Lightweight one-controller multi-bmc system based on arm device and redfish technology

Abstract

The application provides a kind of light one-control multi-BMC system based on ARM device and Redfish technology, it is related to computer server management technical field, system includes: ARM device and at least one connecting line module;ARM device is as the main control unit of light one-control multi-BMC system based on ARM device and Redfish technology;Software system configured on ARM device includes Redfish API module, and Redfish API module is used to provide RESTful API interface in line with Redfish standard;Connecting line module is used to power supply from external power supply to ARM device, realizes the serial communication between ARM device and corresponding server node and realizes the power control of ARM device to corresponding server node.The application has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption and can simultaneously manage multiple server nodes.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of computer server management, and in particular to a lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on an ARM device and Redfish technology. BACKGROUND

[0002] In a modern PC Farm (computer farm) scenario, server out-of-band management is crucial, wherein the server out-of-band management is a management mode independent of the main service network, and the server nodes are remotely monitored, maintained and fault-removed through a dedicated channel, even when the main system is down or the network fails. At present, the server out-of-band management usually relies on a BMC (Baseboard Management Controller) system to achieve.

[0003] The current BMC system has a dedicated BMC system, which has comprehensive functions, including video capture functions, etc., but the hardware cost is high and the power consumption is large. This makes it cost-effective in some scenarios that only require basic management functions such as power control, serial port access and asset information collection. In order to reduce hardware cost and power consumption, the prior art also proposes a lightweight BMC system, such as a BMC system based on a single-chip microcomputer or a small Linux system. However, the existing lightweight BMC system often manages a single server node, and when multiple server nodes need to be managed simultaneously, a lightweight BMC system needs to be independently deployed for each server node, which significantly increases the overall hardware cost, power consumption and management complexity.

[0004] Therefore, how to provide a BMC system with low cost, low power consumption and capable of simultaneously managing multiple server nodes has become a technical problem to be solved. SUMMARY

[0005] Therefore, in order to solve the above technical problems, the present application provides a lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on an ARM device and Redfish technology.

[0006] The present application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] A lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on an ARM device and Redfish technology, comprising: an ARM device and at least one connection line module;

[0008] The ARM device serves as the master unit of the lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on the ARM device and Redfish technology; the software system configured on the ARM device includes a Redfish API module, and the Redfish API module is used to provide a RESTful API interface conforming to the Redfish standard;

[0009] The connection line module is used to power the ARM device from an external power source, realize serial communication between the ARM device and a corresponding server node, and realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node.

[0010] Optionally, the connection line module is an RJ45 network cable.

[0011] The first specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is used to power the ARM device from a 5V standby voltage line of an ATX power supply of a corresponding server node.

[0012] The second specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is used to realize serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node.

[0013] The third specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is used to realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node.

[0014] Optionally, the connection line module includes a first connection line, a second connection line, and a third connection line.

[0015] The first connection line is used to power the ARM device from a 5V standby voltage line of an ATX power supply of a corresponding server node or a power adapter connected to an external power source.

[0016] The second connection line is used to realize serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node.

[0017] The third connection line is used to realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node.

[0018] Optionally, the power control includes power-on control and restart control.

[0019] Optionally, the software system further includes a simple service discovery protocol (SSDP) module.

[0020] The SSDP module is used to listen to SSDP broadcasts in a network and respond to discovery requests in the SSDP broadcasts, so that other devices can discover the ARM device-based and Redfish technology-based lightweight one-control multi-BMC system.

[0021] Optionally, the software system further includes a multi-server node management module.

[0022] The multi-server node management module is used to manage the connection and communication of the ARM device with each server node.

[0023] Optionally, the software system further includes an asset management module.

[0024] The asset management module is configured to acquire hardware information of the server node and provide the hardware information to an external device through the RESTful API interface.

[0025] Optionally, the software system further comprises a power management module and a serial port module.

[0026] The power management module is configured to perform power state query operation, power-on operation, power-off operation and restart operation on the server node.

[0027] The serial port module is configured to listen to and record serial port output of the server node, generate serial port logs, and provide Web-based xterm terminal function.

[0028] Optionally, the software system further comprises a life cycle management module.

[0029] The life cycle management module is configured to, when receiving an operation request for a target server node sent by an external management tool through the RESTful API interface, coordinate the power management module to perform power-on operation or power-off operation on the target server node according to the operation request, and perform state checking and retry during the operation.

[0030] Optionally, the software system further comprises a basic input output system (BIOS) interaction module.

[0031] The BIOS interaction module is pre-adapted to BIOS of different server nodes, and is configured to simulate keyboard input through universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) interface or I2C protocol to realize reading and setting operation on the BIOS of the server node.

[0032] The application adopts the technical scheme, and a lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on an ARM device and Redfish technology comprises: an ARM device and at least one connection line module; the ARM device serves as a master control unit of the lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on the ARM device and the Redfish technology; a software system configured on the ARM device comprises a Redfish API module, and the Redfish API module is used to provide a RESTful API interface conforming to the Redfish standard; and the connection line module is used to take power from an external power supply to supply power to the ARM device, realize serial communication between the ARM device and a corresponding server node, and realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node. Based on this, since the low-power-consumption ARM device is used as the master control unit of the BMC system, the application can reduce system power consumption, and since the number of the connection line modules is at least one, the application can reduce hardware cost while realizing simultaneous management of multiple server nodes. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0033] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or the prior art description. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can also be obtained without creative labor.

[0034] Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of a lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on an ARM device and Redfish technology provided by an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present application more clear, the technical solutions of the present application will be described in detail below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, not all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor are within the scope of the present application.

[0036] In order to make the present application easier to be understood, the professional terms that may be involved in the present application will be explained below.

[0037] BMC (Baseboard Management Controller): an embedded system used to monitor and manage server hardware, usually independent of the server's main processor and operating system, providing out-of-band management functions.

[0038] ARM (Advanced RISC Machines): A type of RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) processor architecture widely used in mobile devices and embedded systems, known for its low power consumption characteristics.

[0039] UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver / Transmitter): A serial communication protocol commonly used for low-speed data transmission between computers and peripheral devices.

[0040] Redfish API (Application Programming Interface): An open industry standard specification promoted by DMTF (Distributed Management Task Force), which defines RESTful API interfaces for securely managing modern server hardware. RESTful is a descriptive term derived from REST (Representational State Transfer). The essence of RESTful API interfaces is interface design that follows REST principles, and its advantages lie in standardization, lightweight, and cross-platform nature.

[0041] SSDP (Simple Service Discovery Protocol): A UDP (User Datagram Protocol) based network protocol for discovering services and devices on a local network.

[0042] GPIO (General-Purpose Input / Output): Refers to programmable pins on microcontrollers or embedded systems that can be configured as inputs or outputs to control or monitor external hardware.

[0043] ATX power supply (Advanced Technology eXtended Power Supply): A standard computer power supply specification widely used in desktop computers and some servers.

[0044] Figure 1 is a structure diagram of a lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on ARM devices and Redfish technology provided by the embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 1 the present BMC system includes: an ARM device 11 and at least one connection line module 12.

[0045] The ARM device is a master unit of a lightweight one-controller multi-BMC system based on an ARM device and a Redfish technology.

[0046] The connection line module 12 is connected with the ARM device, the ARM device is connected with the managed server node through the connection line module 12, and the connection line module 12 is in one-to-one correspondence with the server node. The connection line module 12 is used to take power from an external power supply to supply power to the ARM device 11, realize serial communication between the ARM device 11 and the corresponding server node, and realize power control of the ARM device 11 on the corresponding server node.

[0047] In software implementation, the software system configured on the ARM device 11 includes a Redfish API module, and the Redfish API module is used to provide a RESTful API interface conforming to the Redfish standard. By providing the RESTful API interface conforming to the Redfish standard, the application is easy to integrate with existing management platforms and tools, the interoperability is improved, and unified management is facilitated for users.

[0048] In the embodiment of the application, the connection line module 12 can be an RJ45 network cable. Each managed server node is connected to the ARM device through a standard RJ45 network cable. For any RJ45 network cable, a specific pair of lines is defined for the following functions:

[0049] The first specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is connected with a 5V standby voltage line of an ATX power supply of the corresponding server node, and is used to take power from the 5V standby voltage line of the ATX power supply of the corresponding server node to supply power to the ARM device. The first specific pair of lines can be a No. 1 pin (white orange) and a No. 2 pin (orange) of the RJ45 network cable. In this way, since the 5V standby voltage line of the ATX power supply can supply power in the server node shutdown state, the ARM device can obtain continuous power supply, ensuring the availability of the BMC system of the application in the shutdown state of the corresponding server node, and facilitating remote wake-up of the server node and other operations.

[0050] The second specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is connected with a UART interface of the ARM device and the corresponding server node, and is used to realize serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node, and realize bidirectional serial data transmission.

[0051] The third specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is connected with a GPIO pin of the ARM device and a motherboard power switch signal pin of the corresponding server node, and is used to realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node. The power control includes power-on control and restart control.

[0052] The application defines the functions of specific wire pairs of the RJ45 network cable, so that power supply for the ARM device, serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node and power control are simultaneously realized through one RJ45 network cable, connection and wiring are simplified, and the integration of the system is improved.

[0053] In the embodiment of the application, independent interfaces can also be used for power supply for the ARM device, serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node and power control. Based on this, the connection line module 12 can also be a connection line module including a first connection line, a second connection line and a third connection line.

[0054] The first connection line is connected with the USB interface of the ARM device and the corresponding server node, and can be used to take power from the 5V standby voltage line of the ATX power supply of the corresponding server node to supply power to the ARM device. In addition, the ARM device can also be equipped with an independent power adapter, and when the power adapter is connected with an external power supply, the first connection line can also be used to take power from the power adapter connected with the external power supply to supply power to the ARM device.

[0055] The second connection line can be an independent serial port cable, which is connected with the UART interface of the ARM device and the corresponding server node, and is used to realize serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node.

[0056] The third connection line is connected with the GPIO pin of the ARM device and the mainboard power switch signal pin of the corresponding server node, and is used to realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node.

[0057] In the embodiment of the application, the software system can also include a simple service discovery protocol (SSDP) module.

[0058] The SSDP module is used to listen to the SSDP broadcast in the network, and respond to the discovery request in the SSDP broadcast, so that other devices discover the lightweight one-control multi-BMC system based on the ARM device and the Redfish technology. When other devices want to discover the BMC system, the SSDP broadcast containing the discovery request is sent.

[0059] In the embodiment of the application, the software system can also include a multi-server node management module.

[0060] The multi-server node management module is used for managing the connection and communication of the ARM device with each server node. Specifically, the multi-server node management module is mainly used for realizing unified and efficient management of a set of BMC systems on multiple server nodes. The module maintains the connection and communication link with each server node, and guarantees the stable data interaction between the BMC system and each server node. At the program level, the built-in switch can flexibly schedule the connection state of the BMC system and different server nodes according to the user instruction; at the interaction level, the module sets intuitive server node switching selection buttons and menus on the operation interface, and the user only needs to simply click or select to quickly switch the currently controlled server node, realizes independent configuration, monitoring and control of the BMC system on different server nodes, effectively solves the parallel operation problem in the multi-server node management scene, and significantly improves the management efficiency and operation convenience.

[0061] In the embodiment of the application, the software system can further include an asset management module.

[0062] The asset management module is used for communicating with each server node through a UART interface, obtaining hardware information of the server node, and providing the hardware information to an external device through a RESTful API interface. The hardware information can include a serial number (SN), a media access control (MAC) address, a device model, a hard disk capacity and a memory size.

[0063] In the embodiment of the application, the software system can further include a power management module and a serial port module.

[0064] The power management module can be used for sending an electrical signal instruction to the corresponding server node through a GPIO pin connected to an RJ45 interface, and performing a power state query operation, a power-on operation, a power-off operation and a restart operation on the server node. The electrical signal instruction can be a power state query instruction, a power-on instruction, a power-off instruction or a restart instruction.

[0065] The serial port module is used for monitoring and recording the serial port output of the server node, generating a serial port log, and enabling a user to view the serial port log, analyze the log content, and quickly locate problems occurring in the running process of the server node.

[0066] In the embodiment of the application, the software system can further include a lifecycle management module.

[0067] The lifecycle management module is used for, when receiving an operation request for a target server node sent by an external management tool through a RESTful API interface, coordinating the power management module to perform a power-on operation or a power-off operation on the target server node according to the operation request, and performing state checking and retrying during the operation process.

[0068] In the embodiment of the application, the software system can further include a basic input output system (BIOS) interaction module.

[0069] The BIOS interaction module is pre-adapted to the BIOS of different server node models, and is used for simulating keyboard input through a universal asynchronous receiver-transmitter (UART) interface or an I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) protocol to realize reading and setting operations on the BIOS of the server node.

[0070] In the BIOS adaptation for different server node models, the characteristic words (such as menu names and option texts), image identifiers (such as interface layouts and icon styles), and menu states (such as default selected items and configurable parameter ranges) in the BIOS menu of different server node models are pre-collected and analyzed to establish a feature library. Subsequently, the actually obtained BIOS interface information can be compared and matched with the feature library to identify the model characteristics, menu structure, and target option position of the current BIOS, and finally, according to the matching result, the BIOS reading operation (such as obtaining the current configuration parameters) or the setting operation (such as modifying the startup sequence and hardware parameters) is automatically performed.

[0071] The application can be compatible with multiple server node models without modifying the BIOS of the existing server node, thereby reducing the deployment threshold and complexity.

[0072] It can be understood that the same or similar parts in the above embodiments can be mutually referred to, and the content not described in detail in some embodiments can be referred to the same or similar content in other embodiments.

[0073] It should be noted that, in the description of the application, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only for the purpose of description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance. In addition, in the description of the application, unless otherwise specified, the meaning of "a plurality of" is at least two.

[0074] It should be understood that parts of the application can be realized by hardware, software, firmware or their combination. In the above embodiments, a plurality of steps or methods can be realized by software or firmware stored in a memory and executed by a suitable instruction execution system. For example, if realized by hardware, and as in another embodiment, it can be realized by any one or combination of the following technologies known in the art: discrete logic circuit with logic gate circuit for implementing logic function on data signal, application specific integrated circuit with suitable combination logic gate circuit, programmable gate array (PGA), field programmable gate array (FPGA) and the like.

[0075] Those skilled in the art of the present technology can understand that all or part of the steps carried out by the above-mentioned embodiment method can be completed by a program instructing the relevant hardware, and the program can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. When the program is executed, it includes one or a combination of steps of the method embodiment.

[0076] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the application can be integrated in one processing module, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated in one module. The integrated module can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional module. When the integrated module is realized in the form of software functional module and sold or used as an independent product, it can also be stored in a computer readable storage medium.

[0077] The storage medium mentioned above can be a read-only memory, a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc.

[0078] In the description of the specification, the description of the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "an example", "a specific example", or "some examples" etc. means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In the specification, the illustrative description of the above terms does not necessarily mean the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described can be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0079] Although the embodiments of the present application have been shown and described above, it is understood that the above-described embodiments are exemplary, and cannot be construed as limiting the present application, and those skilled in the art can make changes, modifications, replacements and variations to the above-described embodiments within the scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A lightweight one-controller multi-BMC system based on ARM device and Redfish technology, characterized in that, Comprise: an ARM device and at least one connection line module; the ARM device as the master unit of the lightweight one-controller multi-BMC system based on the ARM device and the Redfish technology; the software system configured on the ARM device comprises a Redfish API module, and the Redfish API module is used to provide a RESTful API interface conforming to the Redfish standard; the connection line module is used to take power from an external power supply to power the ARM device, realize serial communication between the ARM device and a corresponding server node, and realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node; the connection line module is an RJ45 network cable; a first specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is used to take power from a 5V standby voltage line of an ATX power supply of the corresponding server node to power the ARM device; a second specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is used to realize serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node; a third specific pair of lines of the RJ45 network cable is used to realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node.

2. The ARM device and Redfish technology-based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The connection line module comprises a first connection line, a second connection line and a third connection line; the first connection line is used to take power from a 5V standby voltage line of an ATX power supply of a corresponding server node or a power adapter connected with an external power supply to power the ARM device; the second connection line is used to realize serial communication between the ARM device and the corresponding server node; the third connection line is used to realize power control of the ARM device on the corresponding server node.

3. The ARM device and Redfish technology based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to any one of claims 1-2, characterized in that, The power control comprises power-on control and restart control.

4. The ARM device and Redfish technology-based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The software system further comprises a simple service discovery protocol (SSDP) module; the SSDP module is used to listen to an SSDP broadcast in a network and respond to a discovery request in the SSDP broadcast to enable other devices to discover the lightweight one-controller multi-BMC system based on the ARM device and the Redfish technology.

5. The ARM device and Redfish technology-based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The software system further comprises a multi-server node management module; the multi-server node management module is used to manage connection and communication of the ARM device with each server node.

6. The ARM device and Redfish technology based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The software system further comprises an asset management module; the asset management module is used to obtain hardware information of the server node and provide the hardware information to an external device through the RESTful API interface.

7. The ARM device and Redfish technology-based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The software system further comprises a power management module and a serial port module; the power management module is used to perform power state query operation, power-on operation, power-off operation and restart operation on the server node; the serial port module is used to listen to and record serial port output of the server node, generate serial port logs, and provide a Web-based xterm terminal function.

8. The ARM device and Redfish technology-based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 7, characterized in that, The software system further comprises a life cycle management module; The life cycle management module is configured to, when an operation request for a target server node sent by an external management tool is received through the RESTful API interface, coordinate the power management module to perform a power-on operation or a power-off operation on the target server node according to the operation request, and perform state checking and retry during the operation.

9. The ARM device and Redfish technology-based light one-controlling multi-BMC system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The software system further comprises a basic input output system (BIOS) interaction module. The BIOS interaction module is pre-adapted to BIOS of different server nodes, and is configured to simulate keyboard input through a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) interface or an I2C protocol to realize reading and setting operations on the BIOS of the server node.

Images