Input/output unit for a processor of a computer system having partitioned functional elements that are selectively disabled

摘要

In a computer system containing at least one processor subsystems, an apparatus and a method for selective disabling processor subsystems using functional segmentation of the input/output circuitry. Each processor subsystem has a processor unit that is connected to an input/output unit. The input/output unit is partitioned into functional elements which are connected to other input/output units of other processor subsystems in the plurality of processor subsystems or to data sources and data sinks. The I/O unit further contains a functional element controller for selectively disabling and enabling the functional elements.