Patent Application
20140173157
Within the field of computing, many scenarios involve a computing unit enclosure configured to store a set of computational units, such as server racks or blades, each of which may store one or more computers. In addition to providing a physical storage structure, the enclosure may provide various physical, electrical, and electronic resources for the units, such as climate regulation, power distribution and backup reserves, and communication with one or more wired or wireless networks. In particular, the provision of wired network resources may involve a network resource that connects with a network and provides network connectivity to one or several of the units in the enclosure. As a first example, the enclosure may feature a single network connector to connect to a wired network, and may distribute the connection from the single network connector with each unit. As a second example, the enclosure may feature a network switch connecting to the wired network, and may provide switched network connectivity to network interface controllers provided with each unit. These techniques for sharing network resources may be more cost- and energy-effective and easier to manage than providing a separate set of network resources for each unit and/or computer.
However, the units within the enclosure may utilize a variety of wired network types, such as Ethernet, InfiniBand, Fibre Channel, and various types of fiber optic networks. Each network type may feature a particular set of resources, such as a distinctive type of connector, a distinctive type of cabling, a particular class of network adapter and/or network interface controller, and a particular network protocol. A set of network resources provided by the enclosure may be specialized for a particular network type (e.g., specialized to exchange data according to a particular network protocol). Moreover, different units may be configured to connect with different types of networks; e.g., a first unit may include an Ethernet network interface controller, and a second unit may include an InfiniBand network interface controller.
In order to support multiple network types, the enclosure may provide a multitude of network resources for each supported network type, and may connect each unit within the enclosure to each set of network resources. Thus, for an enclosure featuring M units and supporting N network types, the enclosure may include M*N sets of connecting resources (e.g., M sets of Ethernet cables or circuits providing connectivity for each unit to an Ethernet network and specialized for exchanging data via an Ethernet network protocol, and also M sets of InfiniBand cables or circuits providing connectivity for each unit to an InfiniBand network and specialized for exchanging data via the Sockets Direct Protocol for InfiniBand networks).
This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key factors or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
While designing an enclosure to support a variety of network types, it may be undesirable to provide multiple sets of network resources to connect respective units with each network type. Such architectures typically result in at least some network types remaining unutilized, thus creating inefficiencies of cost, equipment, energy, and administration. Additionally, configuring the enclosure to provide network resources only a particular set of network types limits the compatibility of the enclosure with other network types, including those that may be provided in the future. For at least these reasons, the architectural decision of configuring an enclosure to provide several distinct sets of network resources for specific network types may reduce the efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and flexibility of the enclosure.
Presented herein are alternative enclosure architectures that provide network support to the units that are not restricted to particular network types. Rather than providing network resources for particular network types, the enclosure may provide a backplane comprising a backplane bus that is configured to exchange data not according to a network protocol, but according to an expansion bus protocol, such as the Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCI-Express) standard. The backplane bus may therefore connect two or more units with one or more network adapters using an expansion bus protocol that is supported by a wide variety of network adapters. Moreover, the backplane may include resources additional resources to support connectivity with a variety of network adapters, such as a network adapter switch providing multi-root input/output virtualization (MR-IOV) that enables several units and/or computers to share a single network adapter. Such architectures may shift the point of network type specialization from the enclosure to the network adapter, and may provide connectivity resources in a network-type-independent manner using an expansion bus protocol that is supported by a wide variety of such network adapters, including network adapters for network types that have not yet been devised.
To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the following description and annexed drawings set forth certain illustrative aspects and implementations. These are indicative of but a few of the various ways in which one or more aspects may be employed. Other aspects, advantages, and novel features of the disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the annexed drawings.
The claimed subject matter is now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the claimed subject matter. It may be evident, however, that the claimed subject matter may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate describing the claimed subject matter.
Within the field of computing, many scenarios involve an enclosure of a set of computational units storing a set of computing devices, such as a set of servers, workstations, storage devices, or routers. The enclosure may provide a physical structure for storing, organizing, and protecting the computational units, and may also provide other resources, such as regulation of the temperature, humidity, and airflow within the enclosure; distribution of power among the devices; and reserve power supplies, such as an uninterruptible power supply (UPS), in case the main power supply fails. In addition, the enclosure may provide connectivity to a wired or wireless network through a set of network resources. As a first example, the enclosure may provide an external network port, to which a wired network may be connected, and internal cabling or circuitry to connect the network port with each computational unit. As a second example, the enclosure may provide a network switch that provides direct communication among the computational units and, when connected with a network, provides network connectivity to each of the computational units. In this manner, the enclosure may facilitate network connectivity among the computational units in a more efficient manner than providing a complete, dedicated set of network resources for each unit (e.g., each unit having an individual network adapter and network port).
However, the provision of network resources within an enclosure may present difficulties in view of the variety of networks with which the computational units may be connected, such as Ethernet networks, InfiniBand networks, Fibre Channel networks, and various types of fiber optic networks. Each network type may involve a particular set of network resources, such as a particular type of network connector; a particular type of cabling and/or circuitry (e.g., light-conveying cabling in a fiber optic network); and network components that are configured to exchange data according to a particular network protocol (e.g., an Ethernet protocol for Ethernet networks, and a Sockets Direct Protocol for InfiniBand networks). Moreover, a user may wish to provide a set of units configured to communicate with a plurality of networks and/or network adapters presenting different network types. In order to facilitate such flexibility, some enclosure architectures may provide a set of network resources for each computing unit and each network type. For example, an enclosure configured to support four units may provide four sets of Ethernet network cables and/or circuitry; four sets of InfiniBand network cables and/or circuitry; and four sets of Fibre Channel network cables and/or circuitry. The user may connect each unit to the network resources for the desired network type.
However, the compatibility provided by the chassis 102 in the exemplary scenario 100 of
It may be appreciated that the disadvantages evident in the exemplary scenario 100 of
The techniques discussed herein may be devised with variations in many aspects, and some variations may present additional advantages and/or reduce disadvantages with respect to other variations of these and other techniques. Moreover, some variations may be implemented in combination, and some combinations may feature additional advantages and/or reduced disadvantages through synergistic cooperation. The variations may be incorporated in various embodiments (e.g., the exemplary backplane 208 of
D1. Scenarios
A first aspect that may vary among embodiments of these techniques relates to the scenarios wherein such techniques may be utilized.
As a first variation of this first aspect, many types of computing unit enclosures 202 may be equipped with the types of backplanes 208 described herein, such as racks, cabinets, banks, or “blade”-type enclosures, such as illustrated in the exemplary scenario 300 of
As a second variation of this first aspect, the techniques presented herein may be utilized with many types of computing devices 302, such as servers, server farms, workstations, laptops, tablets, mobile phones, game consoles, network appliances such as switches or routers, and storage devices such as network-attached storage (NAS) components.
As a third variation of this first aspect, a variety of network types, the enclosure architectures provided herein may be usable to share network resources provided by a variety of networks 116 involving many types of network adapters 114 and network protocols 216, such as Ethernet networks utilizing Ethernet network protocols; InfiniBand networks utilizing a Sockets Direct Protocol; Fibre Channel networks utilizing an Internet Fibre Channel Protocol (iFCP); and a fiber optic network utilizing a fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) protocol.
As a fourth variation of this first aspect, the backplane bus 210 may utilize many types of expansion bus protocols 214 to exchange data between the network adapter 114 and the unit connectors 206 of the units 204, such as Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCI Express), Universal Serial Bus (USB), and Small Computer System Interface (SCSI). The unit connectors 206, backplane connectors 218, backplane bus 210, and network adapter connector 212 may be designed to operate according to a particular expansion bus protocol 214 that is supported by a selected network adapter 114.
As a fifth variation of this first aspect, the backplane bus 208 and various connectors may utilize many types of interconnection techniques, such as cabling and/or traces integrated with surfaces of the computing unit enclosure 202 and/or backplane 208. In some architectures, the traces may be designed with a trace length that is shorter than a trace repeater threshold (e.g., the length at which attenuation of the communication signal encourages the inclusion of a repeater to amplify the communication signal for continued transmission). Additionally, the connectors may comprise various connection techniques, such as manual insertion and release connectors or connectors that automatically couple without manual intervention, such as “blind mate” connectors. These and other variations in the architecture of the elements of the computing environment enclosure 202 may be selected and included while implementing the techniques presented herein.
D2. Backplane Bus Variations
A second aspect that may vary among embodiments of these techniques relates to the configuration of the backplane bus 210 provided on the backplane 208 to connect the units 204 with the network adapter connector 212.
As in some scenarios, the network adapter 114 may comprise two or more network interface controllers, each respectively connected to a network 116.
In these and other scenarios, difficulties may arise if the lane counts of the backplane connector lanes 502, the bus lanes 504, and the network adapter lanes 506 differ. In some architectures, such differences may simply not be tolerated; e.g., units 204 and/or network adapters 114 may only be supported that have lane counts matching the lane count of the bus lanes 504. Alternatively, the backplane 208 may be configured to tolerate variances in lane counts. For example, upon connecting with a network adapter 114, the backplane bus 210 and/or network adapter connector 212 may be configured to determine a network adapter lane count of the network adapter lanes 506 of the network adapter 114, and negotiate an active lane count comprising a lesser of the network adapter lane count and a backplane bus lane count of the backplane bus lanes 504 of the backplane bus 210. This determination may be achieved during a handshake 508 performed while initiating the connection of the network adapter 114. These and other variations of the backplane 208 and backplane bus 210 may be devised by those of ordinary skill in the art while implementing the techniques presented herein.
D3. Additional Backplane Features
A third aspect that may vary among embodiments of these techniques relates to additional components that may be included on the backplane 208 and/or backplane bus 210 to provide additional features to the units 204 and computing unit enclosure 202.
As a first variation of this third aspect, the backplane connectors 218 of the backplane 208 may be configured to exchange data with the units 204 according to a network protocol 216 instead of the expansion bus protocol 214. For example, the unit connectors 206 of one or more units 204 may not comprise expansion bus protocol ports (e.g., PCI Express ports or USB ports), but, rather, may comprise network ports of network adapters provided on the units 204. In order to use such units 204 with the backplane bus 210 provided herein, the backplane connectors 218 may transform the network protocol data received from the units 204 to expansion bus protocol data that may be transmitted via the backplane bus 210, and vice versa. This configuration may provide greater flexibility in the types of units 204 that may be utilized with the computing unit enclosure 202.
As a third variation of this third aspect, the backplane 208 may include a unit interconnect positioned between the backplane bus 210 and the network adapter connector 212 that enables direct communication among at least two units 204 and/or computing devices 302. For example, the unit interconnect may provide a direct, high-bandwidth communication channel between two or more units 204 that does not involve the network adapter 114, and therefore avoids the translation into and out of the network protocol 216 and other network features such as routing.
As a fourth variation of this third aspect, the computing unit enclosure 202 may be connectible with a second computing unit enclosure 202, e.g., in a multi-chassis cabinet wherein each chassis comprises a set of units 204. In order to enable the units 204 of respective chassis to interoperate, each computing unit enclosure 202 may provide a computing unit enclosure interconnect that connects with a second computing unit enclosure, thereby enabling communication between the units 202 of the respective chassis. These and other components may supplement the components of the backplane 208 and computing unit enclosure 202 provided herein to provide additional features that may be compatible with the techniques presented herein.
Although not required, embodiments are described in the general context of “computer readable instructions” being executed by one or more computing devices. Computer readable instructions may be distributed via computer readable media (discussed below). Computer readable instructions may be implemented as program modules, such as functions, objects, Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), data structures, and the like, that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Typically, the functionality of the computer readable instructions may be combined or distributed as desired in various environments.
In other embodiments, device 702 may include additional features and/or functionality. For example, device 702 may also include additional storage (e.g., removable and/or non-removable) including, but not limited to, magnetic storage, optical storage, and the like. Such additional storage is illustrated in
The term “computer readable media” as used herein includes computer storage media. Computer storage media includes volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable instructions or other data. Memory 708 and storage 710 are examples of computer storage media. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, Digital Versatile Disks (DVDs) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can be accessed by device 702. Any such computer storage media may be part of device 702.
Device 702 may also include communication connection(s) 716 that allows device 702 to communicate with other devices. Communication connection(s) 716 may include, but is not limited to, a modem, a Network Interface Card (NIC), an integrated network interface, a radio frequency transmitter/receiver, an infrared port, a USB connection, or other interfaces for connecting computing device 702 to other computing devices. Communication connection(s) 716 may include a wired connection or a wireless connection. Communication connection(s) 716 may transmit and/or receive communication media.
The term “computer readable media” may include communication media. Communication media typically embodies computer readable instructions or other data in a “modulated data signal” such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism and includes any information delivery media. The term “modulated data signal” may include a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal.
Device 702 may include input device(s) 714 such as keyboard, mouse, pen, voice input device, touch input device, infrared cameras, video input devices, and/or any other input device. Output device(s) 712 such as one or more displays, speakers, printers, and/or any other output device may also be included in device 702. Input device(s) 714 and output device(s) 712 may be connected to device 702 via a wired connection, wireless connection, or any combination thereof. In one embodiment, an input device or an output device from another computing device may be used as input device(s) 714 or output device(s) 712 for computing device 702.
Components of computing device 702 may be connected by various interconnects, such as a bus. Such interconnects may include a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI), such as PCI Express, a Universal Serial Bus (USB), Firewire (IEEE 1394), an optical bus structure, and the like. In another embodiment, components of computing device 702 may be interconnected by a network. For example, memory 708 may be comprised of multiple physical memory units located in different physical locations interconnected by a network.
Those skilled in the art will realize that storage devices utilized to store computer readable instructions may be distributed across a network. For example, a computing device 720 accessible via network 718 may store computer readable instructions to implement one or more embodiments provided herein. Computing device 702 may access computing device 720 and download a part or all of the computer readable instructions for execution. Alternatively, computing device 702 may download pieces of the computer readable instructions, as needed, or some instructions may be executed at computing device 702 and some at computing device 720.
Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.
As used in this application, the terms “component,” “module,” “system”, “interface”, and the like are generally intended to refer to a computer-related entity, either hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way of illustration, both an application running on a controller and the controller can be a component. One or more components may reside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component may be localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or more computers.
Furthermore, the claimed subject matter may be implemented as a method, apparatus, or article of manufacture using standard programming and/or engineering techniques to produce software, firmware, hardware, or any combination thereof to control a computer to implement the disclosed subject matter. The term “article of manufacture” as used herein is intended to encompass a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier, or media. Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize many modifications may be made to this configuration without departing from the scope or spirit of the claimed subject matter.
Various operations of embodiments are provided herein. In one embodiment, one or more of the operations described may constitute computer readable instructions stored on one or more computer readable media, which if executed by a computing device, will cause the computing device to perform the operations described. The order in which some or all of the operations are described should not be construed as to imply that these operations are necessarily order dependent. Alternative ordering will be appreciated by one skilled in the art having the benefit of this description. Further, it will be understood that not all operations are necessarily present in each embodiment provided herein.
Moreover, the word “exemplary” is used herein to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as advantageous over other aspects or designs. Rather, use of the word exemplary is intended to present concepts in a concrete fashion. As used in this application, the term “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive “or”. That is, unless specified otherwise, or clear from context, “X employs A or B” is intended to mean any of the natural inclusive permutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and B, then “X employs A or B” is satisfied under any of the foregoing instances. In addition, the articles “a” and “an” as used in this application and the appended claims may generally be construed to mean “one or more” unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form.
Also, although the disclosure has been shown and described with respect to one or more implementations, equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art based upon a reading and understanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. The disclosure includes all such modifications and alterations and is limited only by the scope of the following claims. In particular regard to the various functions performed by the above described components (e.g., elements, resources, etc.), the terms used to describe such components are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any component which performs the specified function of the described component (e.g., that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure which performs the function in the herein illustrated exemplary implementations of the disclosure. In addition, while a particular feature of the disclosure may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “includes”, “having”, “has”, “with”, or variants thereof are used in either the detailed description or the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising.”
