TWI468921B - Server and booting method thereof - Google Patents

Description

Server and its boot method

The invention relates to a server and a booting method thereof.

The hard disk backplane may encounter power failure during use, but the motherboard is normally turned on. In this case, the user cannot find out whether the hard disk backplane works normally when starting to use, and the user is in this situation. It brings a lot of inconvenience. Moreover, the prior art does not feed back to the motherboard for the power supply of the operating voltage. How to solve the problem of whether the power supply of the hard disk backboard is normal is a problem to be overcome.

In view of this, the present invention provides a server and a booting method thereof, thereby solving the problems described in the prior art.

The invention provides a server comprising a hard disk backplane, a power supply unit and a motherboard. The hard disk backplane is coupled to a plurality of hard disks and includes a power-on control unit. The power supply unit is coupled to the hard disk backplane to provide an operating voltage of the hard disk backplane. The motherboard is coupled to the power supply unit to receive an operating voltage from the power supply unit. The motherboard includes a controller coupled to the power-on control unit. The power-on control unit reacts to the power-on of the hard disk backplane, and outputs a power-on normal signal to the controller when the working voltage of the hard disk backplane is normal, and when the controller receives the power-on normal signal, the control host The board is powered on for the motherboard to exchange data with the hard disks.

In an embodiment of the invention, the power supply unit is in chronological order A plurality of working voltages are provided to the hard disk backplane, and the first working voltage and the second working voltage are simultaneously provided, and then the third working voltage, the fourth working voltage, and the fifth working voltage are sequentially provided.

In an embodiment of the invention, the first to fifth operating voltages are 12V, 5V, 1V, 3.3V, and 1.8V, respectively.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the fifth working voltage occurs in the power-on condition of the hard disk backplane, the power supply indicating the first working voltage to the fifth working voltage is normal, and the power-on control unit is according to the fifth working voltage. The power supply situation determines whether to output a normal power-on signal.

In an embodiment of the invention, there are two power-on normal signals, which are a first power-on normal signal and a second power-on normal signal, respectively, and the controller is based on the first power-on normal signal and the second power-on normal signal. Control the motherboard to boot.

In an embodiment of the invention, the motherboard further includes a boot control circuit, and the controller is coupled to the power-on control unit through the boot control circuit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the power-on control circuit includes a gate, a switch, and a transistor. The gate has a first input end, a second input end and an output end, the first input end receives the first power-on normal signal, and the second input end receives the second power-on normal signal. The control end of the switch is coupled to the output end, and the first end of the switch is electrically connected to the working voltage end, and the second end of the switch is coupled to the ground voltage end. The base end of the transistor is coupled to the first end of the switch, the emitter end of the transistor is coupled to the ground voltage terminal, and the collector terminal of the transistor outputs a control signal to the controller to cause the controller to control the motherboard to be powered on.

In an embodiment of the invention, the power-on control circuit includes a first switch, a second switch, and a transistor. The control end of the first switch receives the first The power-on normal signal is electrically connected to a resistor between the first end of the first switch and the working voltage terminal. The control terminal of the second switch receives the second power-on normal signal, the first end of the second switch is coupled to the second end of the first switch, and the second end of the second switch is coupled to the ground voltage terminal. The base end of the transistor is coupled to the first end of the first switch, the emitter end of the transistor is coupled to the ground voltage terminal, and the collector terminal of the transistor outputs a control signal to the controller to cause the controller to control the motherboard to be powered on.

In an embodiment of the invention, the controller is a complex programmable logic device.

The invention further provides a booting method for the server. The booting method includes: providing a motherboard and a hard disk backplane, the hard disk backplane is coupled to the plurality of hard disks, and provides a working voltage of the motherboard and the hard disk backplane, wherein The motherboard includes a controller; and the controller determines whether the working voltage of the hard disk backplane is powered up normally, and controls the motherboard to boot when the power is normal, so that the motherboard exchanges data with the hard disks.

In the embodiment of the booting method of the server of the present invention, a plurality of operating voltages are sequentially provided to the hard disk backplane, and a first operating voltage and a second operating voltage are simultaneously provided, and then a third is sequentially provided. The operating voltage, a fourth operating voltage, and a fifth operating voltage.

In the embodiment of the booting method of the server of the present invention, the first to fifth operating voltages are 12V, 5V, 1V, 3.3V, and 1.8V, respectively.

In an embodiment of the boot method of the server of the present invention, the hard disk backplane includes a power up control unit.

In the embodiment of the booting method of the server of the present invention, when the fifth working voltage occurs in the power-on condition of the hard disk backplane, the first working voltage is indicated to The power supply of the fifth working voltage is normal, and the power-on control unit determines whether to output a power-on normal signal according to the power supply situation of the fifth working voltage.

In the embodiment of the booting method of the server of the present invention, there are two power-on normal signals, which are respectively a first power-on normal signal and a second power-on normal signal, and the controller is based on the first power-on normal signal and the second power-on signal. The normal signal is used to control the motherboard to boot.

Based on the above, the embodiment of the present invention can enable the motherboard to be powered on when the power supply of the hard disk backplane is normal.

The above described features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

Reference will now be made in detail be made to the embodiments of the invention In addition, elements/members that use the same reference numerals in the drawings and the embodiments represent the same or similar parts.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as "on," "connected to" or "coupled to" another element, it can be Or an intervening element may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as “directly,” “directly connected,” or “directly connected” to another element, the intervening element is absent.

1 is a schematic diagram of a server in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to Figure 1. The server 100 includes a power supply unit 110, a hard disk backplane 120, a plurality of hard disks 122, and a motherboard 140. The hard disk backplane 120 is coupled to the plurality of hard disks 122 and the hard disk backplane 120 includes the power up control unit 130. The motherboard 140 includes a controller 152. The power-on control unit 130 is coupled to the controller 152.

Additionally, controller 152 can be a complex programmable logic device. The motherboard 140 may further include a power-on control circuit 150, and the controller 152 is coupled to the power-on control unit 130 through the power-on control circuit 150.

The power supply unit 110 is coupled to the hard disk backplane 120 and the motherboard 140. The power supply unit 110 sequentially supplies a plurality of operating voltages to the hard disk backplane 120 and the motherboard 140, and simultaneously supplies the first operating voltage V1 and the second operating voltage V2, and then sequentially supplies the third operating voltage V3 and the fourth. The operating voltage V4 and the fifth operating voltage V5.

The power-on control unit 130 responds to the power-on of the hard disk backplane 120, and outputs at least one power-on normal signal PG to the controller 152 when the operating voltage of the hard disk backplane 120 is normal. When the controller 152 receives the power-on normal signal PG (the PG includes the PGA and/or the PGB) as a logic high level, the control board 140 is powered on for the motherboard 140 to exchange data with the hard disks 122. .

It is to be noted that the description of the above embodiment makes it clear that the user can determine whether the hard disk backplane 120 is working normally by whether the motherboard 140 is normally turned on, which brings great convenience to the user.

In still another embodiment, the first to fifth operating voltages V1 to V5 are sequentially 12V, 5V, 1V, 3.3V, and 1.8V, respectively. That is to say, the hard disk backplane 120 uses the above five potential operating voltages, wherein 12V and 5V are the operating voltage of the hard disk, 3.3V is the operating voltage of the tough volume circuit on the hard disk, and 1.8V and 1V are hard. The operating voltage of the expander integrated circuit on the backplane 120.

2 is a chronological power-on work in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Make a voltage diagram. Please refer to Figure 2. The sequence of operating voltages for power-up is: 12V and 5V are simultaneously supplied at time point T1, then 1V is supplied at time point T2, then 3.3V is supplied at time point T3, and then 1.8V is supplied at time point T4. In addition, each operating voltage must be maintained for 50ms at its steady state to provide another operating voltage. Each type of operating voltage needs to be controlled within 0.5ms to 5ms from the time when the supply starts to the time point of its steady state.

Please refer to FIG. 1 again, because the timing power supply control is performed, that is, the normal power-on sequence is the first working voltage/second working voltage (for example, 12V/5V), and then the third, fourth, and fifth are sequentially followed. Operating voltage V3 ~ V5 (for example, 1V, 3.3V, 1.8V). If the third operating voltage V3 (eg, 1V) is not detected, the fourth and fifth operating voltages V4, V5 (eg, 3.3V, 1.8V) after the third operating voltage V3 are not detected. Therefore, when the power control unit 130 is designed, it can be determined whether the power of the hard disk backplane 120 is normal by detecting the fifth working voltage V5 (for example, 1.8V). In addition, the last power-on fifth operating voltage V5 (eg, 1.8V) may be configured with two paths on the actual circuit. Therefore, the power-on control unit 130 can be configured to issue the first and second power-on normal signals PGA and PGB to the power-on control circuit 150. For example, when the first and second power-on normal signals PGA and PGB are at a logic high level, it indicates that the 1.8V of the power supply line is normal, but the logic level of the power-on normal signal of the present invention may also be designed to be reversed.

3A and 3B are circuit diagrams of a power-on control circuit in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The configuration of the two boot control circuits will be described in detail below.

Please also refer to Figure 1 and Figure 3A. The power-on control circuit 150A includes a gate 301, a switch 303, a transistor 305, and resistors R1, R2. The first input terminal U1 of the AND gate 301 receives the first power-on normal signal PGA, and the second input terminal U2 receives the second power-on normal signal PGB. The control terminal G of the switch 303 is coupled to the output terminal U3 of the gate 301, the first end D of the switch 303 is electrically connected to the operating voltage terminal P1, and the second terminal S of the switch 303 is coupled to the ground voltage terminal GND. The base terminal B of the transistor 305 is coupled to the first end D of the switch 303, the emitter terminal E of the transistor 305 is coupled to the ground voltage terminal GND, and the collector terminal C of the transistor 305 can output the control signal PWG to the controller 152. The controller 152 controls the motherboard 140 to be powered on.

In still another variant embodiment, please refer to both FIG. 1 and FIG. 3B. The power-on control circuit 150B includes a first switch 401, a second switch 403, a transistor 305, and resistors R1, R2. The control terminal G1 of the first switch 401 receives the first power-on normal signal PGA, and the first terminal D1 of the first switch 401 and the working voltage terminal P1 are electrically connected to the resistor R1. A control terminal G2 of the second switch 403 receives the second signal on the PGB normal power, a first terminal of the second switch 403 is coupled to the first switch D2 S1 401 of the second end, the second end of the second switch S2 is coupled to the ground 403 Voltage terminal GND. The base terminal B of the transistor 305 is coupled to the first terminal D1 of the first switch 401, the emitter terminal E of the transistor 305 is coupled to the ground voltage terminal GND, and the collector terminal C of the transistor 305 can output the control signal PWG. This control signal PWG is applied to the controller 152 to cause the controller 152 to control the motherboard 140 to be powered on.

It is worth mentioning that, compared with the boot control circuit 150A, the boot control circuit 150B can save the gate 301 and increase the number of components. Add a switching element. The logic function of the first switch 401 and the second switch 403 is equivalent to a reverse gate, which is equivalent to the same function of the gate 301 and the switch 303, but the cost of one switching element is much lower than the cost of the gate 301. Thus, the embodiment of FIG. 3B can be more cost effective.

In addition, the logical operational relationship between the first switch 401 and the second switch 403 is as shown in Table 1.

Among them, H and L are respectively represented as a logic high level and a logic low level.

Based on the content disclosed in the above embodiments, a general-purpose server booting method can be summarized. More specifically, FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a booting method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, the booting method of the present embodiment may include the following steps: as shown in step S410, the motherboard 140 is connected to the hard disk backplane 120, and the hard disk backplane 120 is coupled to the plurality of hard disks 122. The operating voltages V1 V V5 of the motherboard 140 and the hard disk backplane 120 are provided, wherein the motherboard 140 includes a controller 152.

The method for providing the working voltage may be: providing a plurality of working voltages V1 VV5 to the hard disk backplane 120 in time sequence, first providing the first working voltage V1 and the second working voltage V2, and then providing the third in sequence. The working voltage V3, the fourth working voltage V4, and the fifth working voltage V5, wherein the first working voltage V1 to the fifth working voltage V5 are sequentially 12V, 5V, 1V, 3.3V, and 1.8V, respectively.

Then, as shown in step S420, the controller 152 determines whether the operating voltage of the hard disk backplane 120 is powered up normally, and controls the motherboard 140 to be powered on when the power is turned on, so that the motherboard 140 exchanges data with the hard disks 122.

I will give another example for explanation. FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a booting method according to another embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 5 together.

In step S501, a plurality of operating voltages V1 V V5 are supplied to the hard disk backplane 120 in chronological order.

Next, in step S503, the power-on control unit 130 reacts to the power-on condition of the hard disk backplane 120, and outputs the power-on normal signal PG to the controller 152 when the operating voltage is powered up.

Next, in step S505, the controller 152 determines whether the power-on normal signal PG is at a logic high level. If yes, go to step S507, otherwise go to step S509.

In step S507, it indicates that the power-on is normal, the controller 152 causes the motherboard 140 to be powered on normally, and the motherboard 140 exchanges data with the hard disk 122.

In step S509, it indicates that the power-on is abnormal, and the controller 152 disables the motherboard 140 from booting.

Therefore, the user can determine whether the hard disk backplane 120 is working normally by whether the motherboard 140 is normally turned on.

In summary, the server of the embodiment of the present invention and the booting method thereof can determine whether the hard disk backplane works normally by whether the motherboard is normally turned on. As a result, the user is greatly facilitated.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention, and those skilled in the art can make some changes and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims.

100‧‧‧Server

110‧‧‧Power supply unit

120‧‧‧hard disk backplane

122‧‧‧ Hard disk

130‧‧‧Power-up control unit

140‧‧‧ motherboard

150, 150A, 150B‧‧‧ boot control circuit

152‧‧‧ Controller

301‧‧‧ and gate

303‧‧‧ switch

305‧‧‧Optoelectronics

401‧‧‧First switch

403‧‧‧second switch

GND‧‧‧ground voltage terminal

P1‧‧‧ working voltage terminal

PG‧‧‧Powerful normal signal

PGA‧‧‧First power-on normal signal

PGB‧‧‧Second power-on normal signal

PGC‧‧‧ signal

PWG‧‧‧ control signal

R1, R2‧‧‧ resistance

S410, S420‧‧‧ steps of the booting method of the server according to an embodiment of the present invention

S501~S509‧‧‧ steps of the booting method of the server according to another embodiment of the present invention

T1~T4‧‧‧ time point

V1~V5‧‧‧first to fifth working voltage

The following drawings are a part of the specification of the invention, and illustrate the embodiments of the invention

1 is a schematic diagram of a server in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a schematic diagram of operating voltages that are powered up in chronological order, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

3A and 3B are circuit diagrams of a power-on control circuit in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flow chart of a method of booting a server in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a booting method of a server according to another embodiment of the present invention.

100‧‧‧Server

110‧‧‧Power supply unit

120‧‧‧hard disk backplane

122‧‧‧ Hard disk

130‧‧‧Power-up control unit

140‧‧‧ motherboard

150‧‧‧Start control circuit

152‧‧‧ Controller

PG‧‧‧Powerful normal signal

PGA‧‧‧First power-on normal signal

PGB‧‧‧Second power-on normal signal

V1~V5‧‧‧first to fifth working voltage

Claims (19)

A server includes: a hard disk backplane coupled to a plurality of hard disks and including a power-on control unit; a power supply unit coupled to the hard disk backplane to provide an operating voltage of the hard disk backplane; a motherboard coupled to the power supply unit for receiving an operating voltage from the power supply unit, the motherboard includes a controller coupled to the power-on control unit, wherein the power-on control unit is responsive to the The power-on of the hard disk backplane outputs a power-on normal signal to the controller when the working voltage of the hard disk backplane is normal, and controls the motherboard when the controller receives the power-on normal signal. Turning on the power for the motherboard to exchange data with the hard disks. The server of claim 1, wherein the power supply unit provides a plurality of operating voltages to the hard disk backplane in chronological order, and simultaneously provides a first operating voltage and a second operating voltage, and then The sequence provides a third operating voltage, a fourth operating voltage, and a fifth operating voltage. The server of claim 2, wherein the first working voltage, the second working voltage, the third working voltage, the fourth working voltage, and the fifth working voltage are respectively 12V, 5V, 1V , 3.3V and 1.8V. The server of claim 2, wherein when the fifth operating voltage occurs in the power-on condition of the hard disk backplane, the power supply from the first working voltage to the fifth working voltage is normal, and The power-on control list The element determines whether to output the power-on normal signal according to the power supply situation of the fifth working voltage. The server of claim 1, wherein the power-on normal signal has two, respectively, a first power-on normal signal and a second power-on normal signal, and the controller is powered on according to the first power-on. The normal signal and the second power-on normal signal control the motherboard to be powered on. The server of claim 5, wherein the motherboard further includes a boot control circuit, and the controller is coupled to the power-on control unit by the boot control circuit. The server of claim 6, wherein the power-on control circuit comprises: a gate and a first input terminal, a second input terminal and an output terminal, the first input terminal receiving the first The second input terminal receives the second power-on normal signal; a switch, the control end of the switch is coupled to the output end, and the first end of the switch is electrically connected to a working voltage end a resistor, the second end of the switch is coupled to a ground voltage terminal, and a transistor having a base end coupled to the first end of the switch, the emitter end of the transistor being coupled to the ground voltage terminal, the The collector terminal of the crystal outputs a control signal to the controller to cause the controller to control the motherboard to power on. The server of claim 6, wherein the power-on control circuit comprises: a first switch, the control end of the first switch receives the first power-on a signal, a first switch of the first switch and a working voltage terminal are electrically connected to a resistor; and a second switch, the control end of the second switch receives the second power-on normal signal, and the second switch The first end is coupled to the second end of the first switch, the second end of the second switch is coupled to a ground voltage end, and a transistor, the base end of the transistor is coupled to the first end of the first switch The emitter terminal of the transistor is coupled to the ground voltage terminal, and the collector terminal of the transistor outputs a control signal to the controller to enable the controller to control the motherboard to be powered on. The server of claim 1, wherein the controller is a complex programmable logic device. A method for booting a server includes: providing a motherboard and a hard disk backplane, the hard disk backplane coupling a plurality of hard disks, and providing a working voltage of the motherboard and the hard disk backplane, wherein the host The board includes a controller; and the controller determines whether the working voltage of the hard disk backplane is powered up normally, and controls the motherboard to be powered on when the power is normal, so that the motherboard exchanges data with the hard disks. The method for booting a server according to claim 10, wherein a plurality of operating voltages are sequentially supplied to the hard disk backplane, and a first operating voltage and a second operating voltage are simultaneously provided, followed by A third operating voltage, a fourth operating voltage, and a fifth operating voltage are provided. The booting party of the server as described in claim 11 The method, wherein the first operating voltage, the second operating voltage, the third operating voltage, the fourth operating voltage, and the fifth operating voltage are 12V, 5V, 1V, 3.3V, and 1.8V, respectively. The method for booting a server according to claim 10, wherein the hard disk backplane comprises a power-on control unit. The method for booting a server according to claim 13, wherein when the fifth working voltage occurs in the power-on condition of the hard disk backplane, the power supply from the first working voltage to the fifth working voltage is indicated. Normally, the power-on control unit determines whether to output the power-on normal signal according to the power supply situation of the fifth working voltage. The method for booting a server according to claim 10, wherein the power-on normal signal has two, respectively, a first power-on normal signal and a second power-on normal signal, and the controller is configured according to the first A power-on normal signal and the second power-on normal signal are used to control the motherboard to be powered on. The booting method of the server according to claim 15, wherein the motherboard further includes a boot control circuit, and the controller is coupled to the power-on control unit by the boot control circuit. The method for booting a server according to claim 16 , wherein the boot control circuit comprises: a gate and a first input terminal, a second input terminal and an output terminal, wherein the first input terminal receives The first power-on normal signal, the second input end receives the second power-on normal signal; a switch, the control end of the switch is coupled to the output end, and the first end of the switch is electrically connected to a working voltage end Sexual connection a resistor, the second of the switch The terminal is coupled to a ground voltage terminal; and a transistor, the base end of the transistor is coupled to the first end of the switch, the emitter end of the transistor is coupled to the ground voltage terminal, and the collector output terminal of the transistor is controlled. Signal to the controller to cause the controller to control the motherboard to boot. The booting method of the server according to claim 16, wherein the booting control circuit comprises: a first switch, the control end of the first switch receives the first power-on normal signal, and the first switch One end is electrically connected to a working voltage terminal; a second switch, the control end of the second switch receives the second power-on normal signal, and the first end of the second switch is coupled to the first switch The second end of the second switch is coupled to a ground voltage terminal; and a transistor, the base end of the transistor is coupled to the first end of the first switch, and the emitter end of the transistor is coupled The ground voltage terminal, the collector terminal of the transistor outputs a control signal to the controller, so that the controller controls the motherboard to be powered on. The method of booting a server according to claim 10, wherein the controller is a complex programmable logic device.