Multi-context selection with PCI express to support hardware partitioning
AssigneeDell Products L.P.
InventorsJimmy Pike, Frank Molsberry
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method for hardware partitioning of an information handling system. The partitioning is through the CPU, memory, and I/O systems. This is accomplished by providing multiple contexts for each I/O device (one for each partition), and by using the transaction ID field of the PCI Express bus packet header to map an I/O device to a context.
Claims16
An information handling system, in which hardware is partitioned through the I/O system, comprising:
- a CPU system having a number of hardware partitions;
- a memory system having the same number of hardware partitions;
- a I/O system having the same number of hardware partitions, and having at least one I/O device;
- wherein each I/O device has a hardware context, comprising one or more memory storage elements, in each partition;
- wherein the I/O system is connected to the CPU system by means of a PCI Express bus;
- and
- wherein partitioning of the I/O system is performed by using at least part of the requester ID portion of a PCI Express packet header to map an I/O device to the context of a desired partition.
A method of partitioning an information handling system having at least a CPU system, memory system, and I/O system, such that hardware is partitioned through the I/O system, comprising:
- partitioning a CPU system into hardware partitions;
- partitioning the memory system into hardware partitions;
- partitioning the I/O system into hardware partitions;
- wherein the I/O system has at least one I/O device;
- wherein each I/O device has a hardware context, comprising one or more memory storage elements, in each partition;
- wherein the I/O system is connected to the CPU system by means of a PCI Express bus;
- and
- wherein partitioning of the I/O system is performed by using at least part of the requester ID portion of a PCI Express packet header to map an I/O device to the context of a desired partition.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.