Firmware Virtual Device Interface for Legacy Hardware Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
In densely packed data centers, providing legacy device access for operating systems without increasing hardware size, cost, and power consumption is challenging due to the need for multiple standardized interfaces like serial ports, keyboards, and displays.
Innovation Solution
A virtualized data interface is created using firmware runtime services, which emulates a hardware device and is accessed by the operating system through standardized kernel components, allowing data exchange with actual hardware devices without requiring direct hardware access, thus reducing the need for physical devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If actual hardware devices (serial ports, keyboards, displays) are provided for each computer in data centers, then legacy device access and compatibility are ensured, but hardware size, cost, and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates virtual copies of physical hardware devices through firmware-level virtualization. Virtual serial ports, keyboards, and displays are implemented as software abstractions that replicate the functionality of physical devices without requiring actual hardware instantiation for each system. This allows legacy operating systems to interact with standardized device interfaces while the underlying physical infrastructure remains shared and consolidated.
Solution Approach 2:
The firmware virtualization layer provides universal access to legacy device interfaces across multiple computing systems. A single physical device can serve multiple virtual instances, and the firmware layer abstracts the hardware details to provide consistent device access patterns regardless of the underlying physical configuration. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for dedicated hardware per system while maintaining compatibility with legacy software.
2Reliability
If actual hardware devices are provided for each computer, then device compatibility is maintained, but space and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
Virtual device copies are created in firmware that replicate the electrical and data interface behavior of physical devices. These virtual instances provide the same compatibility guarantees as physical devices would, allowing legacy operating systems to boot and operate correctly. However, since they exist as software abstractions rather than physical hardware, they consume no additional power beyond the base system requirements.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple standardized interfaces are provided, then legacy operating system access is enabled, but hardware complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The firmware virtualization layer acts as an intermediary between the operating system and physical hardware. It presents virtual standardized interfaces (serial ports, parallel ports, keyboards, displays) that the OS can access through traditional drivers, while actually routing these access requests to a shared pool of physical resources. This mediator layer abstracts away the complexity of hardware management from both the OS and the physical device layer.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple virtual device interfaces are merged onto a single physical hardware platform. Instead of requiring separate physical devices for each interface instance, the firmware combines multiple virtual serial ports, keyboards, and displays into a unified virtualization layer that shares underlying physical resources. This merging reduces hardware complexity while maintaining full interface accessibility for legacy systems.
Data Source
AI summary
Hardware access is provided for an operating system by allocating a portion of firmware address space of a data processing arrangement for use as a virtualized data interface that emulates a first hardware device. The virtualized data interface is presented to the operating system. The operating system accesses the virtualized data interface using a standardized kernel component of the operating system adapted to interface with the first hardware device. Data is exchanged between the virtualized interface and a second hardware device based on accesses of the virtualized data interface by the operating system via the standardized kernel component.