Load Balanced Infiniband Ethernet Gateway Traffic Distribution

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing data network systems with redundant Infiniband-to-Ethernet gateways face challenges in achieving effective load balancing, leading to inefficient data traffic distribution among IB-to-Ethernet gateways.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a method that maintains fixed source and destination IP addresses to determine which IB-to-Ethernet gateway handles data traffic, using a hash function to distribute traffic load among multiple gateways, ensuring that all hosts do not use a single gateway, and updating query and address tables to manage ARP requests and replies effectively.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If ARP relay is used to bridge infiniband and Ethernet networks with target/destination IP address determination, then gateway selection is simplified, but all IB hosts end up using the same IB-to-Ethernet gateway resulting in unbalanced traffic distribution

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvegateway selection simplicityVSAvoidtraffic distribution balance

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the parameter used for gateway selection from target/destination IP address to source IP address. By hashing the source IP address of IB hosts, the system determines which gateway should handle the traffic, ensuring balanced distribution across multiple gateways while maintaining simple operation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Device complexity

If a single default router is used for all IB hosts, then routing configuration is simplified, but traffic load concentrates on a single IB-to-Ethernet gateway reducing network efficiency

Engineering Contradiction:

Improverouting configuration complexityVSAvoidnetwork efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the traffic handling function across multiple IB-to-Ethernet gateways. Instead of one gateway handling all traffic, the system divides traffic distribution among multiple gateways by using hash functions on source IP addresses, thereby balancing the load and improving network efficiency while keeping configuration simple.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

3Reliability

If active/standby mode is used for redundant gateways, then system reliability is improved, but only one gateway handles data traffic resulting in underutilization of resources

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem availabilityVSAvoidgateway resource utilization

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a dynamic load balancing mechanism where multiple gateways can simultaneously handle traffic based on hash-based destination determination. This transforms the static active/standby model into a dynamic active/active model, improving resource utilization while maintaining reliability through redundancy.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS7724746B2Method and system for providing load balanced traffic in redundant infiniband ethernet gateways network

Publication Date: 2010.05.25 CISCO TECHNOLOGY INC

AI summary

Method and system for providing load balancing in Infiniband-to-Ethernet networks including detecting a data traffic request, determining a network interface port information associated with the detected data traffic request, and selecting a network gateway based on the network interface port information is disclosed.