Management of Application to I/O Device Communication Requests Between Data Processing Systems

An apparatus, comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a memory coupled to the processor, wherein the memory comprises instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
• receive, from a first application, a call in a first operating system in a first data processing system of a plurality of data processing systems intended for an input/output device in a second data processing system;
• pass, by the first operating system, the call from the first operating system to a first host fabric interface controller in the first data processing system without processing the call;
• process, by the first host fabric interface, the call to determine the second data processing system in the plurality of data processing systems with which the call is associated, wherein the call is processed by the first host fabric interface without intervention by the first operating system;
• initiate, by the first host fabric interface, a connection to a second host fabric interface in the second data processing system;
• transfer, by the first host fabric interface, the call to a second operating system associated with the input/output device in the second data processing system via the connection to the second host fabric interface;
• and
• process, by the second operating system, the call intended for the input/output device without assistance from any application running on the second data processing system.

A computer program product comprising a computer recordable medium having a computer readable program recorded thereon, wherein the computer readable program, when executed on a computing device, causes the computing device to:

• receive, from a first application, a call in a first operating system in a first data processing system of a plurality of data processing systems intended for an input/output device in a second data processing system;
• pass, by the first operating system, the call from the first operating system to a first host fabric interface controller in the first data processing system without processing the call;
• process, by the first host fabric interface, the call to determine the second data processing system in the plurality of data processing systems with which the call is associated, wherein the call is processed by the first host fabric interface without intervention by the first operating system;
• initiate, by the first host fabric interface, a connection to a second host fabric interface in the second data processing system;
• transfer, by the first host fabric interface, the call to a second operating system associated with the input/output device in the second data processing system via the connection to the second host fabric interface;
• and
• process, by the second operating system, the call intended for the input/output device without assistance from any application running on the second data processing system.