JPH07248862A - System and method for insertion notification - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To automatically transmit the insertion notification of a device to a host device without restricting by the insertion procedure of a device by investigating the presence or absence of the insertion for the device B of an F rank layer based on the insertion notification when a device A is inserted. CONSTITUTION:A device A to be connected with a host processor is provided on the system connected with also a lower rank device B. When the device A or the device B is inserted, each of the insertion notifications is transmitted to the host processor. The device A is provided with a detection means 100 detecting the presence or absence of the insertion notification from the device B after the insertion of the present device is notified to the host processor and communication means 100 and 103 transmitting the insertion notification of the device B to the host processor at a point of time when the presence of the insertion notification of the device B is detected by the detection means 100. Namely, because the presence or absence of the insertion for the lower rank device B is investigated when the device A is inserted, the device A is capable of detecting the insertion of the device B even if the lower rank device B is inserted earlier than the device A.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to, for example, in an information processing system having a hierarchical structure such as an input / output control system, insertion of a new device caused by replacement of a constituent device to another constituent device. An insertion notification system and method for notifying.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 5 shows a typical example of a system for notifying an upper layer information processing apparatus that a self apparatus and a lower layer apparatus have been inserted. In FIG. 5, the input / output device 20
(1) to 20 (n) are devices for inputting / outputting information to / from an information processing device (not shown). The input / output control unit 10 transfers the above information from the lower layer input / output unit to the upper level information processing unit via the system bus and the input / output (I / O) bus, and also the input / output unit 20 (1). Up to 20 (n) are subjected to operation control.

Input / output control device 10 and input / output device 20
It is realized independently of (1) to 20 (n) (for example, on one board), and is replaced when a failure occurs.
An information processing device higher than the input / output control device 10, for example, a CPU is connected to the system bus. Upper information processing device, input / output control device 10, input / output device 20
Signal lines (1) to 20 (n) are connected to the above-mentioned bus for transferring information and a signal line for transferring insertion notification information for notifying the insertion of the device. There is also known a system in which the insertion notification line is not provided between the input / output control device 10 and the input / output devices 20 (1) to 20 (n).

In such a system, the processing procedure for replacing the failed device and restoring the system is slightly different depending on whether the insertion notification line is installed or not, and is executed as follows.

1) First conventional procedure for a system having an insertion notification line In the order specified by the operator in the operation manual, that is, the removal of the input / output control device 10 → the removal of the input / output device → the input / output control device The defective device is replaced in the order of insertion → I / O device insertion. The reason for this is that, for example, if one of the I / O devices fails, and the I / O device and the I / O control device are inserted in reverse order, when the I / O device is inserted, the I / O control device and the host device are Is not connected between. Therefore, the insertion notification of the input / output device is not sent to the host device of the input / output control device, and the host device does not recognize the insertion of the input / output device.

FIG. 6 shows a processing procedure executed by the input / output control device during this period. When the I / O controller is inserted into the system and the power is turned on (or the connection to the system bus is confirmed), the I / O controller leaves the event waiting state and enters the host device. The process of notifying that the output control device has been inserted is executed, and the process returns to the event waiting state (S210 → S220 → S200). On the other hand, when the input / output device is inserted and the insertion notification is received, the input / output control device executes a process of notifying the host device that the input / output device has been inserted (S300 → S310 → S200).

When the input / output control device executes such a processing procedure, the host device can know the insertion of the input / output control device and the input / output device.

2) Second conventional procedure for a system having no insertion notification line The operator disconnects the faulty device from the system and replaces the target device (input / output device or input / output control device).
The operator connects to the input / output device, for example, inputs a command from the keyboard to notify the above-mentioned upper device that the replacement of the failed device has been completed.

[0009]

In the insertion notification method according to the first procedure described above, the insertion order of the input / output control device and the input / output device is restricted. Also, if you insert the wrong order,
I / O device insertion is not detected in the host system. On the other hand, the second procedure requires an operator's operation, and there is a risk that an error may occur due to an erroneous operation.

Therefore, in view of the above points, an object of the present invention is to provide an insertion notification system and method capable of automatically transmitting an insertion notification of a device to a host device without being restricted by the insertion procedure of the device. To provide.

[0011]

In order to achieve such an object, the invention of claim 1 is provided in a system in which an apparatus A connected to an upper processing apparatus is also connected to one or a plurality of lower apparatus B. The device A or the device B is inserted into the device A or B.
In the insertion notification system for transmitting from the device B to the higher-level processing device, the device A detects a presence or absence of an insertion notification from the device B after notifying the higher-level processing device of its own device insertion. And a communication means for transmitting an insertion notification of the device B to the higher-level processing device when the detection means detects the notification of the insertion of the device B.

The invention of claim 2 occurs in a system in which an apparatus A connected to a higher-level processing apparatus is also connected to one or more lower-level apparatuses B, when the apparatus A or the apparatus B is inserted. In the insertion notification method including a step of transmitting an insertion notification from the device A to the upper processing device, the device A notifies the insertion of the own device to the upper processing device and then the insertion from the device B. The apparatus A includes a step of detecting the presence or absence of a notification, and a step of transmitting the insertion notification of the apparatus B to the higher-level processing apparatus when the apparatus A detects the notification of the insertion of the apparatus B in the step. Characterize.

[0013]

According to the first and second aspects of the present invention, when the device A is inserted, the presence / absence of insertion of the device B of the lower layer is checked based on the insertion notice. Even if it is inserted earlier than A, the device A can detect the insertion of the device B. For this reason. There is no restriction on the insertion order of the device as in the past.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a system configuration of an input / output control device to which the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, a microprocessor 100 includes a storage unit 101 including a ROM and a RAM.
A well-known control process for the entire input / output device is executed by the system program stored in.

The insertion notification receiving unit 102 receives the insertion notification signal from the input / output device via the insertion notification signal line,
Hand over to the microprocessor 100. In addition, the state of the insertion notification line, that is, ON when the insertion notification issuance state and OFF when there is no insertion notification is displayed by a display lamp or the like. A well-known circuit can be used as the circuit configuration of the insertion notification receiving unit 102.

The insertion notification interface unit 103 is connected to a higher-level device, for example, a CPU by an insertion notification line, and receives an instruction from the microprocessor 100 to notify the higher-level device of the insertion. The power-on (ON) detection circuit 104 detects power-on of the device and notifies the microprocessor 100 of the detection signal. As a result, the power-on detection circuit 104 detects power-on performed when a spare input / output device is inserted into the slot or when the input / output control device is mounted on the rack. Although not directly related to the present invention, the IO bus interface unit 105 executes basic input / output processing for data on the IO bus other than the insertion notification. The system bus interface unit 106 executes basic input / output processing for data on the system bus.

The same input / output device as the conventional one can be used. It is effective in terms of reliability to separate the insertion notification line installed between the input / output device and the input / output control device from the bus used for basic input / output, but in that case the connection structure of the insertion notification line For example, the star type connection in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3
The daisy chain type wiring of can be used.

The star type wiring shown in FIG. 2 is a wiring method in which the input / output control device and a plurality of input / output devices are connected by independent individual lines. Multiple ports are prepared correspondingly.

On the other hand, the daisy chain type connection shown in FIG. 3 is a connection method in which a plurality of input / output devices are connected in a potato-like manner, and one port may be installed in the input / output control device. There are advantages. In addition, since the daisy chain type wiring connects the input / output devices in series, generally, the identification number of the input / output device is added to the insertion notification,
By determining the communication sequence of the insertion notice, the input / output device is identified on the input / output control device side.

Insertion notification processing according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 shows a processing procedure executed by the microprocessor 100 in the input / output control device, which is stored in advance in the storage unit 101 in the form of a programming language. In the present embodiment, for convenience of description, it is decomposed into well-known and well-known processing contents to be expressed functionally.

In FIG. 4, in step S400, the input / output control device itself is in the power-off state or the input / output control device itself is in the on-state, but it is under control, that is, at least one lower-layer input / output device is in a rack. It shows the state of being pulled out. In this state, the microprocessor 100 waits for an external event, for example, input of power-on of the input / output control device (notification of insertion of the input / output control device) or notification of insertion of the input / output device.

In this state, the microprocessor 100
Is input to the insertion notification receiving unit 102 (insertion notification signal (power-on detection signal) generated by the power-on detection circuit 104 when the spare input / output control device is inserted into the rack due to failure replacement) The step S
If it is detected in 401, the insertion processing of the input / output control device is executed (step S402). The insertion notification process, which is not directly related to the present invention, includes an initialization process of the input / output control device itself, an autonomous test (self test), and an insertion notification process to a higher-level device. When the insertion processing of the input / output control device is completed, the microprocessor 100 checks the level state of the input signal to the insertion notification receiving unit 102 and determines whether the insertion notification signal is sent from the input / output device (step S403). .

There are the following three cases as the states that can occur at the step S403.

Case 1) When a new input / output control device is inserted with both the input / output control device and the input / output device removed.

Case 2) A new input / output control device is inserted while the input / output control device and the input / output device are both removed and a new input / output device is inserted to generate an insertion notification signal.

Case 3) When only the I / O controller is replaced with the new I / O controller in the state before the I / O device is replaced.

In case 1 above, step S403
In the determination process of No., no notification of the insertion of the input / output device is obtained, and the procedure returns to the event waiting process of step S400. In the case of Case 2, it is determined that there is an insertion notification from the input / output device in the determination process of step S403, and the below-described insertion process for the input / output device is executed. In case 3, it is determined in step S403 that there is no input / output device insertion notification, and the procedure returns to the event waiting process of step S400.

After that, when an insertion notification (signal) is input from the input / output device, the generation of the insertion notification signal is detected in step S405, and the insertion processing of the input / output device is executed by the microprocessor 100.

The insertion processing of the input / output device is slightly different depending on whether the connection of the insertion notification line is the daisy chain type or the star type.

A) Star type In this case, the microprocessor 100 executes the input / output device insertion processing S404. This insertion process includes a test on the input / output device side and a process for identifying the inserted input / output device. When a plurality of input / output devices are inserted, the processes of steps S400 to S404 are repeatedly executed, and the insertion process is performed for each input / output device.

B) Daisy chain type In the case of the daisy chain type, the microprocessor 100 cannot identify the inserted input / output device only by the insertion notification. Therefore, in this embodiment, the microprocessor 100 is used.
Executes a dividing process S406. That is, the storage unit 101 is provided with a flag indicating the presence / absence of connection for an input / output device connectable to the input / output control device, and the microprocessor 100 checks the flag of the subordinate input / output device upon the notification of insertion. By doing so, the inserted input / output device is separated (identified). After that, the microprocessor 100 transmits an insertion notification about the inserted input / output device to the host processing device and returns to the event waiting state (steps S406 → S407 → S408 → S40).
0). When there are a plurality of insertion input / output devices, the above-mentioned processing is repeatedly executed.

As described above, in this embodiment, when the input / output control device executes its own insertion process as the device A of the present invention in step S402 of FIG. The microprocessor 100 detects whether the device B of the invention is inserted. Therefore, the microprocessor 100 at this time operates as the detecting means of the present invention.

Further, it is determined in step S403 that there is insertion.
The microprocessor 100 and the insertion notification interface unit 103, which transmit the insertion notification to the upper processing apparatus in step S404 or S407 when obtained in step S407, function as the communication means of the present invention.

Although the above-described embodiment is an example of the system in which the input / output control device and the input / output device are connected, the upper processing device is provided, and the operation of the lower layer information processing device is controlled by the upper processing device. The present invention can be applied to any system.

Furthermore, in the processing procedure shown in FIG. 4, the input / output control device executes the insertion (notification) process of the inserted input / output device each time it is detected, but this is not the only case. However, the effect of the present invention does not change even if the insertion notifications of all the replaced input / output devices are sent to the input / output control device at once when the insertion notifications are collectively sent from the input / output control device to the host processing device. .

It goes without saying that the effect of the present invention is not affected by the difference in the signal line for notification of insertion and the difference in physical / electrical conditions.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Regardless of the insertion order of the device A and the device B, the insertion notification about the device can be reliably and automatically delivered to the host processing device. Therefore, the operator's operation labor is reduced,
It can contribute not only to improving the maintainability of the device but also to improving the reliability of the system.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of an input / output control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a connection configuration of an insertion notification line.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing another connection configuration of an insertion notification line.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure executed by a microprocessor 100 of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a conventional system configuration.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a conventional insertion notification processing procedure.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Input / Output Control Device 20 Input / Output Device 100 Microprocessor 101 Storage Unit 102 Insertion Notification Receiving Unit 104 Power On (ON) Detection Circuit

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An insertion notification which is provided in a system in which a device A connected to a higher-level processing device is also connected to one or a plurality of lower-level devices B, and each of which is generated when the device A or the device B is inserted. In the insertion notification system for transmitting from the device A to the upper processing device, the device A detects the presence or absence of the insertion notification from the device B after notifying the upper processing device of the insertion of its own device. Insertion notification, comprising: a detection unit for executing the insertion notification of the device B and a communication unit for transmitting the insertion notification of the device B to the higher-level processing device when the detection unit detects the notification of the insertion of the device B. system. 2. In a system in which a device A connected to a higher-level processing device is also connected to one or more lower-level devices B, an insertion notification is generated when the device A or the device B is inserted. In the insertion notification method having a step of transmitting from A to the upper processing device, the device A detects whether or not there is a notification of insertion from the device B after notifying the upper processing device of the insertion of its own device. And a step of transmitting the insertion notification of the device B to the higher-level processing device when the presence of the notification of the insertion of the device B is detected in the step. Method.