Slim Ethernet Over InfiniBand via Local Route Header
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Solution Overview
Problem
Ethernet communication over InfiniBand (IB) networks incurs performance loss due to additional headers, making it data-intensive and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
The modification of the network access layer to include a local route header (LRH) for IB communication, retaining only necessary ethernet information in the L2 layer and removing redundant layers, supported by a changed IB router protocol using destination local identifiers and GID-to-LID mapping, enables slim ethernet communication over IB networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If ethernet over IB encapsulation is used, then ethernet host can communicate over IB network, but additional headers cause overhead and performance loss
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes unnecessary ethernet headers (L3 and L4 layers) while retaining only the essential L2 layer information needed for communication. This selective extraction eliminates redundant data that contributes to header overhead, directly resolving the contradiction between maintaining ethernet compatibility and reducing communication overhead.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the structural parameters of the ethernet communication protocol by modifying the header composition. Instead of using standard full ethernet headers, it transforms the protocol to use only essential L2 parameters (destination MAC address, source MAC address, ether type) combined with IB-specific parameters (LRH), fundamentally altering the header structure to reduce overhead while preserving functionality.
2Reliability
If full ethernet layers are retained in IB communication, then protocol compatibility is maintained, but data transmission becomes inefficient and data-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary protocol elements (L2 layer MAC addresses and ether type) required for basic ethernet functionality while removing redundant L3 and L4 layers. This extraction maintains essential protocol compatibility for ethernet communication while eliminating the bulk of overhead data that reduces transmission efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the ethernet protocol into essential components (L2 layer) and non-essential components (L3-L4 layers). By separating these segments and transmitting only the essential portion over IB network, it maintains the reliability needed for protocol compatibility while improving productivity by reducing the volume of transmitted data.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods herein are for one or more processing units to modify a network access layer of an ethernet communication to include a local route header (LRH) of an InfiniBand (IB) communication for transmission over an IB network, the modification further to retain ethernet information of all layers of the ethernet communication or to remove at least one of the layers of the ethernet communication for the IB communication.