Patent ID: 11880570
Assignee: HITACHI, LTD.
Field: Computer technology (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC G | IPC G

Claim 6:
7. A data transmission method in a storage system including
a storage drive that stores data,
a storage controller, coupled to the storage drive, that includes a processor and a cache memory and processes data input to and output from the storage drive, and
a network interface apparatus handling network protocols between a host and the storage controller, coupled to the storage controller, that includes a processor and a memory independently from the processor and the cache memory of the storage controller,
wherein when the network interface apparatus receives at once, from the host, both the data to be stored in the storage drive along with a write request associated with the data,
the processor of the network interface apparatus performs protocol processing on the write request, stores the data and the write request at a reserved area being reserved before receiving the data and the write request, in the memory of the network interface apparatus and transfers a write command to the storage controller,
the processor of the storage controller receives the write command from the network interface apparatus, reserves a data storage area in the cache memory, and transmits a data transfer request to the network interface apparatus,
the processor of the network interface apparatus receives the data transfer request from the storage controller and stores data relating to the write request, which is stored in the memory, in the reserved storage area of the cache memory,
the processor of the storage controller performs predetermined processing on the data stored in the cache memory and relating to the write command, and transfers a write response to the network interface apparatus, and
the processor of the network interface apparatus receives the write response from the storage controller and performs the protocol processing to respond to the host.