Dispatcher switch for a partitioner
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsEdward I. Cohen, Michael R. Sheets
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A computer partitioner provides services to several partitions coexisting in a computer at one time. To operate efficiently, certain applications executing within a partition will intermittently require specific services to be delivered to them in a timely fashion. This disclosure provides a mechanism for a computer partitioner to provide special time dependent services to partitions on a dynamic demand basis.
Claims2
A method executed by a programmed data processing system for allowing a requesting partition, comprised of programs of instructions, of a logically partitioned data processing system, having its physical resources partitioned among a plurality of partitions by a partitioner, to change dispatch modes on a dynamic demand basis, said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) signalling to the partitioner by the requesting partition, in response to a program instruction, a request to change the dispatch mode by the partitioner to perform critical processing by the requesting partition;
- (b) incrementing a switch count value associated with each partition each time the associated partition executes said instruction requesting a change in the dispatch mode,
- (c) examining by the partitioner of current switch count values
- (d) changing or not the dispatch mode of said partitioner for said partition in response to said request for a change in dispatching in response to a non-zero value of the switch count value for a requesting partition.
A method executed by a programmed data processing system for allowing a requesting partition, comprised of programs of instructions, of a logically partitioned data processing system, having its physical resources partitioned among a plurality of partitions by a partitioner, to change dispatch modes on a dynamic demand basis, said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) signalling to the partitioner by the requesting partition, in response to a program instruction, a request to change the dispatch mode by the partitioner to perform critical processing by the requesting partition;
- (b) examining by the partitioner of current system parameters including a priority rating for each of plural partitions in said data processing system, said step including determining the relative priority of two or more partitions requesting a change to the dispatch mode,
- (c) changing the dispatch mode of said partitioner for a partition in response to said request for a change in dispatching only if it is the highest priority of two or more partitions requesting a change in the dispatch mode.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.