Dynamic multipath channel interface for input/output channels

Claim 2

An input and output communications subsystem for general purpose digital computer system comprising at least one user application operating in said computer system according to a predetermined communications protocol to communicate blocks of data to a remote data utilization system over a communications channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity; means for dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said means for dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising: means for transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communications channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each said sub-channel, the protocol of said user application, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility; means responsive to the contents of said fields for activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction; means responsive to the contents of said extension field for segmenting data blocks from said user application into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and means for de-allocating any one said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 3

The input and output communications subsystem according to claim 1 further comprising, means in said message for selectively identifying said predetermined communications protocol.

Claim 4

The input and output communications subsystem according to claim 1 further comprising, means in said message for testing the security of said sub-channel.

Claim 7

The method according to claim 4 further comprising the step of selectively identifying said predetermined communications protocol in a portion of said message.

Claim 8

The method according to claim 4 further comprising the step of utilizing one or more fields of said message for testing the security of said sub-channel.

Claim 9

In an input and output communications subsystem for general purpose computers, a remote data utilization system for communicating with said general purpose digital computer over said subsystem, said remote data utilization system comprising means at said remote data utilization system for communicating blocks of date to said general purpose computer according to a predetermined protocol over a communication channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity, means at said remote data utilization system for dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said means for dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising means at said remote utilization system for transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communication channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each of said sub-channels, the protocol of said remote data utilization system, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility, means at said remote utilization system, responsive to the contents of said fields, for activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction, means at said remote utilization system, responsive to the contents of said extension field for segmenting data blocks into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and means at said remote data utilization system for de-allocating any one of said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 10

In an input and output communications subsystem for general purpose computers, a remote data utilization system for communicating with said general purpose digital computer over said subsystem, said remote data utilization system comprising means at said remote data utilization system for communicating blocks of date to said general purpose computer according to a predetermined protocol over a communication channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity, means at said remote data utilization system for dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said means for dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising means at said remote utilization system for transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communication channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each of said sub-channels, the protocol of said remote data utilization system, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility, means at said remote utilization system, responsive to the contents of said fields, for activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction, means at said remote utilization system, responsive to the contents of said extension field for segmenting data blocks into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and means at said remote data utilization system for de-allocating any one of said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 11

The remote data utilization system according to claim 7 further comprising means in said message for selectively identifying said predetermined communications protocol.

Claim 12

The remote data utilization system according to claim 7 further comprising means in said message for testing the security of said sub-channel.

Claim 13

In an input and output communications subsystem for general purpose computers, a method for communicating from a remote data utilization system comprising the steps of communicating, from said remote data utilization system, blocks of date to said general purpose computer according to a predetermined protocol over a communication channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity, dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communication channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each of said sub-channels, the protocol of said remote data utilization system, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility, in response to the contents of said fields, activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction, in response to the contents of said extension field, segmenting data blocks into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and de-allocating any one said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 14

In an input and output communications subsystem for general purpose computers, a method for communicating from a remote data utilization system comprising the steps of communicating, from said remote data utilization system, blocks of date to said general purpose computer according to a predetermined protocol over a communication channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity, dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communication channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each of said sub-channels, the protocol of said remote data utilization system, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility, in response to the contents of said fields, activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction, in response to the contents of said extension field, segmenting data blocks into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and de-allocating any one said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 15

The method according to claim 10 further comprising selectively identifying, in said message, said predetermined communications protocol.

Claim 16

The method according to claim 10 further comprising the step of testing the security of said sub-channel.

Claim 17

A program storage device readable by a general purpose computer and embodying a program of instructions executable by said general purpose computer to perform a method for communicating from a remote data utilization system to said general purpose computer, said method comprising the steps of communicating, from said remote data utilization system, blocks of date to said general purpose computer according to a predetermined protocol over a communication channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity, dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communication channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each of said sub-channels, the protocol of said remote data utilization system, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility, in response to the contents of said fields, activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction, in response to the contents of said extension field, segmenting data blocks into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and de-allocating any one said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 18

A program storage device readable by a general purpose computer and embodying a program of instructions executable by said general purpose computer to perform a method for communicating from a remote data utilization system to said general purpose computer, said method comprising the steps of communicating, from said remote data utilization system, blocks of date to said general purpose computer according to a predetermined protocol over a communication channel capable of supporting multipath groups of sub-channels of limited transmission capacity, dynamically allocating and activating each said group of sub-channels for transmission of said blocks of data in only one direction on each of said sub-channels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of dynamically allocating and activating said groups of sub-channels comprising transmitting one or more identification exchange messages between the two ends of said communication channel to negotiate agreed upon values of transmission parameters for said communications channel, said identification exchange messages including fields specifying the size and direction of transmission of each of said sub-channels, the protocol of said remote data utilization system, and a message extension field specifying the maximum capacity of a local data handling facility, in response to the contents of said fields, activating a sub-channel having the specified size and direction, in response to the contents of said extension field, segmenting data blocks into segments conforming to said maximum capacity, and de-allocating any one said sub-channels when said one subchannel fails.

Claim 19

The program storage device according to claim 13 wherein said method further comprises the step of selectively identifying, in said message, said predetermined communications protocol.

Claim 20

The program storage device according to claim 13 wherein said method further comprises the step of testing the security of said sub-channel.

Claim 21

A multipath channel interface for either end of transmission media used for computer input/output operations, said multipath channel interface comprising means, for each user facility using said transmission media, for defining a plurality of sub-channels in said transmission medium, a first subplurality of said subchannels extending in one direction on said media and a second subplurality of said subchannels extending in the other direction on said media, means for dynamically allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities for the transmission of blocks of data in one direction on one of said subpluralities, means for transmitting an identification exchange message on an allocated and activated subchannel, said message including the size and direction of transmission of each subchannel of said allocated and activated subchannels, the protocol of said user facility and the maximum capacity of said user facility, means responsive to said message for allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities for the transmission of blocks of data in the other direction on the other of said subpluralities, means responsive to said message for determining the ability of said user facility and said computer to conform to said maximum capacity, means responsive to said message for disabling said first and second subpluralities when said user facility and said computer do not conform to said maximum capacity, and means for substituting a replacement subchannel in either of said subpluralities in response to a failure in one of said subchannels.

Claim 22

A multipath channel interface for either end of transmission media used for computer input/output operations, said multipath channel interface comprising means, for each user facility using said transmission media, for defining a plurality of sub-channels in said transmission medium, a first subplurality of said subchannels extending in one direction on said media and a second subplurality of said subchannels extending in the other direction on said media, means for dynamically allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities for the transmission of blocks of data in one direction on one of said subpluralities, means for transmitting an identification exchange message on an allocated and activated subchannel, said message including the size and direction of transmission of each subchannel of said allocated and activated subchannels, the protocol of said user facility and the maximum capacity of said user facility, means responsive to said message for allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities for the transmission of blocks of data in the other direction on the other of said subpluralities, means responsive to said message for determining the ability of said user facility and said computer to conform to said maximum capacity, means responsive to said message for disabling said first and second subpluralities when said user facility and said computer do not conform to said maximum capacity, and means for substituting a replacement subchannel in either of said subpluralities in response to a failure in one of said subchannels.

Claim 23

The multipath channel interface according to claim 16 further comprising means for transmitting at least one more identification exchange message on said transmission media for the purpose of negotiating the transmission parameters for each of said allotted and activated subchannels.

Claim 24

The multipath channel interface according to claim 16 further comprising means for dividing data from said computer or from said user facility among the subchannels of said first or second subplurality, respectively.

Claim 27

The method according to claim 19 further comprising the step of transmitting at least one more identification exchange message on said transmission media for the purpose of negotiating the transmission parameters for each of said allotted and activated subchannels.

Claim 28

The method according to claim 19 further comprising the step of substituting a replacement subchannel in either of said subpluralities in response to a failure in one of said subchannels.

Claim 29

The method according to claim 19 further comprising the step of dividing data from said computer or from said user facility among the subchannels of said first or second subplurality, respectively.

Claim 30

A program storage device readable by a general purpose computer and embodying a program of instructions executable by said general purpose computer to perform a method for interfacing either end of transmission media used for computer input/output operations, said method comprising the steps of for each user facility using said transmission media, defining a plurality of subchannels in said transmission medium, a first subplurality of said subchannels extending in one direction on said media and a second subplurality of said subchannels extending in the other direction on said media, dynamically allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities for the transmission of blocks of data in one direction on one of said subpluralities, transmitting an identification exchange message on an allocated and activated subchannel, said message including the size and direction of transmission of each subchannel of said allocated and activated subchannels, the protocol of said user facility, and the maximum capacity of said user facility, in response to said message for allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities, transmitting blocks of data in the other direction on the other of said subpluralities, in response to said message, determining the ability of said user facility and said computer to conform to said maximum capacity, in response to said message, disabling said first and second subpluralities when said user facility and said computer do not conform to said maximum capacity.

Claim 31

A program storage device readable by a general purpose computer and embodying a program of instructions executable by said general purpose computer to perform a method for interfacing either end of transmission media used for computer input/output operations, said method comprising the steps of for each user facility using said transmission media, defining a plurality of subchannels in said transmission medium, a first subplurality of said subchannels extending in one direction on said media and a second subplurality of said subchannels extending in the other direction on said media, dynamically allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities for the transmission of blocks of data in one direction on one of said subpluralities, transmitting an identification exchange message on an allocated and activated subchannel, said message including the size and direction of transmission of each subchannel of said allocated and activated subchannels, the protocol of said user facility, and the maximum capacity of said user facility, in response to said message for allocating and activating one of said first and second subpluralities, transmitting blocks of data in the other direction on the other of said subpluralities, in response to said message, determining the ability of said user facility and said computer to conform to said maximum capacity, in response to said message, disabling said first and second subpluralities when said user facility and said computer do not conform to said maximum capacity.

Claim 32

The program storage device according to claim 23 wherein said method further comprises the step of transmitting at least one more identification exchange message on said transmission media for the purpose of negotiating the transmission parameters for each of said allotted and activated subchannels.

Claim 33

The program storage device according to claim 23 wherein said method further comprises the step of substituting a replacement subchannel in either of said subpluralities in response to a failure in one of said subchannels.

Claim 34

The program storage device according to claim 23 wherein said method further comprises the step of dividing data from said computer or from said user facility among the subchannels of said first or second subplurality, respectively.

Claim 35

For use with an input and output channel subsystem between a computer and a utilization device, interface means at either end of the channel subsystem for communicating data blocks over the channel subsystem via subchannels of the channel subsystem, said interface means comprising means for allocating a group of subchannels to an application, and means for activating the group of subchannels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said means for activating comprising means for transmitting first identification exchange messages over each said subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel subsystem, each first identification message including, for the subchannel over which it is transmitted, a direction field specifying the direction of transmission of the subchannel, a protocol field specifying the protocol to be used for data block transmission, and a buffer field specifying the maximum capacity of a buffer for communicating data blocks over the subchannel, means responsive to the first identification exchange messages for activating each said subchannel having the specified buffer size, transmission direction and protocol, and means for receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the subchannel system, means for determining if prescribed fields of each of the received first identification exchange messages contain identical information, and means for deallocating the group of subchannels if the corresponding identification exchange messages are not identical.

Claim 36

For use with an input and output channel subsystem between a computer and a utilization device, interface means at either end of the channel subsystem for communicating data blocks over the channel subsystem via subchannels of the channel subsystem, said interface means comprising means for allocating a group of subchannels to an application, and means for activating the group of subchannels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said means for activating comprising means for transmitting first identification exchange messages over each said subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel subsystem, each first identification message including, for the subchannel over which it is transmitted, a direction field specifying the direction of transmission of the subchannel, a protocol field specifying the protocol to be used for data block transmission, and a buffer field specifying the maximum capacity of a buffer for communicating data blocks over the subchannel, means responsive to the first identification exchange messages for activating each said subchannel having the specified buffer size, transmission direction and protocol, and means for receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the subchannel system, means for determining if prescribed fields of each of the received first identification exchange messages contain identical information, and means for deallocating the group of subchannels if the corresponding identification exchange messages are not identical.

Claim 37

The interface means of claim 27 further comprising means for receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the channel system, means for examining each first identification exchange message to determine the ability to conform to the requirements of the protocol field, and means for the deallocating said subchannels when the remote data utilization system is unable to conform to the requirements of the protocol field.

Claim 38

The interface means of claim 27 further comprising means for examining the buffer field of each first identification exchange message to determine the ability to allocate a buffer of size specified in the first identification exchange message to the subchannel over which the first identification exchange message is received, and means for transmitting a second exchange identification message to the interface means at the other end of the channel system specifying a buffer size that can be allocated to the associated sub-channel in the event that the buffer size in the first identification exchange message cannot be allocated.

Claim 39

The interface means of claim 25 wherein the program storage device further comprises means for transmitting over each subchannel of the group to the interface means at the other end of the channel system a second identification exchange message confirming the buffer size and protocol to be used in transmitting data blocks on the subchannel over which the second identification message is transmitted.

Claim 40

The interface means of claim 30 wherein each first identification exchange message further includes a random number field and the means for transmitting a second identification exchange message further comprises means for examining the contents of the random number field of a first identification exchange message to determine if the remote data utilization system transmits the second identification exchange message.

Claim 41

The interface means of claim 31 wherein the means for examining the random number field of the first identification exchange message further comprises means for comparing the contents of the random number field of the first identification exchange field to the value of a locally generated random number.

Claim 42

For use with an input and output channel subsystem between a computer and a utilization device, an interfacing method to be used at either end of the channel subsystem for communicating data blocks over the channel subsystem via subchannels of the channel subsystem, said interfacing method comprising the steps of allocating a group of subchannels to an application, and activating the group of subchannels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of activating comprising the sub-steps of transmitting first identification exchange messages over each said subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel subsystem, each first identification message including, for the subchannel over which it is transmitted, a direction field specifying the direction of transmission of the subchannel, a protocol field specifying the protocol to be used for data block transmission, and a buffer field specifying the maximum capacity of a buffer for communicating data blocks over the subchannel, in response to the first identification exchange messages, activating each said subchannel having the specified buffer size, transmission direction and protocol, receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the subchannel system, determining if prescribed fields of each of the received first identification exchange messages contain identical information, and deallocating the group of subchannels if the corresponding identification exchange messages are not identical.

Claim 43

For use with an input and output channel subsystem between a computer and a utilization device, an interfacing method to be used at either end of the channel subsystem for communicating data blocks over the channel subsystem via subchannels of the channel subsystem, said interfacing method comprising the steps of allocating a group of subchannels to an application, and activating the group of subchannels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of activating comprising the sub-steps of transmitting first identification exchange messages over each said subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel subsystem, each first identification message including, for the subchannel over which it is transmitted, a direction field specifying the direction of transmission of the subchannel, a protocol field specifying the protocol to be used for data block transmission, and a buffer field specifying the maximum capacity of a buffer for communicating data blocks over the subchannel, in response to the first identification exchange messages, activating each said subchannel having the specified buffer size, transmission direction and protocol, receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the subchannel system, determining if prescribed fields of each of the received first identification exchange messages contain identical information, and deallocating the group of subchannels if the corresponding identification exchange messages are not identical.

Claim 44

The interfacing method of claim 33 further comprising the steps of receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the channel system, examining each first identification exchange message to determine the ability to conform to the requirements of the protocol field, and deallocating said subchannels when the remote data utilization system is unable to conform to the requirements of the protocol field.

Claim 45

The interfacing method of claim 33 further comprising the steps of examining the buffer field of each first identification exchange message to determine the ability to allocate a buffer of size specified in the first identification exchange message to the subchannel over which the first identification exchange message is received, and transmitting a second exchange identification message to the interface means at the other end of the channel system specifying a buffer size that can be allocated to the associated sub-channel in the event that the buffer size in the first identification exchange message cannot be allocated.

Claim 46

The interfacing method of claim 33 further comprising the steps of at said remote data utilization system, transmitting over each subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel system a second identification exchange message confirming the buffer size and protocol to be used in transmitting data blocks on the subchannel over which the second identification message is transmitted.

Claim 47

The interfacing method of claim 36 further including the steps of including in each first identification exchange message a random number field, and the step of transmitting a second identification exchange message further comprises the step of examining the contents of the random number field of a first identification exchange message to determine if the remote data utilization system transmits the second identification exchange message.

Claim 48

The interfacing method of claim 37 wherein the step of examining the random number field of the first identification exchange message further comprises the step of comparing the contents of the random number field of the first identification exchange field to the value of a locally generated random number.

Claim 49

For use with an input and output channel subsystem between a computer and a utilization device, a program storage device readable by said computer and embodying a program executable by said computer to perform an interfacing method to be used at either end of the channel subsystem for communicating data blocks over the channel subsystem via subchannels of the channel subsystem, said interfacing method comprising the steps of allocating a group of subchannels to an application, and activating the group of subchannels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of activating comprising the sub-steps of transmitting first identification exchange messages over each said subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel subsystem, each first identification message including, for the subchannel over which it is transmitted, a direction field specifying the direction of transmission of the subchannel, a protocol field specifying the protocol to be used for data block transmission, and a buffer field specifying the maximum capacity of a buffer for communicating data blocks over the subchannel, and in response to the first identification exchange messages, activating each said subchannel having the specified buffer size, transmission direction and protocol.

Claim 50

For use with an input and output channel subsystem between a computer and a utilization device, a program storage device readable by said computer and embodying a program executable by said computer to perform an interfacing method to be used at either end of the channel subsystem for communicating data blocks over the channel subsystem via subchannels of the channel subsystem, said interfacing method comprising the steps of allocating a group of subchannels to an application, and activating the group of subchannels prior to the transmission of said blocks of data, said step of activating comprising the sub-steps of transmitting first identification exchange messages over each said subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel subsystem, each first identification message including, for the subchannel over which it is transmitted, a direction field specifying the direction of transmission of the subchannel, a protocol field specifying the protocol to be used for data block transmission, and a buffer field specifying the maximum capacity of a buffer for communicating data blocks over the subchannel, and in response to the first identification exchange messages, activating each said subchannel having the specified buffer size, transmission direction and protocol.

Claim 51

The program storage device of claim 39 wherein said interfacing method further comprises the steps of receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the channel system, determining if prescribed fields of each of the received first identification exchange messages contain identical information, and deallocating the group of subchannels if the corresponding ones of the prescribed fields in all of the received first identification exchange messages are not identical.

Claim 52

The program storage device of claim 39 wherein said interfacing method further comprises the steps of receiving said first identification exchange messages over each subchannel of the group from the other end of the channel system, examining each first identification exchange message to determine the ability to conform to the requirements of the protocol field, and deallocating said subchannels when the remote data utilization system is unable to conform to the requirements of the protocol field.

Claim 53

The program storage device of claim 39 wherein said interfacing method further comprises the steps of examining the buffer field of each first identification exchange message to determine the ability to allocate a buffer of size specified in the first identification exchange message to the subchannel over which the first identification exchange message is received, and transmitting a second exchange identification message to the interface means at the other end of the channel system specifying a buffer size that can be allocated to the associated sub-channel in the event that the buffer size in the first identification exchange message cannot be allocated.

Claim 54

The program storage device of claim 39 wherein said interfacing method further comprises the steps of at said remote data utilization system, transmitting over each subchannel of the group to the other end of the channel system a second identification exchange message confirming the buffer size and protocol to be used in transmitting data blocks on the subchannel over which the second identification message is transmitted.

Claim 55

The program storage device of claim 43 wherein said interfacing method further includes the steps of including in each first identification exchange message a random number field, and the step of transmitting a second identification exchange message further comprises the step of examining the contents of the random number field of a first identification exchange message to determine if the remote data utilization system transmits the second identification exchange message.

Claim 56

The program storage device of claim 44 wherein the step of examining the random number field of the first identification exchange message in said interfacing method further comprises the step of comparing the contents of the random number field of the first identification exchange field to the value of a locally generated random number.