Coherent Shared-Buffer Snapshot via Concurrent Write Circuitry
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing network management systems face challenges in capturing a coherent snapshot of buffer status during diagnostic events, as the buffer status continually changes, making it difficult to analyze and diagnose congestion issues effectively.
Innovation Solution
A network element with circuitry that concurrently stores information in a buffer memory and a snapshot memory, allowing for the creation of a coherent snapshot at the time of a predefined diagnostic event, which includes data and descriptors of packets, and can be sent over the network upon event detection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If buffer status is monitored continuously during packet forwarding, then diagnostic coverage is improved, but snapshot coherence deteriorates due to ongoing buffer changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by continuously writing buffer status to snapshot memory before the actual diagnostic event occurs. This ensures that when a diagnostic event triggers a snapshot, the data is already captured and coherent, eliminating the conflict between continuous monitoring and snapshot stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the snapshot creation function from the active buffer operations. By separating the snapshot memory from the active buffer and continuously copying data to it, the system can capture buffer state without interfering with ongoing packet forwarding and buffer modifications, thus maintaining both diagnostic accuracy and snapshot coherence.
2Productivity
If packet forwarding continues during snapshot creation, then network productivity is maintained, but measurement precision deteriorates due to changing buffer status
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously writes buffer status information to snapshot memory in advance, before any diagnostic event occurs. This preliminary action ensures that when packet forwarding needs to be analyzed, the snapshot data is already captured and represents a coherent state, allowing accurate measurement without interrupting productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a copy of the buffer status in snapshot memory that can be read without affecting the original buffer operations. This copying mechanism allows the system to maintain high packet forwarding rates while simultaneously capturing accurate buffer status information for diagnostic purposes.
3Quantity of substance
If snapshot data is captured at different times for different packets, then data collection completeness is improved, but snapshot coherence deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains continuous writing of buffer status to snapshot memory throughout packet forwarding operations. This continuous action ensures that all packet data is captured in the snapshot without gaps, while the continuous nature of the write operation to a separate snapshot memory ensures temporal coherence is maintained.
Solution Approach 2:
The snapshot memory acts as an intermediary between the active buffer and the diagnostic system. It receives continuous writes from the buffer during normal operations, allowing complete data collection, while providing a stable, coherent snapshot when diagnostic events occur, thus resolving the conflict between completeness and temporal coherence.
Data Source
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AI summary
A network element includes multiple ports configured to communicate over a network, a buffer memory, a snapshot memory, and circuitry. The circuitry is configured to forward packets between the ports, to temporarily store information associated with the packets in the buffer memory, to continuously write at least part of the information to the snapshot memory concurrently with storage of the information in the buffer memory, and, in response to at least one predefined diagnostic event, to stop writing of the information to the snapshot memory, so as to create in the snapshot memory a coherent snapshot corresponding to a time of the diagnostic event.