Storage Gateway Protocol Translation and Data Pipelining
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current networked server systems lack effective connectivity between differing interconnection fabrics, such as Fiber Channel and Ethernet, due to the absence of protocol translation, leading to inefficient data transfer and resource utilization.
Innovation Solution
A network system gateway that manages data passing between multiple networking systems by translating data requests, initiating data transfers, and pipelining data bursts across fabrics, while handling multiple commands and status messages concurrently, ensuring efficient communication across varying protocols.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If data transfer completes one fabric/protocol before beginning transfer in the second fabric/protocol, then protocol translation is simplified, but performance and resource utilization efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway initiates data transfer operations in the second fabric before the first fabric transfer is complete. This preliminary action allows overlapping of transfer operations across different fabrics, improving resource utilization and throughput without requiring complete protocol translation before initiating the next transfer
Solution Approach 2:
The gateway maintains continuous data transfer operations across multiple fabrics by pipelining transfers. While one fabric transfer is in progress, the gateway prepares and initiates transfers on other fabrics, ensuring continuous utilization of network resources and eliminating idle waiting periods
2Productivity
If the gateway sends data bursts in one fabric before finishing receiving all bursts from the other fabric, then throughput is improved, but data integrity and synchronization become more difficult to manage
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway segments data transfers into discrete burst operations that can be independently managed. Each burst is tracked and managed as a separate unit, allowing the gateway to send bursts to one fabric before receiving all bursts from another fabric while maintaining proper accounting and synchronization of data units
Solution Approach 2:
The gateway implements feedback mechanisms to track the status of data bursts in transit. By monitoring which bursts have been sent and received, the gateway can manage overlapping transfers reliably, ensuring data integrity even when transfers are in progress across multiple fabrics simultaneously
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a networking system, network system gateway, and method for managing the transfer of data between networks interconnected through the gateway. The gateway manages the communication paths and commands used in transferring data, as well as the logins associated with each network. The gateway further provides the ability to buffer data in order to accommodate latencies within the networks. Additionally, the gateway provides the ability to pipeline data across the networks.