Loading patent…
AssigneesAdvanced Micro Devices, Inc., Alpha Processor, Inc.
InventorsJonathan M. Owen, Mark D. Hummel, James B. Keller
Estimating the term…
A computer system employs virtual channels and allocates different resources to the virtual channels. More particularly, the computer system provides a posted commands virtual channel separate from the non-posted commands virtual channel for routing posted and non-posted commands or requests through coherent and noncoherent fabrics within the computer system. Because separate resources are allocated to the virtual channels in the computer system, posted requests may be allowed to become unordered with other requests from the same source. Implementation of a separate posted commands virtual channel may allow the computer system to maintain compatibility with I/O systems in which posted write requests may become unordered with previous posted requests (e.g., the Peripheral Component Interconnect Bus, or PCI). Implementation of the separate posted commands virtual channel thus may assist in providing deadlock-free operation.
A method comprising:
A computer system comprising a plurality of nodes including a first node and a second node coupled to the first node, wherein the plurality of nodes implement a plurality of virtual channels to communicate packets between nodes, and wherein the plurality of virtual channels comprises a posted command virtual channel dedicated to posted request packets, and wherein a given posted request packet communicates a request that is considered completed by a source of the request upon transmission of the request by the source, wherein the first node is configured to transmit a posted request packet on the posted command virtual channel, and wherein the second node is coupled to receive the posted request packet.
A node for a computer system, the node comprising circuitry configured to transmit a posted request packet on a posted command virtual channel of a plurality of virtual channels implemented by the node to communicate with other nodes, wherein the posted command virtual channel is dedicated to posted request packets, and wherein a given posted request packet communicates a request that is considered completed by a source of the request upon transmission of the request by the source.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.