Communication protocol for virtual input/output server (VIOS) cluster communication

摘要

A first Virtual Input/Output Server (VIOS) of a VIOS cluster performs the functions of: generating, at a sending daemon of the first VIOS, a send message that is to be transmitted to a receiving daemon at a second VIOS; in response to completion of the generating of the send message, forwarding the send message to a sending virtual small computer systems interface (vscsi) kernel extension (VKE) via a system call interface; and in response to the sending VKE receiving the send message from the sending daemon, forwarding the send message to one or more second VIOSes within the VIOS cluster utilizing a kcluster interface. The sending VKE parses at least one of a message header and a sub-header of the send message; and responsive to detection of a broadcast setting for the send message, the VKE forwards the send message to all nodes within the cluster via a cluster broadcast.

主权项

1. In a data processing system having one or more computing electronic complexes (CECs) that each comprise a plurality of virtual input/output (I/O) servers (VIOSes) configured within a VIOS cluster which has an associated VIOS database (DB), and in which each of the plurality of VIOSes provides I/O resources to one or more logical partitions (LPARs) executing within the one or more CECs, a first VIOS of the VIOS cluster performing a method comprising:
generating, at a sending daemon of the first VIOS, a send message that is to be transmitted to a receiving daemon at a second VIOS, wherein the generating of the send message comprises:
providing a header for the send message, wherein the header includes a plurality of first fields for entry of one or more header parameters associated with the send message;providing a sub-header for the send message, wherein the sub-header includes a plurality of entries of one or more sub-header parameters associated with the send message;providing a message payload for transmission; andencapsulating the header, sub-header, and the message payload within a send message packet; in response to generating the send message, forwarding the send message to a sending virtual small computer systems interface (VSCSI) kernel extension (VKE) via a system call interface, wherein the VKE emulates a small computer systems interface (SCSI) device in the first VIOS; in response to the sending VKE receiving the send message from the sending daemon, forwarding the send message to one or more receiving VKEs of a respective one or more VIOSes within the VIOS cluster utilizing a VKE system call that sends the send message over a kcluster interface that interconnects the sending VKE and the one or more receiving VKEs, wherein the one or more receiving VKEs emulate a SCSI device in the respective one or more VIOSes; in response to the send message requiring a response message be generated and returned to the sending daemon:
setting a request for a response message within the sub-header; andcreating a response queue having an entry corresponding to each response message that is to be received for the send message; and in response to receiving a response message from a receiving VIOS, automatically matching the response message to a particular send message entry within the response queue and removing the particular send message entry from the response queue.