Patent Application
20210141547
Persistent memory is non-volatile memory that can be directly manipulated by a processor via load and store instructions and whose contents survive power cycles. Examples of non-volatile memory technologies include phase-change random access memory (PCRAM), spin-transfer torque magnetic random access memory (STT-MRAM), resistive random access memory (ReRAM), and memristor memory. Applications may exploit the ability to have direct access to persistent memory using memory mapping (also known as file mapping), resulting in leaner and faster applications.
In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific examples in which the disclosure may be practiced. It is to be understood that other examples may be utilized and structural or logical changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following detailed description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims. It is to be understood that features of the various examples described herein may be combined, in part or whole, with each other, unless specifically noted otherwise.
Non-volatile dual in-line memory modules (NVDIMMs) are a random-access memory for computers that retains its content when electrical power is removed. A set of NVDIMMs used within a computer may be configured in different ways to perform different functions on the computer. For example, a set of NVDIMMs used within a computer may be configured to 1) provide high-performance storage accessed at block granularity; 2) extend the computer memory capacity and ignore storage-related usages; or 3) be used as persistent memory, a combination of memory and storage semantics. NVDIMMs may be used in a stand-alone fashion or interleaved in sets, creating, in turn, different arrangements and connections to be managed. In addition, NVDIMMs may be self-encrypted, and each NVDIMM may have a singular passphrase for unlocking purposes, which makes management more complex. The information regarding the configuration of the NVDIMMs may be managed by the platform firmware, and stored in the label area of the NVDIMMs (i.e., a metadata area that includes the layout settings for a set of NVDIMMs). Manually setting these configurations for a large number of computers may be a tedious and error-prone task for administrators.
Accordingly, as disclosed herein, NVDIMMs of a computer may be configured via the platform firmware (e.g., Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI), Basic Input/Output System (BIOS)) of the computer or by a helper tool (e.g., application) using a NVDIMM configuration profile stored on a server. The NVDIMM configuration profile defines the properties for the NVDIMMs, such as the operation mode, interleaving, and encryption settings. The NVDIMM configuration profile may be created based on the properties of a current computer using the platform firmware or by using a helper tool. The computer to be configured downloads the NVDIMM configuration profile, authenticates the profile if necessary, verifies the profile is applicable to the computer, and applies the profile to the NVDIMMs of the computer.
Server 102 stores a NVDIMM configuration profile 104. NVDIMM configuration profile 104 may include an operation mode setting, an interleaving setting, an encryption setting, or another suitable setting for a set of NVDIMMs. NVDIMM configuration profile 104 is defined in a file, which may be in text format (e.g., Extensible Markup Language (XML), JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), text) or binary format. Each computer 1081 to 108M includes a plurality of NVDIMMs 1101 to 110N, where “N” is any suitable number of NVDIMMs. While each computer 1081 to 108M in
In one example, NVDIMM configuration profile 104 is encrypted or signed. In this example, after a computer 1081 to 108M downloads the NVDIMM configuration profile, the computer verifies the authenticity of the NVDIMM configuration profile using a public certificate of server 102 prior to applying the NVDIMM configuration profile to the corresponding plurality of NVDIMMs 1101 to 110N of the computer. In one example, at least one of computers 1081 to 108M may be used to create the NVDIMM configuration profile based on properties of the computer and upload the NVDIMM configuration profile to server 102 to provide NVDIMM configuration profile 104. In another example, at least one of computers 1081 to 108M may be used to create the NVDIMM configuration profile using an application (e.g., helper tool) and upload the NVDIMM configuration profile to server 102 to provide NVDIMM configuration profile 104.
In one example, a NVDIMM configuration profile is created using an existing NVDIMM configuration of a computer as a template. At 204, a user enters the platform firmware user interface of an existing computer and configures the NVDIMMs by setting for example the operation mode, interleaving sets, encryption, etc. The user also configures the server address to be used in future interactions regarding the NVDIMM configuration profile. At 206, the user specifies a name for the NVDIMM configuration profile and saves the NVDIMM configuration profile based on the properties of the current computer. In another example, the user creates a NVDIMM configuration profile at 204 by editing a file containing the desired properties. The user may directly edit the file or may use an application (e.g., helper tool) to edit the file. In this example, at 206 the user specifies a name for the NVDIMM configuration profile and saves the NVDIMM configuration profile.
In either case, the NVDIMM configuration profile may be encrypted and/or signed. At 208, the user authenticates to server 212. In response to a successful authentication, at 210 the NVDIMM configuration profile is uploaded to server 212. Server 212 stores the NVDIMM configuration profile under the specified NVDIMM configuration profile name.
At 304, a user turns on the computer to install the operating system. At 306, the firmware prompts for credentials to authenticate the user. At 308, the user authenticates to server 314. In response to a successful authentication and in response to an instruction to download the NVDIMM configuration profile, at 310 the firmware downloads the NVDIMM configuration profile from server 314. The computer may be instructed to download the NVDIMM configuration profile from server 314 in different ways. In one example, the user may select an option within the platform firmware user interface requesting the download. In another example, the platform firmware automatically connects to server 314 at boot time to check whether there is a NVDIMM configuration profile to be applied. In another example, an administrator may send the network path of the NVDIMM configuration profile through remote configuration interfaces to all computers to which the NVDIMM configuration profile is to be applied. At 312, the firmware applies the NVDIMM configuration profile to NVDIMMs of the computer.
The downloaded NVDIMM configuration profile may be signed and/or encrypted. In this case, the authenticity and integrity of the downloaded NVDIMM configuration profile are checked by the firmware using the server's public certificate prior to applying the NVDIMM configuration profile to the NVDIMMs of the computer.
The platform firmware may verify that the downloaded NVDIMM configuration profile is applicable to the physical disposition and capabilities of the NVDIMMs installed on the computer. In response to a successful verification, the NVDIMM configuration profile is applied. In response to an unsuccessful verification, the platform firmware may add an error to the firmware's log, warn the user about the problems found, and inform the user if a solution is available. The NVDIMM configuration profile may also include a fallback configuration which in the case of an unsuccessful verification may be applied to the NVDIMMs. The NVDIMM configuration profile is applied to the computer using a NVDIMM configuration interface (e.g., NVDIMM device driver).
In response to an instruction, NVDIMM configuration logic 406 downloads the saved NVDIMM configuration profile 414 from server 412. NVDIMM configuration logic 406 then parses/verifies the downloaded NVDIMM configuration profile and translates the profile into driver calls to NVDIMM device driver 408. NVDIMM device driver 408 translates the driver calls into device specific commands to configure NVDIMMs 4101 to 410N based on the NVDIMM configuration profile.
Processor 502 includes one or more central processing units (CPUs), microprocessors, and/or other suitable hardware devices for retrieval and execution of instructions stored in machine-readable storage medium 506. Processor 502 may fetch, decode, and execute instructions 508-512 to configure NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N. Processor 502 may fetch, decode, and execute instructions 508 to receive an instruction to download a NVDIMM configuration profile from a server. Processor 502 may fetch, decode, and execute instructions 510 to download the NVDIMM configuration profile from the server in response to the instruction. In one example, the NVDIMM configuration profile includes a file in a text format or a binary format. Processor 502 may fetch, decode, and execute instructions 512 to apply the NVDIMM configuration profile to the plurality of NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N.
In one example, processor 502 may fetch, decode and execute further instructions to authenticate the NVDIMM configuration profile downloaded from the server prior to applying the NVDIMM configuration profile to the plurality of NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N. Processor 502 may fetch, decode and execute further instructions to verify the NVDIMM configuration profile downloaded from the server is applicable to the plurality of NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N prior to applying the NVDIMM configuration profile to the plurality of NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N. In addition, processor 502 may fetch, decode and execute further instructions to apply the NVDIMM configuration profile to the plurality of NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N by configuring an operation mode setting, an interleaving setting, and an encryption setting of the plurality of NVDIMMs 5141 to 514N.
As an alternative or in addition to retrieving and executing instructions, processor 502 may include electronic circuits comprising a number of electronic components for performing the functionality of the instructions in machine-readable storage medium 506. With respect to the executable instruction representations (e.g., boxes) described and illustrated herein, it should be understood that part or all of the executable instructions and/or electronic circuits included within one box may, in alternate examples, be included in a different box illustrated in the figures or in a different box not shown.
Machine-readable storage medium 506 is a non-transitory storage medium and may be any suitable electronic, magnetic, optical, or other physical storage device that stores executable instructions. Thus, machine-readable storage medium 506 may be, for example, random access memory (RAM), an electrically-erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a storage drive, an optical disc, and the like. Machine-readable storage medium 506 may be disposed within computer system 500, as illustrated in
At 608, method 600 includes downloading the NVDIMM configuration profile from the server to the target computer in response to the instruction. At 610, method 600 includes determining whether the NVDIMM configuration profile is applicable to NVDIMMs installed on the target computer. At 612, method 600 includes applying the NVDIMM configuration profile to the NVDIMMs of the target computer in response to determining that the NVDIMM configuration profile is applicable to NVDIMMs installed on the target computer.
In one example, applying the NVDIMM configuration profile to the NVDIMMs of the target computer includes issuing commands to the NVDIMMs of the target computer via a NVDIMM device driver of the target computer. Further, method 600 may include informing a user of the target computer that the NVDIMM configuration profile cannot be applied in response to determining that the NVDIMM configuration profile is not applicable to NVDIMMs installed on the target computer. Method 600 may also include authenticating the NVDIMM configuration profile on the target computer.
Although specific examples have been illustrated and described herein, a variety of alternate and/or equivalent implementations may be substituted for the specific examples shown and described without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the specific examples discussed herein. Therefore, it is intended that this disclosure be limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2017/059269 | 10/31/2017 | WO | 00 |
