CN111416719B

CN111416719B - Server device capable of waking up through network and method thereof

Info

Publication number: CN111416719B
Application number: CN201910008121.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 罗维毅
Original assignee: Mitac Computer Shunde Ltd; Mitac Computing Technology Corp
Current assignee: Mitac Computer Shunde Ltd; Mitac Computing Technology Corp
Priority date: 2019-01-04
Filing date: 2019-01-04
Publication date: 2022-09-16
Anticipated expiration: 2039-01-04
Also published as: CN111416719A

Abstract

A server device capable of waking up through network includes a network interface card unit, a switching unit, a platform path controller and a substrate management controller. When the baseboard management controller detects the network wake-up signal and the server status indicates normal, the baseboard management controller generates an enable signal to the switching unit to electrically connect the network wake-up pin of the NIC unit to the system wake-up pin of the platform path controller in the standby mode. The baseboard management controller outputs a network wake-up signal to be transmitted to the platform path controller through the switching unit. When the platform path controller receives the network wake-up signal, the platform path controller outputs a system power-on signal to perform a power-on program to switch the server device from the standby mode to the power-on mode.

Description

Server device capable of waking up through network and method thereof

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a server device, and more particularly, to a server device capable of waking up through a network and a method thereof.

Background

In the field of computer devices or server devices, Wake-on-LAN (WOL) technology is often used to remotely power on a computer device or server device. The wake-on-lan is also a standard specification of the technology, and is mainly used for enabling a computer or a server device which has entered a sleep state or a power-off state to send a command to the computer or the server device through the other end of the lan, so that the computer or the server device is waken up from the sleep state or the standby state, is restored to an operating state or a power-on state, or is converted from the power-off state to a power-on state.

Conventionally, the WAKE-on-lan function is connected through a WAKE # pin of a PCIE network adapter and a south bridge chip (south bridge) or a Platform Path Controller (PCH), and when the network adapter receives a WAKE-on command, the WAKE # pin transmits a corresponding signal to notify the south bridge chip or the PCH to perform a subsequent boot process. However, when the computer or the server device is powered off due to abnormal conditions such as over-high temperature and unstable voltage, once the user remotely powers on the computer or the server device through the conventional method, the original fault state may change due to the re-powering on, which may cause difficulty in finding the fault by the maintenance personnel. Therefore, in order to improve the above problems, a wake-on-lan server and a method thereof are needed to prevent the server from being powered on in an abnormal state or in a state where the system cannot be monitored.

Disclosure of Invention

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a server apparatus capable of waking up through a network, which can prevent the server apparatus from being powered on in an abnormal state or in a state where a system cannot be monitored.

To solve the above technical problem, the server apparatus wakened via network according to the present invention includes: a network interface card unit for outputting a network wake-up signal through a network wake-up pin according to an external network wake-up command; a platform path controller having a system wake-up pin; a switching unit coupled between the platform path controller and the network interface card unit and having an enabling pin; and a baseboard management controller coupled to the wake-on-LAN pin for detecting whether the wake-on-LAN pin outputs the wake-on-LAN signal, and determining whether to provide an enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit to switch the switching unit according to a server status when the wake-on-LAN signal is detected, wherein, when the baseboard management controller detects the wake-on-LAN signal at the wake-on-LAN pin and the server status indicates normal status in the standby mode of the server device, the baseboard management controller generates the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit to electrically connect the network wake-up pin to the system wake-up pin, and outputting the wake-on-lan signal to the platform path controller via the wake-on-lan pin and the system wake-up pin; when the platform path controller receives the network wake-up signal through the system wake-up pin, a system power-on signal is output to perform a power-on program to switch the server device from a standby mode to a power-on mode.

Preferably, in the standby mode of the server device, when the board management controller detects the wake-on-lan signal at the wake-on-lan pin and the server status indication indicates an abnormality, the board management controller does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit so that the wake-on-lan pin and the system wake-up pin are electrically disconnected. In addition, when the server device is in a standby mode and the baseboard management controller does not detect the wake-on-lan signal at the wake-on-lan pin, the baseboard management controller does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit so that the wake-on-lan pin and the wake-on-system pin are not electrically connected.

Preferably, when the server device is switched from the power-on mode to the standby mode, the bmc does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit so that the wake-on-lan pin and the wake-on-system pin are not electrically connected.

Preferably, the bmc is further communicatively connected to a power supply unit, and the power supply unit is configured to provide a power on. In addition, when the baseboard management controller receives the system power-on signal, the baseboard management controller transmits a power starting signal to the power supply unit; and when the power supply unit receives the power starting signal, providing the starting power to the server device.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for waking up a server device over a network, which can prevent the server device from being powered on in an abnormal state or in a state where the system cannot be monitored.

To solve the above technical problem, the present invention provides a method for waking up a server device on a network, the server device including a nic unit, a platform path controller, a switching unit and a bmc, the switching unit selectively electrically connects a nic pin of the nic unit to a system wake-up pin of the platform path controller, the method comprising: detecting whether the wake-on-LAN pin outputs the wake-on-LAN signal through the baseboard management controller; when the baseboard management controller detects the network wake-up signal, whether the switching unit is switched is determined according to a server state; when the server device is in a standby mode and the baseboard management controller detects the wake-on-lan signal at the wake-on-lan pin and the server status indicates normal, the baseboard management controller generates an enable signal to an enable pin of the switching unit to electrically connect the wake-on-lan pin to the system wake-on-lan pin, and outputs the wake-on-lan signal to be transmitted to the platform path controller via the wake-on-lan pin and the system wake-on-lan pin; and when the platform path controller receives the network wake-up signal through the system wake-up pin, outputting a system power-on signal to perform a power-on program to switch the server device from a standby mode to a power-on mode.

Preferably, the method for waking up a server device on a network further includes that when the server device is in a standby mode and the board management controller detects the wake-on-network signal at the wake-on-network pin and the server status indication indicates an abnormal status, the board management controller does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit so that the wake-on-network pin and the system wake-up pin are not electrically connected. In addition, the method for waking up the server device by using the network further comprises that when the server device is in a standby mode and the baseboard management controller does not detect the network wake-up signal at the network wake-up pin, the baseboard management controller does not generate the enabling signal to the enabling pin of the switching unit so that the network wake-up pin and the system wake-up pin are not electrically connected.

Preferably, the method for waking up the server device on the internet further comprises the step of not generating the enabling signal to the enabling pin of the switching unit by the baseboard management controller when the server device is switched from the boot mode to the standby mode so that the network wake-up pin and the system wake-up pin are not electrically connected.

Preferably, the server device further includes a power supply unit, and the power supply unit is configured to provide a power source for booting and is in communication connection with the bmc. In addition, the method for waking up the server device by the network further comprises the following steps: when the baseboard management controller receives the system power-on signal, the baseboard management controller transmits a power supply starting signal to the power supply unit; and when the power supply unit receives the power starting signal, providing the starting power to the server device.

Compared with the prior art, the invention can record the first time when the network wake-up signal is generated by the baseboard management controller BMC and the switching unit SW, and close the switching unit SW to prevent the system from being woken up when the server device has a fault, thereby protecting the server device from being damaged for the second time. In addition, due to the monitoring of the BMC, the system of the server apparatus 100 is prevented from being forcibly awakened when the server state is abnormal, and the difficulty in maintenance caused by the change of the original fault state due to the secondary power-on is avoided.

[ description of the drawings ]

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a server apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 shows an operation flow of the network-wake-enabled server device according to an embodiment of the invention.

[ detailed description ] embodiments

The embodiments or examples shown in the figures are expressed in a particular manner as set forth below. It is to be understood that the embodiment or examples are not to be construed as limiting. Any alterations and modifications in the described embodiments, and any further applications of the principles of the invention as described herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a server apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the invention. The server device 100 includes a network interface card unit 110, a switch unit SW, a platform path controller PCH and a baseboard management controller BMC. The BMC is further coupled to the power supply unit 120, and the power supply unit 120 is used for providing a power on to the server apparatus 100.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the network interface card unit 110 is a network adapter with wake-on-LAN function for communication connection with an external network. Therefore, the user can send the external WAKE-on-lan command WOL to the nic card unit 110 via the network, and the nic card unit 110 accordingly outputs a WAKE-on-lan signal, e.g., a low voltage pulse (low pulse) signal, at the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 to notify the related electronic components in the server apparatus 100 to perform a boot process.

The platform path controller PCH is mainly used to control the input/output devices on the server device 100 and has a system WAKE pin WAKE 2. When the WAKE-on-network signal is received by the WAKE-on-system pin WAKE2 of the platform path controller PCH, the system power-on signal SLP is output to the BMC to perform a subsequent boot program to switch the server apparatus 100 from the standby mode to the boot mode. It should be understood that the system power-on signal SLP may also be output to a component of the server apparatus 100 for controlling the power management program, such as a Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), and the component for managing the power management program continues to execute the system power-on program to switch the server apparatus 100 from the standby mode to the power-on mode. In some embodiments, the system power-up signal SLP may include a plurality of signals, such as a high voltage level signal output on pins SLP _ S3#, SLP _ S4#, SLP _ S5# of the platform path controller PCH.

The switch unit SW is coupled between the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 of the nic 110 and the WAKE-on-system pin WAKE2 of the platform path controller PCH, an enable pin of the switch unit SW is coupled to the BMC, and the BMC selectively provides an enable signal to the enable pin of the switch unit SW to determine whether to electrically connect the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 to the WAKE-on-system pin WAKE 2. Specifically, when the server apparatus 100 is switched from the power-on mode to the standby mode, the BMC does not generate the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switching unit SW to maintain the non-conducting state of the switching unit SW, so that the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 and the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE2 are electrically non-conducting, and when the server apparatus 100 is in the standby mode, the BMC determines whether to enable the switching unit SW according to the server state when detecting the WAKE-on-lan signal, otherwise, does not generate the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switching unit SW to maintain the non-conducting state when not detecting the WAKE-on-lan signal, so that the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 and the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE2 are electrically non-conducting.

The BMC is mainly configured to monitor an environment value of the server apparatus 100 to determine a server state, for example, monitor a fan, a temperature, a voltage, and the like on the server apparatus 100 to determine whether a system is abnormal, so as to perform corresponding processing. In some embodiments of the invention, as shown in fig. 1, the BMC is coupled to the WAKE on lan pin WAKE1 for detecting whether the WAKE on lan pin WAKE1 outputs a WAKE on lan signal. When the BMC of the server apparatus 100 detects that the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 outputs a WAKE-on-lan signal (e.g., a low voltage pulse signal) in the standby mode, the BMC determines whether to enable the switch unit SW according to whether the server status is abnormal.

In some embodiments, in the standby mode of the server apparatus 100, when the BMC detects that the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 outputs the WAKE-on-lan signal, the BMC records the WAKE-on-lan event and determines whether the server state is abnormal according to the latest system event record or the environmental values of the fan, the temperature, the voltage, and the like related to the server sent back by the current sensor, so as to control the switching unit SW to be turned on or off. For example, when the system event record or the value of the sensor indicates that the voltage is unstable, the voltage exceeds the threshold, the temperature is too high, the fan fails, the electronic component fails, or a large amount of external WAKE-up commands WOL are received within a period of time, the BMC may determine that the current server state is abnormal, and the BMC may not generate the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switching unit SW to keep the switching unit SW off, in other words, the WAKE-up pin WAKE1 and the WAKE-up pin WAKE2 are not electrically connected, so as to prevent triggering the platform path controller PCH to perform a boot process, thereby preventing the system from being damaged more seriously when the system is booted in a failed state.

On the other hand, when the BMC of the server device 100 detects that the WAKE-up pin WAKE1 outputs the WAKE-up signal in the standby mode, and when the BMC determines that the current server status is not abnormal according to the system event record or the value of the sensor, the BMC of the server device generates the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switch unit SW to electrically connect the WAKE-up pin WAKE1 to the WAKE-up pin WAKE 2. Then, the BMC generates the same WAKE-on-lan signal (e.g., a low voltage pulse signal) as the network interface card unit 112, and inputs the WAKE-on-lan signal to the system WAKE-up pin WAKE2 of the platform path controller PCH via the pin coupled to the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 and the switching unit SW.

The power supply unit 120 is configured to provide a power-on PW to the server device 100 and related electronic components thereof, and is in communication with the BMC, which controls the power output of the power supply unit 120 according to a server state of the server device 100. In some embodiments of the present invention, the power supply unit 120 provides the power PW (e.g., 12V) for the server apparatus 100 in the boot mode, in other words, when the system is to wake up the server apparatus 100 from the standby mode or boot up the server apparatus 100 from the power off state, the BMC may transmit the power-on signal PWON to the power supply unit 120, and the power supply unit 120 provides the power PW to the server apparatus 100 accordingly. For example, after the platform path controller PCH outputs the system power-on signal SLP to the BMC, the BMC correspondingly transmits the power-on signal PWON to the power supply unit 120, and the power supply unit 120 provides the power-on power PW to the server device 100, on the other hand, the platform path controller PCH switches the operation mode of the server device 100 from the standby mode to the power-on mode, for example, high-voltage level signals output on the pins SLP _ S3#, SLP _ S4#, and SLP _ S5# of the platform path controller PCH are further output to various components (not shown) in the server device 100 to notify or control the components to return to the operation state. It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the power supply unit 120 may provide a standby power in a standby mode of the server device 100 (not shown) in addition to the power-on power PW in the power-on mode of the server device 100.

For clarity, the following describes the operation flow of the method of waking up the server device with reference to fig. 1 and fig. 2.

First, in the standby mode of the server apparatus 100, in step S202, the BMC detects whether the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 outputs a WAKE-on-lan signal. When the BMC does not detect that the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 outputs the WAKE-on-lan signal, the BMC proceeds to step S204, and does not generate the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switch unit SW to keep the switch unit SW off, in other words, the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 and the WAKE-on-system pin WAKE2 are not electrically connected to each other, and returns to step S202 to continuously detect whether the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 outputs the WAKE-on-lan signal. Otherwise, when the BMC detects that the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 outputs the WAKE-on-lan signal, it continues to step S206.

In step S206, the BMC determines whether there is an abnormal operation according to the server status of the server apparatus 100, and if there is an abnormal operation, the BMC returns to step S204, and the BMC does not generate the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switching unit SW to keep the switching unit SW off, otherwise, the BMC continues to step S208. It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments of the present invention, the BMC may also record the wake-on-lan event in step S206.

In step S208, the BMC generates the enable signal EN to the enable pin of the switch unit SW to turn on the switch unit SW, so as to electrically turn on the network WAKE-up pin WAKE1 to the system WAKE-up pin WAKE 2. Then, in step S210, the BMC generates the same WAKE-on-lan signal (e.g., a low voltage pulse signal) as the WAKE-on-lan signal output by the nic unit 112, and inputs the WAKE-on-lan signal to the system WAKE pin WAKE2 of the platform path controller PCH via the pin coupled to the WAKE-on-lan pin WAKE1 and the switching unit SW.

In step S212, when the WAKE-on-network pin WAKE2 of the platform path controller PCH receives the WAKE-on-network signal, the system power-on signal SLP is output to the BMC, and it should be understood that the system power-on signal SLP (e.g., the high voltage level signal output from SLP _ S3#, SLP _ S4#, SLP _ S5 #) output by the platform path controller PCH is also output to each component (not shown) in the server apparatus 100 to notify or control the components to return to an operating state to switch the server apparatus 100 from the standby mode to the power-on mode. Next, in step S214, the BMC transmits a power start signal PWON to the power supply unit 120 according to the system power-on signal SLP. Finally, in step S216, the power supply unit 120 provides the power-on PW to the server apparatus 100.

In summary, the present invention utilizes the configuration of the BMC and the switching unit SW to make the BMC record the first time when the wake-on-lan signal is generated, and close the switching unit SW to prevent the system from being woken up when the server apparatus 100 has a fault, so as to protect the server apparatus 100 from being damaged for the second time, and for the maintenance personnel, the maintenance personnel can determine whether there is an abnormal wake-up condition through the event record of the wake-on-lan signal. In addition, due to the monitoring of the BMC, the system of the server apparatus 100 is prevented from being forcibly woken up when the server state is abnormal, so that the difficulty in maintenance caused by a change of the original fault state due to a secondary boot is avoided. It should be understood that, in some embodiments, the WAKE-up pin WAKE2 of the platform path controller PCH and the WAKE-up pin WAKE1 of the nic unit 110 may be used to transmit related information of Buffer empty/Fill Optimization (OBFF) function, and by setting the switching unit SW according to the present invention, the WAKE-up pin WAKE1 and the WAKE-up pin WAKE2 may be electrically connected to each other to achieve the function of Buffer empty/Fill optimization after switching to the power-on state, and the BMC may monitor the WAKE-up signal of the nic unit 110 and determine whether to power on according to the server state.

The methods of the present invention, or certain aspects or portions thereof, may take the form of program code. The program code may be embodied in tangible media, such as floppy diskettes, cd-roms, hard drives, or any other machine-readable storage medium, wherein, when the program code is loaded into and executed by a machine, such as a computer, the machine thereby becomes an apparatus for practicing the invention. The program code may also be transmitted over some transmission medium, such as over electrical wiring or cabling, through fiber optics, or via any other form of transmission, wherein, when the program code is received and loaded into and executed by a machine, such as a computer, the machine becomes an apparatus for practicing the invention. When implemented in a general-purpose processing unit, the program code combines with the processing unit to provide a unique apparatus that operates analogously to specific logic circuits.

The above description is only for the specific embodiments of the present invention, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of the changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present invention, and all the changes or substitutions should be covered within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A server apparatus capable of waking up via a network, comprising:

the network interface card unit is used for being in communication connection with an external network and outputting a network awakening signal through a network awakening pin according to an external network awakening instruction;

a platform path controller having a system wake-up pin;

a switching unit coupled between the platform path controller and the network interface card unit and having an enabling pin; and

a baseboard management controller coupled to the wake-on-LAN pin, detecting whether the wake-on-LAN pin outputs the wake-on-LAN signal, and determining whether to provide an enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit to switch the switching unit according to a server status when the wake-on-LAN signal is detected,

when the baseboard management controller detects the wake-on-LAN signal at the wake-on-LAN pin and the server status indicates normal, the baseboard management controller generates the enable signal to the enable pin of the switch unit to electrically connect the wake-on-LAN pin to the wake-on-system pin, and outputs the same wake-on-LAN signal as the wake-on-LAN signal outputted by the NIC unit to be transmitted to the platform path controller via the wake-on-LAN pin and the wake-on-system pin;

when the platform path controller receives the network wake-up signal through the system wake-up pin, a system power-on signal is output to perform a boot program to switch the server device from a standby mode to a boot mode

The system wake-up pin of the platform path controller PCH and the network wake-up pin of the nic unit can be used for transferring related messages of buffer area clearing/filling optimization functions, and by the configuration of the switching unit, the electrical connection between the network wake-up pin and the system wake-up pin can still realize the buffer area clearing/filling optimization functions after the switching to the power-on state, and meanwhile, the substrate management controller can monitor the network wake-up signal of the nic unit and determine whether to power on according to the state of the server.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein when the baseboard management controller detects the wake-on-LAN signal at the wake-on-LAN pin and the server status indicates an abnormality, the baseboard management controller does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switch unit to electrically disconnect the wake-on-LAN pin and the wake-on-LAN pin in the standby mode.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein in the standby mode, when the bmc does not detect the wake-on-lan signal at the wake-on-lan pin, the bmc does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switch unit to electrically disconnect the wake-on-lan pin and the system wake-up pin.

4. The network-awakenable server device of claim 1, wherein the bmc does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switch unit to electrically disconnect the wake-on-network pin and the wake-on-system pin when the server device switches from a power-on mode to a standby mode.

5. The web-wakeable server apparatus of claim 1, wherein the BMC is further communicatively connected to a power supply unit for providing a power on,

when the baseboard management controller receives the system power-on signal, the baseboard management controller transmits a power supply starting signal to the power supply unit; and

when the power supply unit receives the power starting signal, the starting power supply is provided to the server device.

6. A method for waking up a server device on a network is disclosed, which is suitable for a server device, the server device includes a NIC unit, a platform path controller, a switch unit and a baseboard management controller, the NIC unit is used for communicating with an external network, the switch unit selectively connects a NIC pin of the NIC unit to a wake-up pin of the platform path controller, the method includes:

detecting whether the network wake-up pin outputs the network wake-up signal through the baseboard management controller;

when the baseboard management controller detects the network wake-up signal, determining whether to switch the switching unit according to a server state;

when the server device is in a standby mode, and the bmc detects the wake-on-lan signal at the wake-on-lan pin and the server status indicates normal, the bmc generates an enable signal to an enable pin of the switching unit to electrically connect the wake-on-lan pin to the system wake-up pin, and outputs the same wake-on-lan signal as the wake-on-lan signal output by the nic unit to the platform path controller via the wake-on-lan pin and the system wake-up pin;

when the platform path controller receives the network wake-up signal through the system wake-up pin, a system power-on signal is output to perform a power-on program to switch the server device from a standby mode to a power-on mode; and

7. A method for waking up a server device on a network as claimed in claim 6, further comprising: when the server device is in a standby mode and the baseboard management controller detects the wake-on-LAN signal at the wake-on-LAN pin and the server status indication indicates an abnormal status, the baseboard management controller does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit so that the wake-on-LAN pin and the wake-up-system pin are electrically disconnected.

8. A method for waking up a server device on a network as claimed in claim 6, further comprising: when the baseboard management controller does not detect the wake-on-LAN signal at the wake-on-LAN pin in the standby mode of the server device, the baseboard management controller does not generate the enable signal to the enable pin of the switching unit so that the wake-on-LAN pin and the wake-on-system pin are not electrically connected.

9. A method for waking up a server device on a network as claimed in claim 6, further comprising: when the server device is switched from a power-on mode to a standby mode, the baseboard management controller does not generate the enabling signal to the enabling pin of the switching unit so that the network wake-up pin and the system wake-up pin are not electrically connected.

10. A method according to claim 6, wherein the server device further comprises a power supply unit for providing a power on and communicatively coupled to the bmc, the method further comprising: