Method and apparatus for implementing flow control in a network via a physical layer (PHY)
AssigneeMarvell International Ltd.
InventorGuy T. Hutchison
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Various embodiments provide a way to adjust transmission rates of a medium access controller (MAC) to a physical layer (PHY) to accommodate for packet expansions due to encryption that takes place in the PHY. In at least some embodiments, a communication interface between different MACs in a system is re-purposed to allow the PHY to communicate to a system MAC to notify the system MAC to pause and then resume, at an appropriate time, its packet transmissions.
Claims16
A physical layer (PHY) configured to receive packets from and transmit packets onto a wire, the physical layer (PHY) comprising:
- a first communication path configured to receive packets from a medium access controller (MAC) for transmission over the wire, the first communication path comprising a buffer to buffer the packets received from the medium access controller (MAC) prior to the packets received from the medium access controller (MAC) being transmitted onto the wire;
- and
- a second communication path configured to transmit the packets received from the wire to the medium access controller (MAC), the second communication path comprising a pause frame generator,
- wherein in response to a number of the packets buffered in the buffer reaching a first threshold, the pause frame generator is configured to transmit a first pause frame to the medium access controller (MAC) for the medium access controller (MAC) to pause transmission of packets to the physical layer (PHY) over the first communication path, and
- wherein in response to the number of packets buffered in the buffer reaching a second threshold subsequent to the first pause frame being transmitted by the pause frame generator to the medium access controller (MAC), the pause frame generator is configured to transmit a second pause frame to the medium access controller (MAC) for the medium access controller (MAC) to resume the transmission of packets to the physical layer (PHY) over the first communication path.
A method for receiving packets from and transmitting packets onto a wire via a physical layer (PHY), wherein the physical layer (PHY) comprises (i) a first communication path configured to receive packets from a medium access controller (MAC) for transmission over the wire, and (ii) a second communication path configured to transmit the packets received from the wire to the medium access controller (MAC), the method comprising:
- buffering, in a buffer, the packets received from the medium access controller (MAC) prior to the packets received from the medium access controller (MAC) being transmitted onto the wire;
- in response to a number of the packets buffered in the buffer reaching a first threshold, transmitting a first pause frame from the physical layer (PHY) to the medium access controller (MAC) for the medium access controller (MAC) to pause transmission of packets to the physical layer (PHY) over the first communication path;
- and
- in response to the number of packets buffered in the buffer reaching a second threshold subsequent to the first pause frame being transmitted from the physical layer (PHY) to the medium access controller (MAC), transmitting a second pause frame to the medium access controller (MAC) for the medium access controller (MAC) to resume the transmission of packets to the physical layer (PHY) over the first communication path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.