Network Device Expedited Recovery from Unplanned Reboot

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Solution Overview

Problem

Modern data center networks face significant downtime due to unplanned reboots of leaf switches, which can last over ten minutes, posing unacceptable risks and costs, especially during peak usage hours in financial or mission-critical systems.

Innovation Solution

A network device is configured with an expedited recovery feature that enables a fast bootup sequence by storing readiness status and hardware configuration data in non-volatile memory, allowing for a cold or expedited boot based on reboot causes, minimizing downtime to less than one minute or second.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a network device performs a conventional boot sequence after an unplanned reboot, then the system ensures complete initialization and hardware check, but the network outage duration increases to over ten minutes

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem initialization completenessVSAvoidnetwork outage duration

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by storing readiness status and hardware configuration data in non-volatile memory during normal operation. When an unplanned reboot occurs, this pre-stored information is immediately available, eliminating the need for complete re-initialization and reducing boot time from over ten minutes to less than one minute.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies local quality by differentiating between critical and non-critical initialization steps. The system stores only essential readiness status and configuration data in non-volatile memory, allowing fast boot by skipping non-critical initialization routines while maintaining system functionality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Loss of time

If the network device stores readiness status and configuration data in non-volatile memory, then the boot time is reduced to less than one minute, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveboot timeVSAvoidstorage and configuration management

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of timeVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The non-volatile memory serves multiple functions: storing readiness status, preserving hardware configuration data, and maintaining system state information. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate storage mechanisms and simplifies the overall system architecture despite the added complexity of managing these data structures.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS11922175B2Unplanned reboot expedited recovery for network devices

Publication Date: 2024.03.05 ARISTA NETWORKS INC

AI summary

A method of operating a network device is provided. In response to an unplanned reboot, the network device can determine whether an unplanned reboot expedited recovery feature has been enabled on the network device. After determining that the unplanned reboot expedited recovery feature is enabled, the network device can identify a cause of the unplanned reboot. If the cause of the unplanned reboot is from a first set of events, a first bootup sequence can be performed. If the cause of the unplanned reboot is from a second set of events, a second bootup sequence that is expedited relative to the first bootup sequence can be performed.