnel in this field. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an external device identification method and server to solve the problem that the communication interfaces of the head server and the tail server are incompatible, thereby reducing the stability and reliability of the system.

[0006] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides a method for identifying an external device, comprising:

[0007] The pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server are obtained through the pin expansion device of the adapter device; wherein the adapter device is used for data transmission between the head server and the tail server;

[0008] Processing the pin information according to a target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each of the external devices;

[0009] The identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, the configuration information of the target external device is sent to the pin expansion device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol to complete the configuration of the target external device, and data transmission is performed.

[0010] On the one hand, the switching device includes a first connector, a second connector and the pin extension device;

[0011] The head server is connected to the first connector; the tail server is connected to the second connector;

[0012] The first end of the pin extension device is connected to the first connector; the second end of the pin extension device is connected to the second connector.

[0013] On the other hand, the identification information of the external device with normal in-position information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device, including:

[0014] Obtaining hardware identification information from the information table where the reserved identification information is located; wherein the hardware identification information at least includes a manufacturer identification code and a device identification code;

[0015] Determine a first comparison result by comparing the device identification code with the device identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal presence information;

[0016] If the first comparison result is successful, a second comparison result is determined by comparing the manufacturer identification code with the manufacturer identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information;

[0017] If the second comparison result is successful, the external device with the successful second comparison result is used as the target external device.

[0018] On the other hand, the identification information of the external device with normal in-position information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device, including:

[0019] Acquire the first firmware version information supported by the external device in the information table where the reserved identification information is located;

[0020] Acquire second firmware version information corresponding to identification information of an external device with normal in-place information;

[0021] If the first firmware version information includes the second firmware version information, all external devices with normal in-place information are taken as target external devices.

[0022] On the other hand, the pin information is processed according to the target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each of the external devices, including:

[0023] Read the input port status of the pin information of each external device;

[0024] If the input port state is an input state, filtering out the first external device to which the input state belongs;

[0025] In advance, when the input port is not driven, the pull-up resistor of the pin expansion device is used to keep the input pin information of each external device connected to the pin expansion device in a high level state;

[0026] When the pin information corresponding to each of the external devices is converted from a high level state to a low level state within a preset time, the external device converted from a high level state to a low level state is determined as the second external device;

[0027] determining whether the first external device is the same as the second external device;

[0028] If they are different, selecting a third external device that is the same as the first external device from the second external device; if they are the same, updating the second external device to the third external device;

[0029] Determining whether an interrupt signal corresponding to an interrupt output pin of the pin extension device is activated;

[0030] If activated, the presence information of the third external device is determined to be in a normal state.

[0031] On the other hand, data transmission to the target external device is achieved by connecting the first connector to the second connector;

[0032] The first connector and the second connector are connected via a second bus protocol; the signal types supported by the second bus protocol at least include a receiving signal, a sending signal, a clock signal and a setting signal.

[0033] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention further provides a server, comprising a head server, a tail server and a switching device; a first end of the switching device is connected to the head server, and a second end is connected to the tail server;

[0034] The head server is used to obtain the pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server through the pin expansion device of the adapter device; process the pin information according to the target detection strategy to determine the in-place information of each external device; compare the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, send the configuration information of the target external device to the pin expansion device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol;

[0035] The tail server is used to receive the configuration information of the target external device to complete the configuration of the target external device and perform data transmission.

[0036] On the one hand, it also includes an external graphics card box; the external graphics card box is located at the rear server end;

[0037] The first end of the external graphics card box is connected to the second end of the adapter device;

[0038] The second end of the external graphics card box is connected to the external device of the tail server.

[0039] On the other hand, it also includes a control platform; the control platform is located at the head server end;

[0040] The control platform is connected to the pin extension device;

[0041] The control platform is used to output the identification information of the target external device.

[0042] On the other hand, retimer cards are also included;

[0043] The first end of the retimer card is connected to the head server, and the second end is connected to the tail server; wherein the retimer card and the switching device are located on the same circuit board;

[0044] The retimer card is used to receive the first signal of the head server, regenerate and reset the first signal to obtain a second signal, and send the second signal to the tail server. The present invention provides a method for identifying external devices, which obtains the pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server through the pin expansion device of the adapter device; wherein the adapter device is used for data transmission between the head server and the tail server; the pin information is processed according to the target detection strategy to determine the in-place information of each external device; the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, the configuration information of the target external device is sent to the pin expansion device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol to complete the configuration of the target external device, and data transmission is performed.

[0045] The beneficial effects of the present invention are that the pin information and identification information of the external device obtained through the adapter device are provided, the in-place information of the external device is ensured during the detection and processing of the pin information, and the detection is performed through the target detection strategy to improve the accuracy of the in-place information detection. Furthermore, the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the final target external device, thereby improving the accuracy of identifying the target external device, and helping to ensure that the information of the target external device identified and detected by the system firmware does not change, thereby eliminating the need to modify the system firmware according to the new hardware configuration information. At the same time, a unified first bus protocol is used to send configuration information to the pin expansion device, and the system firmware supports the first bus protocol to achieve interface compatibility of the target external firmware corresponding to the system firmware configuration, thereby improving the stability and reliability of the system.

[0046] Secondly, the specific internal structure of the adapter device can correctly detect the existence of the external device, ensuring that the information of the external device identified and detected by the system firmware does not change. The pin expansion device provides flexible interface control and management functions, enabling the system to support new hardware architectures without changing the original software configuration, simplifying the system integration process and improving the maintainability of the system. The two parameters of the manufacturer identification code and the device identification code of the hardware identification information are compared to determine the target external device, so as to ensure that the in-place information of the target external device is normal, and further comparison is made to improve the accuracy of identification. The firmware version information is compared to determine the target external device, avoiding the update of the external device resulting in inconsistent firmware versions, and ensuring the compatibility, security and stability of the system. The in-place state detection process can effectively detect the in-place information of the external device through different detection methods, ensuring that the system can respond to the connection and state changes of the device in a timely manner. The connection between the first connector and the second connector acts as a transparent bridge device, allowing the PCIe signal to provide efficient data transmission between different hardware components, realizing the integration of the line and the board, and ensuring the stability and reliability of the long-distance transmission process.

[0047] In addition, the present invention also provides a server having the same beneficial effects as the above-mentioned external device identification method. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0048] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0049] Figure 1 A flowchart of a method for identifying an external device provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0050] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the connection between a head server, a tail server and a switching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0051] Figure 3 A structural diagram of a switching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0052] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0053] The core of the present invention is to provide an external device identification method and a server to solve the problem that the communication interfaces of the head server and the tail server are incompatible, thereby reducing the stability and reliability of the system.

[0054] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the solution of the present invention, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific implementation methods.

[0055] The head server generally refers to the front panel of the server, including the power button, indicator light, Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, etc., which are used to operate and monitor the status of the server. The tail server refers to the back panel of the server, including the power socket, network cable interface, expansion card slot, etc., which are used to connect the server's external devices and network. In the server architecture, the communication between the head server and the tail server may involve multiple protocols and interfaces. For example, the head server may communicate with the network interface, storage interface, etc. of the tail server through the interface on the motherboard. This communication can be internal or through an external network. In some cases, the communication between the head server and the tail server may require specific hardware support, such as a high-speed network interface card or a dedicated communication bus.

[0056] The communication between the head server and the tail server may require the use of specific hardware identification technology to ensure the integrity of data transmission. Due to the specific performance of different hardware, the replacement of external devices, etc., the conventional head server and the tail server are directly connected in communication without detecting the presence information of the external device. It may happen that the external device is not in place, resulting in incompatibility of the original interface standard or protocol, and then data transmission interruption or packet loss. The external device identification method provided by the present invention can solve the above technical problems. It should be noted that the external device in this embodiment is located in the tail server, and is used to identify the interface of the external device of the tail server, so that the interface of the external device is compatible with the interface of the head server.

[0057] Figure 1 A flowchart of a method for identifying an external device provided by an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 1 As shown, the method includes:

[0058] S11: obtaining pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server through the pin expansion device of the adapter device;

[0059] Among them, the switching equipment is used for data transmission between the nose server and the tail server;

[0060] S12: Processing the pin information according to the target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each external device;

[0061] S13: Compare the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, send the configuration information of the target external device to the pin expansion device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol to complete the configuration of the target external device, and perform data transmission.

[0062] Specifically, the adapter device in this embodiment is used to enhance the communication between the head server and the tail server so that it can be used for data transmission. The adapter device includes a pin expansion device to help the head server connect to more external devices or perform more control operations. It is usually connected to the head server through a standard serial or parallel interface to achieve data transmission and control functions. The head server can control the input and output status of the pin expansion device of the adapter device and configure the corresponding working mode. Compared with the traditional pin expansion method, the pin expansion device of the adapter device in this embodiment can expand more input and output interfaces while occupying fewer pins. This has obvious advantages in applications that require the connection of a large number of external devices and improves the scalability and flexibility of the device.

[0063] The pin information and identification information corresponding to the external device are obtained through the pin expansion device. It should be noted that the pin information is used to determine the presence of the external device in the pin expansion device, and the identification information is used to determine whether it is a target external device that needs to correspond to a different version or other configuration information. This embodiment performs a two-layer screening process to ensure the accuracy of external device identification.

[0064] There is no limitation on the process of obtaining pin information and identification information. It can be obtained before inserting all external devices into the pin expansion device, or by frequently inserting corresponding external devices into the pin expansion device, or after the external devices are inserted into the pin expansion device. It can be set according to actual conditions.

[0065] The target detection strategy corresponding to the processing procedure in step S12 is used to detect the presence information of the external device, which mainly depends on the status of the input port and the interrupt mechanism. Therefore, the target detection strategy is also developed around the input port status and the interrupt mechanism. The specific strategy can be input port status detection, pull-up resistor detection, interrupt mechanism detection, communication detection or address configuration detection, etc. It can be one or a combination of multiple forms. It can be set according to the actual situation, as long as the presence information of the external device can be effectively detected to ensure that the system can respond to the connection and status changes of the external device in time.

[0066] In step S13, the external devices with normal in-place information are further screened, and the final target external device is determined by comparing with the reserved identification information to ensure the recognition accuracy of the external device and the compatibility of the subsequent communication interface.

[0067] The identification information in step S13 can be the identification (ID) or bandwidth information of the external device, or can be compared with the firmware version information supported by the external device to ensure that the identified external device is compatible with the interface standard between the head server. The specific comparison process is not limited, and can be in the form of a mapping configuration table or an iterative traversal method.

[0068] The configuration information of the target external device is sent to the pin extension device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol to complete the configuration process of the target external device, and the subsequent data transmission between the head server and the external device is performed. It should be noted that the configuration information sending in this embodiment corresponds to the pin extension device implementation, mainly sending configuration commands and data. The first bus protocol is used to manage various external devices of the computer system. The head server can remotely set and monitor the pin extension device without physical contact with the external device itself. Regarding the subsequent data transmission process, it can be independent of the additional data transmission of the current adapter device, or it can be integrated into the current adapter device to realize data transmission. Both methods are possible and can be set according to actual conditions. Through remote and monitoring methods, the configuration and fault diagnosis of external devices are convenient, and external devices can be easily or removed, enhancing the flexibility and scalability of the system. In addition, by reducing the need to update the system firmware and simplifying the equipment management process, operating costs and maintenance costs are reduced.

[0069] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the connection between a head server, a tail server and a switching device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 2As shown, the presence signal of the external device of the tail server 2 is generated by itself, specifically PRSNT (Present signal), which is an important signal on the Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) bus, used to indicate whether a PCIe device has been correctly installed and is ready. When the second connector of the adapter device 3 is connected to the connector at the external device end through a cable, the PRSNT signal of the adapter device 3 will be set low. This is because in PCIe communication, if a device wants to notify the host of its existence, it needs to pull down the PRSNT signal line. Once this signal is pulled low, the host will know that the corresponding PCIe device is ready for communication. This is to forward the PRSNT signal of the external device to the head server 1, so that the server can sense the presence of the external device. In this way, the system detects the presence of the external device as usual and manages it as a normal PCIe device. In short, the PRSNT signal of the external device can be effectively transmitted to the head server 1, so that the server can accurately detect the status of the external device. The PCIe specification through the PCIe bus promotes system standardization and facilitates interoperability with other standard-compliant external devices and systems.

[0070] The embodiment of the present invention provides a method for identifying an external device, wherein the pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server are obtained through a pin expansion device of a transfer device; wherein the transfer device is used for data transmission between the head server and the tail server; the pin information is detected and processed according to a target detection strategy to determine the in-place information of each external device; the pin information is processed according to the target detection strategy to determine the in-place information of each external device; the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, the configuration information of the target external device is sent to the pin expansion device of the transfer device through a first bus protocol to complete the configuration of the target external device, and data transmission is performed. The pin information and identification information of the external device obtained by the transfer device ensure the in-place information of the external device during the detection and processing of the pin information, and the detection is performed through the target detection strategy to improve the accuracy of the in-place information detection. Further, the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the final target external device, thereby improving the accuracy of identifying the target external device, and helping to ensure that the information of the target external device identified and detected by the system firmware does not change, and thus there is no need to modify the system firmware according to the new hardware configuration information. At the same time, a unified first bus protocol is used to send configuration information to the pin expansion device, and the system firmware supports the first bus protocol to achieve interface compatibility of the target external firmware corresponding to the system firmware configuration, thereby improving the stability and reliability of the system.

[0071] In some embodiments, the adapter device includes a first connector, a second connector, and a pin expansion device;

[0072] The nose server is connected to the first connector; the tail server is connected to the second connector;

[0073] The first end of the pin expansion device is connected to the first connector; the second end of the pin expansion device is connected to the second connector.

[0074] Figure 3 A structural diagram of a switching device provided by an embodiment of the present invention, such as Figure 3As shown, the connection between the head server 1 and the tail server 2 is connected in the form of a connector in the adapter device 3, and the middle pin extension device 4 is correspondingly connected to the first connector 5 and the second connector 6. The first connector 5 and the second connector 6 in this embodiment can be the same or different, and are not limited here. In some embodiments, the first connector 5 is different from the second connector 6. The first connector 5 adopts a Mini Cool Edge IO (MCIO) connector, which is a high-density electronic connector interface, usually used for cable connection inside electronic equipment, data transmission, signal transmission, power supply and other different applications. It has the characteristics of high bandwidth and low latency. The second connector 6 adopts a metal connector, so that the tail server 2 can communicate with external devices through the first bus protocol.

[0075] In addition, the power supply of the pin extension device comes from the head server and is input through the first connector, ensuring that the pin extension device is always in working condition.

[0076] The specific internal structure of the adapter device provided in this embodiment can correctly detect the existence of external devices and ensure that the information of the external devices identified and detected by the system firmware does not change. The pin expansion device provides flexible interface control and management functions, so that the system can support new hardware architectures without changing the original software configuration, simplifying the system integration process and improving the maintainability of the system.

[0077] In some embodiments, comparing the identification information of the external device with normal location information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device includes:

[0078] Obtaining hardware identification information from the information table where the reserved identification information is located; wherein the hardware identification information at least includes a manufacturer identification code and a device identification code;

[0079] Determine a first comparison result by comparing the device identification code with the device identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal presence information;

[0080] If the first comparison result is successful, a second comparison result is determined by comparing the manufacturer identification code with the manufacturer identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information;

[0081] If the second comparison result is successful, the external device with the successful second comparison result is used as the target external device.

[0082] Specifically, this embodiment corresponds to the comparison of the hardware identification information of the external device, wherein the hardware identification information can be read through the system firmware or the driver of the operating system. For example, in a server environment, the ID information of the connected device can be viewed through the interface of the Basic Input Output System (BIOS) / Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) or the device manager of the operating system. The hardware identification information includes at least a manufacturer identification code and a device identification code. Each manufacturer corresponds to a unique identification code, which can be a number of binary data. The operating system can identify the manufacturer of the device through the manufacturer identification code and try to load the corresponding driver. The device identification code is a manufacturer-defined identification code used to distinguish different products produced by the same manufacturer. A manufacturer can produce multiple devices and assign a unique identification code to each device.

[0083] First, a preliminary comparison is performed through the device identification code to determine the first comparison result, and then a screening comparison is performed based on the manufacturer identification code to determine the second comparison result. In this embodiment, the target external device is determined when the second comparison result is successful.

[0084] In this embodiment, the target external device is determined by comparing the two parameters of the manufacturer identification code and the device identification code of the hardware identification information. When the in-place information of the target external device is ensured to be normal, further comparison is performed to improve the accuracy of identification.

[0085] In some other embodiments, comparing the identification information of the external device with normal location information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device includes:

[0086] Acquire the first firmware version information supported by the external device in the information table where the reserved identification information is located;

[0087] Acquire second firmware version information corresponding to identification information of an external device with normal in-place information;

[0088] If the first firmware version information includes the second firmware version information, all external devices with normal in-place information are taken as target external devices.

[0089] Specifically, by comparing the firmware version of the external device with the compatibility list of the system firmware, it can be ensured that the device can work normally and avoid driver loading failure or system crash caused by version mismatch. Firmware updates usually include security patches to fix known security vulnerabilities. By comparing the firmware versions, it can be ensured that the device has applied the latest security updates, thereby improving the security of the entire system. For example, the security of the firmware of the Internet of Things device is directly related to the stable operation and data security of the entire system. In this embodiment, the corresponding information table needs to obtain the first firmware version information supported by the external device, and the corresponding second firmware version information supported by the external device with normal in-place information. If the two firmware version information are exactly the same, the external device with normal in-place information is determined to be the target external device. If they are different, it is necessary to determine whether all the second firmware version information is included in the first firmware version information. If so, all currently compared external devices are used as target external devices.

[0090] The firmware version information provided in this embodiment is compared to determine the target external device, avoid inconsistent firmware versions caused by updating the external device, and ensure the compatibility, security and stability of the system.

[0091] In other embodiments, the above two technical solutions can be combined and compared in two dimensions: hardware and software. The identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device, including:

[0092] Obtaining hardware identification information from the information table where the reserved identification information is located; wherein the hardware identification information at least includes a manufacturer identification code and a device identification code;

[0093] Determine a first comparison result by comparing the device identification code with the device identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal presence information;

[0094] If the first comparison result is successful, a second comparison result is determined by comparing the manufacturer identification code with the manufacturer identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information;

[0095] If the second comparison result is successful, the external device whose second comparison result is successful is used as the initial target external device;

[0096] Acquire the first firmware version information supported by the external device in the information table where the reserved identification information is located;

[0097] Acquire second firmware version information corresponding to the identification information of the initial target external device;

[0098] If the first firmware version information includes the second firmware version information, the initial target external device is used as the final target external device.

[0099] Specifically, the specific embodiments of the present invention can refer to the above embodiments, and are not limited here. In addition, this embodiment compares the two aspects of software and hardware, and the corresponding comparison order is not limited. In order to simplify the comparison process, the comparison is first performed by hardware. If the comparison fails, there is no need to perform subsequent firmware version information comparison. Since there is a lot of firmware version information, the identification code of the hardware method is unique, the comparison process is simple, and multiple iterative comparisons of the firmware version information are not required.

[0100] The comprehensive comparison of hardware and software in this embodiment improves the accuracy of recognition. At the same time, compared with comparing software first and then hardware, it simplifies the comparison process and improves the comparison efficiency.

[0101] In some embodiments, the pin information is processed according to the target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each external device, including:

[0102] Read the input port status of the pin information of each external device;

[0103] If the input port state is the input state, then filter out the first external device to which the input state belongs;

[0104] In advance, when the input port is not driven, the pull-up resistor of the pin expansion device is used to keep the input pin information of each external device connected to the pin expansion device in a high level state;

[0105] When the pin information corresponding to each external device is converted from a high level state to a low level state within a preset time, the external device converted from a high level state to a low level state is determined as the second external device;

[0106] determining whether the first external device is the same as the second external device;

[0107] If they are different, a third external device identical to the first external device is selected from the second external device; if they are identical, the second external device is updated to the third external device;

[0108] Determine whether an interrupt signal corresponding to an interrupt output pin of the pin expansion device is activated;

[0109] If activated, the presence information of the third external device is determined to be in a normal state.

[0110] Specifically, the screening process of the first external device is implemented by input port status detection. The pin expansion device has a plurality of pins that can be configured as input or output. When an external device is connected to these pins, the status of the input port can be read to determine whether the device is in place. When these ports are configured as input, their status can be read to determine whether the external device is connected and working normally.

[0111] The screening process of the third external device is implemented through pull-up resistor detection. When the input port is not driven, the pin extension device usually uses an internal pull-up resistor to keep the input pin in a high level state, which means that if the external device is not connected, the input pin will remain at a high level; if the device is connected and drives the pin, the pin state will become a low level. In this way, the in-position state of the device can be detected. Therefore, in this embodiment, the external device that converts the high level state to the low level state is determined as the second external device. If the first external device is the same as the second external device, the second external device is updated to the third external device. If they are different, it is necessary to screen out the third external device that is the same as the first external device in the second external device.

[0112] The determination of the normal state of the in-place information of the third external device is achieved through an interrupt mechanism. When the state of any input port changes, an interrupt signal will be activated to notify the controller (such as a microcontroller unit (MCU)) of the change in input state. This mechanism allows the system to respond to the connection or disconnection of external devices in a timely manner.

[0113] In addition, the input port status can be queried periodically through communication, or the status can be read after receiving an interrupt signal. It can also support multiple devices to work with the same bus protocol and share the same bus, so that the controller can independently detect the status of each device.

[0114] The on-site status detection process provided in this embodiment can effectively detect the on-site information of the external device through different detection methods, ensuring that the system can respond to the connection and status changes of the device in a timely manner.

[0115] In some embodiments, data transmission to the target external device is implemented by connecting the first connector to the second connector;

[0116] The first connector and the second connector are connected via a second bus protocol; the signals supported by the second bus protocol at least include a receiving signal, a sending signal, a clock signal and a setting signal. Figure 3 As shown, the first connector 5 is responsible for receiving the PCIe data signal (receiving / sending signal, such as Figure 3As shown, the arrows in the figure are bidirectional, so the data signal types at this time include two types, receiving signals and sending signals. At the same time, the corresponding signal types are one type, receiving signals or sending signals), clock signals and PCIe reset (set signals). These signals are all key elements necessary for PCIe bus communication, and they together constitute the PCIe communication link. When these signals reach the first connector 5, they will be directly connected to the second connector 6 through the internal printed circuit board (PCB) routing. The design of the PCB routing is crucial because it must meet the electrical characteristics and signal quality requirements specified by the PCIe standard to ensure that the signal will not be excessively attenuated or distorted during transmission. The second connector 6 is located on the other side, and its function is to transmit these processed signals to the tail server 2 through a dedicated PCIe cable. This cable not only needs to have sufficient bandwidth to carry PCIe signals, but also needs to have good shielding performance to prevent external electromagnetic interference from affecting the quality of the signal. In order to ensure the normal operation of data transmission, some additional functional modules may also be included to optimize and enhance the signal during signal transmission to compensate for the signal loss caused by long-distance transmission.

[0117] The connection between the first connector and the second connector provided in this embodiment acts as a transparent bridging device, allowing PCIe signals to provide efficient data transmission between different hardware components, realizing line-board integration, and ensuring stability and reliability during long-distance transmission.

[0118] Furthermore, the present invention also provides a server, including a head server, a tail server and a switching device; a first end of the switching device is connected to the head server, and a second end is connected to the tail server;

[0119] The head server is used to obtain the pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server through the pin expansion device of the adapter device; process the pin information according to the target detection strategy to determine the in-place information of each external device; compare the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, send the configuration information of the target external device to the pin expansion device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol;

[0120] The tail server is used to receive the configuration information of the target external device to complete the configuration of the target external device and perform data transmission.

[0121] For an introduction to a server provided by the present invention, please refer to the above method embodiment, which will not be described in detail herein. The server has the same beneficial effects as the above external device identification method.

[0122] In some embodiments, an external graphics card box is also included; the external graphics card box is located at the rear server end;

[0123] The first end of the external graphics card box is connected to the second end of the adapter device;

[0124] The second end of the external graphics card box is connected to the external device of the rear server.

[0125] Specifically, an external graphics card box (GPU BOX) is a device that connects to a high-performance discrete graphics card through an external interface. It usually consists of a small chassis and a power supply for the graphics card. The main function of the external graphics card box is to provide graphics performance expansion for devices with insufficient built-in graphics card performance, especially for those who need high-performance graphics processing, games or professional graphics work, the external graphics card box can greatly improve the graphics processing capabilities. Through the external graphics card box, users can freely choose almost all graphics cards on the market, thereby upgrading the graphics performance of laptops or desktops.

[0126] The external graphics card box in this embodiment is located at the rear server end, which undertakes the connection between the adapter device and the external device, improves the image processing capability, and facilitates the selection of different external devices so as to utilize a larger independent graphics card.

[0127] In some embodiments, a control platform is also included; the control platform is located at the head server end;

[0128] The control platform is connected to the pin extension device;

[0129] The control platform is used to output the identification information of the target external device.

[0130] In this example, the control platform of the head server, such as the Baseboard Management Controller (BMC), can view the identification information of the corresponding external device in real time through the System Management Bus (SMBus) channel, and can also detect the presence information of the external device.

[0131] The control platform in this embodiment, in addition to the BMC, may also be other control systems for displaying the interface, which is not limited here.

[0132] The control platform in this embodiment is connected to the pin expansion device to output the identification information of the external device. In addition, the remaining display information can also be output to improve the user experience while achieving real-time monitoring.

[0133] In some embodiments, a retimer card is further included; a first end of the retimer card is connected to the head server, and a second end of the retimer card is connected to the tail server; wherein the retimer card and the switching device are located on the same circuit board;

[0134] The retimer card is used to receive a first signal from the head server, regenerate and re-process the first signal to obtain a second signal, and send the second signal to the tail server.

[0135] Specifically, retimer cards are used in high-bandwidth data transmission environments, such as in servers, data centers, and high-performance computing, to enhance and extend signal transmission distances. When data signals are transmitted over long distances through cables or backplanes, signal quality can be reduced due to reflections, crosstalk, attenuation, and other factors, which can lead to data errors or system performance degradation. The role of the retimer card is to intervene in this process, regenerate and enhance the signal, and ensure accurate data transmission.

[0136] Retimer cards are widely used in PCI Express (PCIe) systems, high-speed serial data links, fiber-optic communication networks, etc. In server applications, Retimer cards are key signal processing components. The CPU in the server connects and identifies the devices under the PCIe switch in the GPU BOX through the Retimer card, which plays a vital role in ensuring the efficiency and accuracy of data transmission.

[0137] The regeneration and resetting processing of the first signal by the retimer card in this embodiment may be the same as or different from the conventional processing method, which is not limited here. In addition, in order to save the space occupied by the circuit board, the retimer card and the switching device are located on the same circuit board in this embodiment, and the design is integrated.

[0138] The connection relationship between the retimer card and the nose server and the tail server provided in this embodiment can ensure the normal operation of data transmission. It can also optimize and enhance (regenerate and re-determine) the first signal during the signal transmission process to compensate for the signal loss caused by long-distance transmission and maintain signal quality and integrity.

[0139] The above is a detailed introduction to an external device identification method and a server provided by the present invention. The various embodiments in the specification are described in a progressive manner, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. The same and similar parts between the embodiments can be referenced to each other. For the device disclosed in the embodiment, since it corresponds to the method disclosed in the embodiment, the description is relatively simple, and the relevant parts can be referred to the method part description. It should be pointed out that for ordinary technicians in this technical field, without departing from the principle of the present invention, several improvements and modifications can be made to the present invention, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0140] It should also be noted that, in this specification, relational terms such as first and second, etc. are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "comprises", "comprising" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprising a ..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.

Claims

1. A method for identifying an external device, characterized in that: include: The pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server are obtained through the pin expansion device of the adapter device; wherein the adapter device is used for data transmission between the head server and the tail server; Processing the pin information according to a target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each of the external devices; The identification information of the external device with normal in-place information is compared with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; based on the target external device, the configuration information of the target external device is sent to the pin expansion device of the adapter device through the first bus protocol to complete the configuration of the target external device, and data transmission is performed.

2. The method for identifying an external device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The switching device comprises a first connector, a second connector and the pin extension device; The head server is connected to the first connector; The tail server is connected to the second connector; The first end of the pin extension device is connected to the first connector; The second end of the pin extension device is connected to the second connector.

3. The method for identifying an external device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Compare the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device, including: Obtaining hardware identification information from the information table where the reserved identification information is located; wherein the hardware identification information at least includes a manufacturer identification code and a device identification code; Determine a first comparison result by comparing the device identification code with the device identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal presence information; If the first comparison result is successful, a second comparison result is determined by comparing the manufacturer identification code with the manufacturer identification code corresponding to the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information; If the second comparison result is successful, the external device with the successful second comparison result is used as the target external device.

4. The method for identifying an external device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Compare the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device, including: Acquire the first firmware version information supported by the external device in the information table where the reserved identification information is located; Acquire second firmware version information corresponding to identification information of an external device with normal in-place information; If the first firmware version information includes the second firmware version information, all external devices with normal in-place information are taken as target external devices.

5. The method for identifying an external device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Processing the pin information according to the target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each of the external devices includes: Read the input port status of the pin information of each external device; If the input port state is an input state, filtering out the first external device to which the input state belongs; In advance, when the input port is not driven, the pull-up resistor of the pin expansion device is used to keep the input pin information of each external device connected to the pin expansion device in a high level state; When the pin information corresponding to each of the external devices is converted from a high level state to a low level state within a preset time, the external device converted from a high level state to a low level state is determined as the second external device; determining whether the first external device is the same as the second external device; If they are different, selecting a third external device that is the same as the first external device from the second external device; if they are the same, updating the second external device to the third external device; Determining whether an interrupt signal corresponding to an interrupt output pin of the pin extension device is activated; If activated, the presence information of the third external device is determined to be in a normal state.

6. The method for identifying an external device according to claim 2, characterized in that: Data transmission to the target external device is achieved by connecting the first connector to the second connector; The first connector and the second connector are connected via a second bus protocol; the signals supported by the second bus protocol at least include a receiving signal, a sending signal, a clock signal and a setting signal.

7. A server, characterized in that: It includes a head server, a tail server and a switching device; the first end of the switching device is connected to the head server, and the second end is connected to the tail server; The head server is used to obtain the pin information and identification information corresponding to each external device of the tail server through the pin expansion device of the adapter device; and process the pin information according to the target detection strategy to determine the presence information of each external device; Compare the identification information of the external device with normal in-place information with the reserved identification information to determine the target external device; Based on the target external device, sending configuration information of the target external device to a pin expansion device of a switching device through a first bus protocol; The tail server is used to receive the configuration information of the target external device to complete the configuration of the target external device and perform data transmission.

8. The server according to claim 7, characterized in that: It also includes an external graphics card box; the external graphics card box is located at the rear server end; The first end of the external graphics card box is connected to the second end of the adapter device; The second end of the external graphics card box is connected to the external device of the tail server.

9. The server according to claim 8, characterized in that: It also includes a control platform; the control platform is located at the head server end; The control platform is connected to the pin extension device; The control platform is used to output the identification information of the target external device.

10. The server according to claim 8, characterized in that: Also included is a retimer card; The first end of the retimer card is connected to the head server, and the second end is connected to the tail server; wherein the retimer card and the switching device are located on the same circuit board; The retimer card is used to receive a first signal from the head server, regenerate and re-process the first signal to obtain a second signal, and send the second signal to the tail server.

Images