Communication method and related device

Abstract

A communication method and a related device. The method comprises: a first network device determines an actual application bandwidth of an Ethernet port, and the first network device communicates with a second network device by means of the Ethernet port; the first network device sets an effective bandwidth of an MII as the actual application bandwidth, and processes packet data received from the MII to obtain data symbols; the first network device delivers the data symbols to a target channel of the Ethernet port for sending, wherein the total bandwidth of the target channel is the actual application bandwidth; and the first network device delivers filling symbols to non-target channel other than the target channel of the Ethernet port, and disables PMA processing of the non-target channel.

Description

Communication method and related device

[0001] The present application claims priority from the Chinese patent application No. 202410232688.X filed on February 29, 2024, and entitled "A communication method and related device", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to a communication method and related device, and in particular to a communication method and related device. BACKGROUND

[0003] Ethernet electrical ports are widely used in industrial, park, and data center Ethernet interconnection scenarios. Ethernet electrical ports use twisted pair connection, and Ethernet electrical ports with bandwidth above 1000M are transmitted through 4-pair cables. Referring to FIG. 1, taking 2.5GBASE-T PHY as an example, the PMA (digital front end + analog front end) power consumption accounts for more than 70%, and the digital front end is mainly composed of PAM internal digital signal processing. In the scenario with bandwidth above 1000M, each pair of cable of the Ethernet electrical port transmits 1 / 4 bandwidth, and the digital and analog front ends corresponding to each pair are independent of each other. In the power consumption ratio of the PHY, Ser Des accounts for 8%, the digital front end accounts for 57%, the analog front end accounts for 33%, and PLL accounts for 2%; in the power consumption ratio of the digital front end, FFE accounts for 6.4%, DFE / THP accounts for 6.8%, CDR accounts for 1.5%, DEC accounts for 24.6%, NEXT removal accounts for 23.6%, FEXT removal accounts for 22.2%, transmit upsampling accounts for 2.5%, AEC accounts for 3.9%, and FED LDPC accounts for 9.8%.

[0004] The user has a tidal rule for data network bandwidth demand, and the network construction is ahead of time, so there is a case that the network hardware bandwidth is relatively large compared with the actual transmission bandwidth, and the PMA power consumption accounts for more than 70% of the PHY power consumption, which causes energy loss and increases the operational expenditure (OPEX).

[0005] In view of the network tide characteristics, some networks have low utilization rate and burst at some time periods. IEEE standard defines a technology named Low Power Idle (LPI) to implement EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet), which can reduce energy consumption when the link is idle without data transmission. The protocol stipulates that the LPI client is connected to the RS, and the signal of the LPI client is converted into the xMII (X: indicates the bandwidth, G indicates 1 Gbps, XG: indicates 10 Gbps…) interface signal by the RS, and then the signal is sent to the link partner after being encoded by the PHY.

[0006] The LPI technology sends and receives specific encoded signals (through the MII interface of the MAC and the PHY) by the client of the MAC and controls the entire Ethernet interface to be in the ACITIVE- SLEEP- QUIET- WAKE state by the state machine inside the PHY, wherein the low-power states are SLEEP and QUIET, and the entire interface is in the linkup but no flow state, which is suitable for the case where the flow burst interval is large, but is not suitable for the case where the low flow is maintained for a long time.

[0007] SUMMARY

[0008] The present application provides a communication method and related equipment for flexibly adjusting the rate of an Ethernet electrical port, thereby reducing OPEX.

[0009] The first aspect of the present application provides a communication method:

[0010] The first network device determines an actual usage bandwidth of an Ethernet electrical port, and the first network device communicates with a second network device through the Ethernet electrical port. The actual usage bandwidth is less than the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port and greater than the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device. The first network device sets the effective bandwidth of the MII interface to the actual usage bandwidth, and processes the packet data received from the MII interface to obtain data symbols. The first network device distributes the data symbols to a target channel of the Ethernet electrical port for transmission, and the total bandwidth of the target channel is the actual usage bandwidth. The first network device distributes the padding symbols to non-target channels of the Ethernet electrical port other than the target channel, and closes the PMA processing of the non-target channels.

[0011] In the present application, for the case of maintaining a low flow for a long time, the actual bandwidth to be used can be determined based on the actual bandwidth occupation of the two communication parties, the effective bandwidth of the MII interface is reduced, the data symbols are distributed to the target channel of the Ethernet electrical port, the padding symbols are distributed to the non-target channel of the Ethernet electrical port, and the PMA processing of the non-target channel is closed, thereby reducing the power consumption of the Ethernet electrical port and reducing OPEX.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the first network device sets the effective bandwidth of the MII interface to the actual bandwidth to be used, specifically:

[0013] The first network device receives a plurality of message data from the MAC at the RS, the first network device repeats the target message data in the plurality of message data at the RS, and the first network device indicates the repeated target message data as invalid data based on the bus valid data indication at the RS, and the bandwidth occupied by the invalid data plus the actual bandwidth to be used is equal to the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port.

[0014] In the present application, the effective bandwidth of the MII interface is reduced by the bus valid data indication, without modifying the existing protocol, thereby improving the applicability of the scheme.

[0015] In a possible implementation, the first network device sets the effective bandwidth of the MII interface to the actual bandwidth to be used, specifically:

[0016] The first network device reduces the main frequency of the PHY chip by N / M, where N is the actual bandwidth to be used and M is the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port.

[0017] In the present application, the effective bandwidth of the MII interface is reduced in a simple and direct manner by reducing the main frequency, thereby improving the stability of the scheme.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the first network device determines the actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical port, specifically:

[0019] The first network device determines a first candidate actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical port according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device, and receives a second candidate actual bandwidth to be used from the second network device, which is determined according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device. The first network device determines the actual bandwidth to be used as the maximum value between the first candidate actual bandwidth to be used and the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used.

[0020] In the present application, the candidate actual bandwidth to be used is determined based on the current actual occupied bandwidth of the network devices of the two communication parties, and the actual bandwidth to be used is determined as the value that is larger, thereby ensuring that the bandwidth demand of the two communication parties can be met while saving energy.

[0021] In a possible implementation, the second candidate actual used bandwidth is carried in ordered sets.

[0022] The second aspect of the present application provides a communication method:

[0023] The second network device determines an actual used bandwidth of an Ethernet electrical port, and the second network device communicates with a first network device through the Ethernet electrical port. The actual used bandwidth is less than a total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port and greater than a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device. The second network device determines target channels and non-target channels of the Ethernet electrical port according to the actual used bandwidth, and a total bandwidth of the target channels is the actual used bandwidth. The second network device closes PMA processing of the non-target channels and discards data of the non-target channels. The second network device receives data symbols from the target channels, and performs PCS processing on the data symbols.

[0024] In a possible implementation, the second network device determines the actual used bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port in the following manner:

[0025] The second network device determines a second candidate actual used bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device, and receives a first candidate actual used bandwidth from the first network device, which is determined by the first network device according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device. The first network device communicates with the second network device through the Ethernet electrical port. The second network device determines the actual used bandwidth as a larger value between the first candidate actual used bandwidth and the second candidate actual used bandwidth.

[0026] In a possible implementation, the first candidate actual used bandwidth is carried in ordered sets.

[0027] The third aspect of the present application provides a network device serving as a first network device, comprising a determining unit and a processing unit.

[0028] The determining unit is configured to determine an actual used bandwidth of an Ethernet electrical port, and the first network device communicates with a second network device through the Ethernet electrical port. The actual used bandwidth is less than a total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port and greater than a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device.

[0029] The processing unit is configured to determine the actual used bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port according to a number of packets sent within a preset time length, and the first network device communicates with the second network device through the Ethernet electrical port.

[0030] The processing unit is further configured to set an effective bandwidth of an MII interface as the actual used bandwidth.

[0031] The processing unit is further configured to process the message data received from the MII interface to obtain data symbols.

[0032] The processing unit is further configured to distribute the data symbols to the target channel of the Ethernet electrical interface, and the total bandwidth of the target channel is the actual bandwidth to be used.

[0033] The processing unit is configured to distribute the padding symbols to non-target channels of the Ethernet electrical interface other than the target channel, and close the PMA processing of the non-target channels.

[0034] In a possible implementation manner,

[0035] The processing unit is specifically configured to receive, at the RS, a plurality of message data from the MAC.

[0036] The processing unit is specifically configured to repeat, at the RS, target message data in the plurality of message data.

[0037] The processing unit is specifically configured to indicate, at the RS, the target message data in the repeated part as invalid data based on the bus valid data indication, and a bandwidth occupied by the invalid data plus the actual bandwidth to be used is equal to the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface.

[0038] In a possible implementation manner,

[0039] The processing unit is specifically configured to reduce the main frequency of the PHY chip by N / M, where N is the actual bandwidth to be used, and M is the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface.

[0040] In a possible implementation manner,

[0041] The determining unit is specifically configured to determine the first candidate actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical interface according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device. The actual bandwidth to be used is less than the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface, and greater than the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device.

[0042] The determining unit is specifically configured to receive, from the second network device, a second candidate actual bandwidth to be used determined according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device.

[0043] The determining unit is specifically configured to determine the actual bandwidth to be used as the maximum value between the first candidate actual bandwidth to be used and the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used.

[0044] In a possible implementation manner, the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used is carried in an ordered set.

[0045] The fourth aspect of the present application provides a network device serving as a second network device, comprising a determining unit and a processing unit.

[0046] determining a second candidate actual usage bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device.

[0047] determining a target lane and a non-target lane of the Ethernet electrical interface according to the actual usage bandwidth, the target lane having a total bandwidth equal to the actual usage bandwidth;

[0048] the processing unit is further configured to close PMA processing of the non-target lane and discard data from the non-target lane;

[0049] the processing unit is further configured to receive data symbols from the target lane;

[0050] the processing unit is further configured to perform PCS processing on the data symbols.

[0051] In a possible implementation manner,

[0052] the determining unit is specifically configured to determine the second candidate actual usage bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device.

[0053] the determining unit is specifically configured to receive, from the first network device, a first candidate actual usage bandwidth determined according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device, the first network device and the second network device communicating through the Ethernet electrical interface.

[0054] the determining unit is specifically configured to determine, as the actual usage bandwidth, a value that is the largest of the first candidate actual usage bandwidth and the second candidate actual usage bandwidth.

[0055] In a possible implementation manner, the first candidate actual usage bandwidth is carried in an ordered set.

[0056] The fifth aspect of the present application provides a network device serving as a first network device, comprising a processor and a memory, the processor being coupled to the memory, and the memory being configured to store instructions, when the instructions are executed by the processor, causing the network device to perform the method in the first aspect.

[0057] The sixth aspect of the present application provides a network device serving as a second network device, comprising a processor and a memory, the processor being coupled to the memory, and the memory being configured to store instructions, when the instructions are executed by the processor, causing the network device to perform the method in the second aspect.

[0058] The seventh aspect of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium:

[0059] instructions are stored thereon, when the instructions are executed by a computer, causing the computer to perform the method in any of the aspects.

[0060] The eighth aspect of the present application provides a computer program product containing instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any one of the above aspects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0061] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of power consumption ratio;

[0062] Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of application scenario in the present application;

[0063] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of application scenario in the present application;

[0064] Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of flow of communication method in the present application;

[0065] Fig. 5a is a schematic diagram of network device in the present application;

[0066] Fig. 5b is a schematic diagram of network device in the present application;

[0067] Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of control code;

[0068] Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of bus valid data indication in the present application;

[0069] Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of bus valid data indication in the present application;

[0070] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of PCS processing in the present application;

[0071] Fig. 10a is a schematic diagram of sending end ASSAM module;

[0072] Fig. 10b is a schematic diagram of structure of network device;

[0073] Fig. 10c is a schematic diagram of working principle of ACMB;

[0074] Fig. 10d is a schematic diagram of self-negotiation extension page;

[0075] Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of receiving end ASSAM module;

[0076] Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of sending end ASSAM module in the present application;

[0077] Fig. 13 is a schematic diagram of receiving end ASSAM module in the present application;

[0078] Fig. 14 is a schematic diagram of structure of first network device in the present application;

[0079] Fig. 15 is a schematic diagram of structure of second network device in the present application;

[0080] Fig. 16 is a schematic diagram of structure of first network device or second network device in the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0081] The embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the drawings, obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, not all the embodiments. Those skilled in the art can know that with the development of technology and the emergence of new scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0082] The terms "first", "second", and the like in the specification and claims of the present application and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and do not necessarily indicate a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data thus used can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments described herein can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described herein. In addition, the terms "include" and "have" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, for example, a process, method, system, product or device including a series of steps or units does not necessarily have to be limited to those steps or units clearly listed, but can include other steps or units not clearly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

[0083] Please refer to FIG. 2, in industrial, park network networking, a large number of Ethernet interfaces are involved in interconnection, especially the BASE-T electrical port is generally used for interconnection between the park access point (AP) and the access switch, and a large number of devices in the industrial field use electrical port interconnection. The communication method in the present application can be applied to the Ethernet electrical port link interconnection scene, mainly involving the interconnection of Ethernet interfaces between nodes using cables such as twisted pair or other cable media. Please refer to FIG. 3, the above-mentioned Ethernet interface can be an interface between network devices, or an interface between network devices and terminal devices.

[0084] Please refer to FIG. 4, the flow of the communication method in the present application will be introduced as follows:

[0085] 401, the first network device determines the actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical port, the first network device and the second network device communicate through the Ethernet electrical port, the actual bandwidth to be used is less than the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port, and greater than the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device;

[0086] The first network device in the present application may be, for example, the network device 1 in FIG. 2, and the second network device may be, for example, the network device 2 in FIG. 2. Referring to FIG. 5a, in the Ethernet protocol, a medium access control (MAC) layer, a reconciliation sublayer (RS) layer, and a physical layer (PHY) are divided, where the RS and the PHY communicate through a media independent interface (MII) interface. The MII interface is a standard interface for connecting the MAC and the PHY. It is an Ethernet industry standard defined by IEEE-802.3. The MII interface provides interconnection technology between the MAC and the PHY and between the PHY and a station management (STA). The interface supports data transmission rates of 10 Mb / s and 100 Mb / s, and the data transmission bit width is 4 bits. The PHY includes a physical coding sublayer (PCS), an automatic negotiation sublayer (AUTONEG), and a physical medium attachment sublayer (PMA). The network device 1 and the network device 2 transmit data through four cable pairs, namely, cable pair A, cable pair B, cable pair C, and cable pair D. The network device 1 and the network device 2 add an adaptive bandwidth compute (ABWC) module to the MAC. The ABWC module can count the number of messages passing through the interface according to a preset time interval, determine the current actual occupied bandwidth based on this, and then determine the actual bandwidth to be used according to the current actual occupied bandwidth. An adaptive symbol speed adjust module (ASSAM) is added to the PCS. Referring to FIG. 5b, the ASSAM module is specifically located between the medium-dependent coding (such as PAM16) and the symbol distribution module, and can replace the current symbol distribution module. Based on the above two modules, the network device 1 and the network device 2 have the ability to flexibly adjust the rate when communicating with each other, which will be described in detail below:

[0087] The ABWC module of the network device 1 and the network device 2 counts the number of packets passing through the interface in a preset time interval, so as to determine the current actual occupied bandwidth, and then determines the candidate actual should use bandwidth according to the current actual occupied bandwidth. For example, if the current actual occupied bandwidth is less than 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the candidate actual should use bandwidth is 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth; if the current actual occupied bandwidth is less than 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth but greater than 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the candidate actual should use bandwidth is 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth; if the current actual occupied bandwidth is less than 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth but greater than 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth, the candidate actual should use bandwidth is 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth; if the current actual occupied bandwidth is greater than 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the candidate actual should use bandwidth is still the total bandwidth. The RS of the network device 1 and the network device 2 sends the candidate actual should use bandwidth determined by itself to the opposite end through the control code, for example, sends the ordered sets carrying the candidate actual should use bandwidth to the opposite end through the MII interface. For example, referring to FIG. 6, the above-mentioned ordered sets can be the ordered sets reserved in the protocol (in the box in the figure). The network device 1 and the network device 2 determine the maximum candidate actual should use bandwidth as the actual should use bandwidth, for example, if the candidate actual should use bandwidth determined by the network device 1 is 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth, and the candidate actual should use bandwidth determined by the network device 1 is 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth is determined as the actual should use bandwidth.

[0088] 402、The first network device sets the effective bandwidth of the MII interface as the actual should use bandwidth;

[0089] Taking the network device 1 as the sending end and the network device 2 as the receiving end as an example, after determining the actual should use bandwidth, in order to adapt to the actual should use bandwidth, the network device 1 needs to reduce the effective bandwidth of the MII interface, so as to equivalently reduce the throughput of the RS transmitted to the PCS.

[0090] In a possible way, after the RS of the network device 1 receives the packet data and the control code from the MAC through the MII interface, removes part of the control code, repeats part of the packet data, and indicates the repeated part of the packet data as invalid data through the effective data indication, and indicates the remaining part of the data as valid data, so that the bandwidth occupied by the valid data is equal to the actual should use bandwidth.

[0091] Exemplarily, referring to FIG. 7, taking the actual bandwidth to be used as 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth as an example, the RS of the network device 1 repeats the message data D1 from the MAC twice, repeats the message data D3 twice, and indicates the two repeated message data D1 and the two repeated message data D3 as invalid data by means of valid data indication, and indicates the remaining data as valid data. It can be seen that after the above operation, the valid data / total data is 1 / 2. Taking the total bandwidth of the MII interface as 1 Gbps as an example, after the above operation, the bandwidth of the MII interface is reduced to 500 Mbps.

[0092] In another example, referring to FIG. 8, taking the actual bandwidth to be used as 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth as an example, the RS of the network device 1 repeats the message data D2 from the MAC once, repeats the message data D5 once, and indicates the one repeated message data D2 and the one repeated message data D5 as invalid data by means of valid data indication, and indicates the remaining data as valid data. It can be seen that after the above operation, the valid data / total data is 3 / 4. Taking the total bandwidth of the MII interface as 1 Gbps as an example, after the above operation, the bandwidth of the MII interface is reduced to 750 Mbps.

[0093] 403. The first network device processes the message data received from the MII interface to obtain data symbols;

[0094] Referring to FIG. 9, the RS of the network device 1 sends the above valid data to the PCS. Taking the 10G-BASE-T PHY as an example, the valid data is sent to the PCS through the XGMII interface. The PCS combines two XGMII data (32 bits) into 64 bits and adds 1 bit of data or control indication to form a 65-bit code block, forms a 65-bit block through scrambling, combines 25 blocks and adds 97 zeros and one auxiliary bit (aux) to form a total of 1723 bits, encodes (LDPC (1723, 2048)) the 1723 bits to form a 2048-bit code block, and forms 512 data symbols after medium-related encoding (PAM16), each data symbol containing 4 bits of information.

[0095] 404. The first network device distributes the data symbols to the target channel of the Ethernet electrical port for sending, and the total bandwidth of the target channel is the actual bandwidth to be used;

[0096] The PHY of the network device 1 determines the cable pairs that need to be turned off the PMA function according to the actual bandwidth to be used. Exemplarily:

[0097] If the actual bandwidth to be used is 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the PMA processing of three cable pairs is closed, for example, the PMA processing of cable pair B, cable pair C and cable pair D is closed;

[0098] If the actual bandwidth to be used is 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth, the PMA processing of two cable pairs is closed, for example, the PMA processing of cable pair C and cable pair D is closed;

[0099] If the actual bandwidth to be used is 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the PMA processing of one cable pair is closed, for example, the PMA processing of cable pair D is closed.

[0100] The network device 1 and the network device 2 can be preconfigured with the above information, so that the cable pairs working normally and the cable pairs with closed PMA processing can be determined according to the actual information to be used.

[0101] The ABWC module of the network device 1 sends the actual bandwidth to be used to the local RS, and the RS sends the actual bandwidth to be used to the ASSAM module. The ASSAM module is responsible for adjusting the symbol distribution mode according to the actual bandwidth to be used. Referring to FIG. 10a, the ASSAM module mainly consists of a buffer (such as a FIFO or a RAM), a PAD generation module, and a control module. The control module sets a counter with a count of 4 (1---4---1…). Taking an example of the actual bandwidth to be used being 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth at the sending end, the data symbol is written into the buffer according to a clock frequency (F) of 3 / 4. Referring to FIG. 10b, the network device 1 and the network device 2 are also provided with an adaptive clock management block (ACMB) module. The ACMB module can be set in the PHY chip or exist independently. Preferably, considering the clock SI and the chip integration, the ACMB can be selected to be integrated in the PHY chip. Referring to FIG. 10c, the clock frequency (F) of 3 / 4 can be implemented in the manner shown in FIG. 10c. The main modules are an ACMB, a PFD (phase frequency detector), a charge pump (CP), a loop filter, and a VCO (voltage-controlled oscillator). The PFD mainly processes the input reference clock (FREF) and the feedback clock FFB of the VCO to obtain a frequency and phase difference indication signal. The signal is input to the VCO to adjust the frequency and phase after passing through the CP and the loop filter. A new FFB clock is generated by frequency division and then sent to the PFD again. After multiple closed-loop controls, the expected clock is obtained. The manner of implementing the main frequency F of 3 / 4 or other proportions can be that the actual bandwidth to be used is input to the ACMB module, and the division frequency parameters (N / M / C0 / C1 / C2) in the PLL are adjusted after the analysis of the ACMB module. When the count of the counter is 1, 2, and 3, the control module reads the data symbol. When the count of the counter is 4, the control module inserts a pad symbol. The buffer is read according to F. The output bandwidth of the buffer is the total bandwidth, including the 3 / 4 bandwidth occupied by the data symbol and the 1 / 4 bandwidth occupied by the pad symbol. Then, the above-mentioned symbols are distributed to the four cable pairs according to the round robin, wherein the data symbol is distributed to the cable pair A, the cable pair B, and the cable pair C to be sent to the network device 2.

[0102] 405、The first network device distributes the filler symbol to the non-target channel of the Ethernet electrical port except the target channel, and closes the PMA processing of the non-target channel.

[0103] The pad symbols are all distributed to cable pair D, and the PMA processing of cable pair D is closed.

[0104] The network device 2 determines that the PMA processing of cable pair D needs to be closed according to the actual bandwidth to be used, and the rest of the cable pairs are normally used. Referring to FIG. 11, the network device 2 receives pad symbols from cable pair D and receives data symbols from the rest of the cable pairs. When the count of the counter is 1, 2, and 3, the control module writes the data symbols into the buffer, and when the count of the counter is 4, the control module discards the pad symbols. Then, the data symbols are read out from the buffer according to 3 / 4 F (the implementation is similar to the foregoing description), and the PCS sends the data to the RS through the MII interface, and the RS sends the data to the MAC after parsing the data.

[0105] Of course, the network device 1 can also negotiate with the network device 2 to determine whether the network device 2 has the capability of flexible adjustment of the rate. For example, the network device 1 and the network device 2 can negotiate through an auto-negotiation extension page. Referring to FIG. 10d, for example, the DO reserved bit of the AUTONEG BASE-PAGE indicates that the network device 2 has the capability of flexible adjustment of the rate when the reserved bit is 1, and indicates that the network device 2 does not have the capability of flexible adjustment of the rate when the reserved bit is 0. The network device 1 determines whether the network device 2 has the capability of flexible adjustment of the rate, and then performs the foregoing process. The network device 2 can also be the sending end, and the network device 1 is the receiving end. The communication between the network device 2 and the network device 1 is similar to the foregoing description, which is not described herein again.

[0106] In the present application, for the case of keeping low traffic for a long time, pad symbols are distributed to some channels of the Ethernet electrical port, and the PMA processing of the channels is closed, so as to reduce the power consumption of the Ethernet electrical port and reduce OPEX.

[0107] The foregoing describes one process of the communication method in the present application, and the following describes another process of the communication method in the present application:

[0108] A01、the first network device determines the actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical port, the first network device communicates with the second network device through the Ethernet electrical port, the actual bandwidth to be used is less than the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port, and greater than the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device;

[0109] Taking the network device 1 as a sending end and the network device 2 as a receiving end as an example, the ABWC modules of the network device 1 and the network device 2 count the number of messages passing through the interface according to a preset time interval, and determine the current actual occupied bandwidth based on this, and then determine the actual bandwidth to be used according to the current actual occupied bandwidth, which is similar to the description of the foregoing step 401, and details are not described herein again.

[0110] A02, the first network device sets the effective bandwidth of the MII interface to the actual bandwidth to be used;

[0111] In order to adapt to the actual bandwidth to be used, the network device 1 needs to reduce the bandwidth of the MII interface, thereby equivalently reducing the throughput of RS transmission to PCS.

[0112] The ACMB can receive the control code (ordered set) carrying the actual bandwidth to be used transmitted by the ABWC module through the MII interface, and the ACMB module reduces the main frequency of the PHY chip by N / M, where N is the actual bandwidth to be used, and M is the total bandwidth. For example, if the actual bandwidth to be used is 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the ACMB module reduces the main frequency of the PHY chip to 3 / 4 of the original main frequency (F); if the actual bandwidth to be used is 2 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the ACMB module reduces the main frequency of the PHY chip to 2 / 4 of F; if the actual bandwidth to be used is 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the ACMB module reduces the main frequency of the PHY chip to 1 / 4 of F.

[0113] Please refer to Fig. 10c again, the way to reduce the main frequency of the PHY chip can be to input the actual bandwidth to be used into the ACMB module, and obtain the relevant parameters (M, N, Cx) required by the PLL frequency conversion through the analysis of the ACMB module, and finally obtain the main frequency (Foutx) matched with the actual bandwidth to be used. Since the bandwidth is equal to the main frequency multiplied by the bit width, reducing the main frequency of the PHY chip is equivalent to reducing the bandwidth of the MII interface.

[0114] A03, the first network device processes the message data received from the MII interface to obtain data symbols;

[0115] Afterwards, the RS sends the packet data to the PCS, for example, the 10G-BASE-T PHY, the packet data is sent to the PCS through the XGMII interface, the PCS combines the two times of XGMII data (32bit) into 64bit and adds 1bit data or control indication to form 65bit code block, and then forms 65bit block through scrambling, and then forms 2048bit code block through FEC encoding (LDPC (1723, 2048)) by combining 25 blocks and adding 97 zeros and one auxiliary bit (aux) for a total of 1723bit, and then forms 512 data symbols through medium-related encoding (PAM16), each data symbol contains 4bit information.

[0116] A04、the first network device distributes the data symbols to the target channel of the Ethernet electrical port, and the total bandwidth of the target channel is the actual bandwidth to be used;

[0117] The PHY of the network device 1 determines the cable pairs whose PMA functions need to be closed according to the actual bandwidth to be used, for example:

[0118] If the actual bandwidth to be used is 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the PMA processing of three cable pairs is closed, for example, the PMA processing of the cable pair B, the cable pair C and the cable pair D is closed;

[0119] If the actual bandwidth to be used is 1 / 2 of the total bandwidth, the PMA processing of two cable pairs is closed, for example, the PMA processing of the cable pair C and the cable pair D is closed;

[0120] If the actual bandwidth to be used is 3 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the PMA processing of one cable pair is closed, for example, the PMA processing of the cable pair D is closed.

[0121] Similarly, the ASSAM module is responsible for adjusting the symbol distribution mode according to the actual bandwidth to be used, please refer to FIG. 12, for example, the actual bandwidth to be used is 1 / 4 of the total bandwidth, the data symbol is written into the buffer according to the clock frequency (F) of 1 / 4. When the count of the counter is 1, the control module reads out the data symbol, when the count of the counter is 2, 3 and 4, the control module inserts the pad symbol, wherein the read buffer reads according to F. The output bandwidth of the buffer is the total bandwidth, including the 1 / 4 bandwidth occupied by the data symbol and the 3 / 4 bandwidth occupied by the pad symbol. Afterwards, the above-mentioned symbols are distributed to the four cable pairs according to the round robin, wherein the data symbol is distributed to the cable pair A and sent to the network device 2.

[0122] A05、the first network device distributes the pad symbol to the non-target channel of the Ethernet electrical port except the target channel, and closes the PMA process of the non-target channel.

[0123] The pad symbol is all distributed to the cable pair B, the cable pair C and the cable pair D, and the PMA process of the cable pair B, the cable pair C and the cable pair D is closed.

[0124] The network device 2 determines that the PMA process of the cable pair B, the cable pair C and the cable pair D needs to be closed according to the actual bandwidth to be used, and the rest of the cable pairs are normally used. Please refer to FIG. 13, when the count of the counter is 1, the control module writes the data symbol into the buffer, when the count of the counter is 2, 3 and 4, the control module discards the pad symbol. Then the data symbol is read out from the buffer according to 1 / 4 F, and the PCS sends the data to the RS through the MII interface, and the RS sends the data to the MAC after parsing the data.

[0125] Of course, the network device 1 can also negotiate with the network device 2 to determine whether the network device 2 has the capability of flexible rate adjustment. For example, the network device 1 and the network device 2 can negotiate through the auto-negotiation extension page, for example, the D0 reserved bit of the AUTONEG BASE-PAGE, when the reserved bit is 1, it indicates that it has the capability of flexible rate adjustment; when the reserved bit is 0, it indicates that it does not have the capability of flexible rate adjustment. If the network device 1 determines that the network device 2 has the capability of flexible rate adjustment, the foregoing process is performed.

[0126] In the present application, for the case of maintaining low traffic for a long time, the pad symbol is distributed to part of the channels of the Ethernet electrical port, and the PMA process of these channels is closed, so as to reduce the power consumption of the Ethernet electrical port and reduce the OPEX.

[0127] The foregoing introduces the method in the present application, and the following introduces the device in the present application:

[0128] Please refer to FIG. 14, the first network device 1400 in the present application includes a determining unit 1401 and a processing unit 1402.

[0129] The determining unit 1401 is configured to determine the actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical port, the first network device communicates with the second network device through the Ethernet electrical port, the actual bandwidth to be used is less than the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port, and greater than the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device.

[0130] The processing unit 1402 is configured to set the effective bandwidth of the MII interface as the actual bandwidth to be used.

[0131] The processing unit 1402 is further configured to process the message data received from the MII interface to obtain data symbols.

[0132] The processing unit 1402 is further configured to distribute the data symbols to the target channel of the Ethernet electrical interface, and the total bandwidth of the target channel is the actual bandwidth to be used.

[0133] The processing unit 1402 is configured to distribute the padding symbols to the non-target channels of the Ethernet electrical interface except the target channel, and close the PMA processing of the non-target channels.

[0134] In a possible implementation manner,

[0135] The processing unit 1402 is specifically configured to receive, at the RS, a plurality of message data from the MAC.

[0136] The processing unit 1402 is specifically configured to repeat, at the RS, target message data in the plurality of message data.

[0137] The processing unit 1402 is specifically configured to indicate, at the RS, the target message data in the repeated part as invalid data based on the bus valid data indication, and the bandwidth occupied by the invalid data plus the actual bandwidth to be used is equal to the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface.

[0138] In a possible implementation manner,

[0139] The processing unit 1402 is specifically configured to reduce the main frequency of the PHY chip by N / M, where N is the actual bandwidth to be used, and M is the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface.

[0140] In a possible implementation manner,

[0141] The determining unit 1401 is specifically configured to determine the first candidate actual bandwidth to be used of the Ethernet electrical interface according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device.

[0142] The determining unit 1401 is specifically configured to receive, from the second network device, a second candidate actual bandwidth to be used determined according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device.

[0143] The determining unit 1401 is specifically configured to determine the actual bandwidth to be used as the maximum value between the first candidate actual bandwidth to be used and the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used.

[0144] In a possible implementation manner, the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used is carried in ordered sets.

[0145] Referring to FIG. 15, the second network device 1500 in the application includes a determining unit 1501 and a processing unit 1502.

[0146] The determining unit 1501 is configured to determine an actual usage bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port, the first network device and the second network device communicating through the Ethernet electrical port. The actual usage bandwidth is less than a total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port and greater than a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device.

[0147] The processing unit 1502 is configured to determine target channels and non-target channels of the Ethernet electrical port according to the actual usage bandwidth, a total bandwidth of the target channels being the actual usage bandwidth.

[0148] The processing unit 1502 is further configured to close PMA processing of the non-target channels and discard data from the non-target channels.

[0149] The processing unit 1502 is further configured to receive data symbols from the target channels.

[0150] The processing unit 1502 is further configured to perform PCS processing on the data symbols.

[0151] In a possible implementation manner,

[0152] The determining unit 1501 is specifically configured to determine the second candidate actual usage bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port according to the current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device.

[0153] The determining unit 1501 is specifically configured to receive, from the first network device, a first candidate actual usage bandwidth determined according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device, the first network device and the second network device communicating through the Ethernet electrical port.

[0154] The determining unit 1501 is specifically configured to determine, as the actual usage bandwidth, a larger one of the first candidate actual usage bandwidth and the second candidate actual usage bandwidth.

[0155] In a possible implementation manner, the first candidate actual usage bandwidth is carried in ordered sets.

[0156] FIG. 16 is a structural schematic diagram of an apparatus provided in the present application, which is configured to implement the method performed by the first network device or the second network device in the foregoing embodiments. The apparatus 1600 can include one or more central processing units (CPUs) 1601 and a memory 1605 in which one or more application programs or data are stored.

[0157] The memory 1605 can be volatile memory or persistent storage. The programs stored in the memory 1605 can include one or more modules, each of which can include a series of instructions operated in the server. Further, the central processing unit 1601 can be configured to communicate with the memory 1605 to execute the series of instructions operated in the memory 1605 on the device 1600. The device 1600 can further include one or more power supplies 1602, one or more wired or wireless network interfaces 1603, one or more input and output interfaces 1604, and / or one or more operating systems.

[0158] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of the description, the specific working processes of the above-described system, device and unit can refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0159] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described device embodiments are only schematic, for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and actual implementation can have another division manner, for example, a plurality of units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the units shown or discussed can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, device or unit, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0160] The units described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components shown as units can or can not be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place, or can be distributed on a plurality of network units. Part or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the embodiment.

[0161] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated in one processing unit, or each unit can be physically present separately, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit. The above integrated unit can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional unit.

[0162] The integrated unit, if implemented in the form of a software function unit and sold or used as an independent product, can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art or the whole or part of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM, read-only memory), a random access memory (RAM, random access memory), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and various media that can store program codes.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: a first network device determines an actual bandwidth to be used for an Ethernet electrical interface, the first network device communicates with a second network device through the Ethernet electrical interface, the actual bandwidth to be used is less than a total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface and greater than a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device; the first network device sets an effective bandwidth of a MII interface to the actual bandwidth to be used; the first network device processes packet data received from the MII interface to obtain data symbols; the first network device distributes the data symbols to a target lane of the Ethernet electrical interface, a total bandwidth of the target lane is the actual bandwidth to be used; the first network device distributes padding symbols to non-target lanes of the Ethernet electrical interface other than the target lane and closes PMA processing of the non-target lanes.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first network device sets an effective bandwidth of a MII interface to the actual bandwidth to be used comprises: the first network device receives a plurality of packet data from a MAC at a RS; the first network device duplicates target packet data in the plurality of packet data at the RS; the first network device indicates the duplicated target packet data as invalid data based on a bus valid data indication at the RS, a bandwidth occupied by the invalid data plus the actual bandwidth to be used is equal to a total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first network device sets an effective bandwidth of a MII interface to the actual bandwidth to be used comprises: the first network device reduces a clock frequency of a PHY chip by N / M, N is the actual bandwidth to be used and M is the total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The first network device determines an actual bandwidth to be used for an Ethernet electrical interface comprises: the first network device determines a first candidate actual bandwidth to be used for the Ethernet electrical interface according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device; the first network device receives a second candidate actual bandwidth to be used from a second network device, the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used is determined according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device; the first network device determines the actual bandwidth to be used as a value greater than the first candidate actual bandwidth to be used and the second candidate actual bandwidth to be used.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, The second candidate actual bandwidth to be used is carried in ordered sets.

6. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: a second network device determines an actual bandwidth to be used for an Ethernet electrical interface, the second network device communicates with a first network device through the Ethernet electrical interface, the actual bandwidth to be used is less than a total bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical interface and greater than a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device and the second network device; the second network device determines a target lane and non-target lanes of the Ethernet electrical interface according to the actual bandwidth to be used, a total bandwidth of the target lane is the actual bandwidth to be used; the second network device closes PMA processing of the non-target lanes and discards data from the non-target lanes; the second network device receives data symbols from the target lane; The second network device performs PCS processing on the data symbol.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein, The second network device determines an actual available bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port, including: The second network device determines a second candidate actual available bandwidth of the Ethernet electrical port according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the second network device; The second network device receives a first candidate actual available bandwidth from a first network device, the first network device being in communication with the second network device through the Ethernet electrical port, the first candidate actual available bandwidth being determined according to a current actual occupied bandwidth of the first network device; The second network device determines the actual available bandwidth as a larger one of the first candidate actual available bandwidth and the second candidate actual available bandwidth.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, The first candidate actual available bandwidth is carried in an ordered set.

9. A network device, functioning as a first network device, characterized by An access network device includes a processor and a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the access network device to perform any one of the methods of claims 1-5.

10. A network device for use as a second network device, the network device comprising: An access network device includes a processor and a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the access network device to perform any one of the methods of claims 6-8.

11. A computer readable storage medium, characterized in that, A computer program product has instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed by a computer, causing the computer to perform any one of the methods of claims 1-8.

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