Patent ID: 7707367
Filing Date: 2010-04-27
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
1. A data storage system for transferring data between a host computer/server and a bank of disk drives through a system interface, such system interface having: a plurality of storage processors, one portion of the storage processors having a user data port coupled to the host computer/server and another portion of the storage processors having a user data port coupled to the bank of disk drives; and, a packet switching network coupled to the plurality of storage processors for passing packets between the plurality storage processors, each one of the plurality of storage processors comprising: a protocol controller for converting packets between a format used by the plurality of storage processors and the format used by the packet switching network, such protocol controller comprising: (a) a first section for passing atomic operation types of the packets to the packet switching network for operation by another one or the same one of the storage processors and for performing atomic operations requests received from another one or the same one of the plurality of storage processors from the packet switching network; (b) a second section for passing non-atomic operation types of the packets to the packet switching network; (c) a first end point having a first port for transmitting and receiving both types of the packets and a second port coupled to the first section and the second section, such first end point having: