Priority mechanism for link frame transmission and reception
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsThomas A. Gregg, Kulwant M. Pandey
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and system for scheduling multiple frames and packets that are queued for transmission over a link, and queued from a link for storing into main memory. It recognizes priorities, provides fairness, and guarantees forward progress of all users. This method and system provides a mechanism that achieves the objectives with a very small state machine. It takes advantage of the nature of the traffic to calculate priorities in parallel to frame transmission.
Claims2
A scheduling method for scheduling the transmission of message frames and packets among coupled computer systems of a complex computer system for sending messages between said coupled computer systems, comprising the steps of operating a scheduler which:
- recognizes priorities of different kinds of messages presented to the scheduler;
- processes the different kinds of messages presented with fairness within a priority;
- and
- guarantees a forward progress of all message buffer sets, wherein said scheduler comprises:
- a group of active bits that keeps track of which message buffer areas have something to send;
- a pointer to a current message buffer area being transmitted;
- a pointer to a next message buffer area to be transmitted;
- a scan pointer to sequentially look at each of said active bits;
- and
- control logic to operate the scan pointer and counter.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.