Patent ID: 6137804
Filing Date: 2000-10-24
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
In a communication network, a system for detecting transmit underruns in a data transmission and retransmitting the data to a receiving station from a sending station independent of a host system in the sending station, comprising:a) a Media Access Control (MAC) device coupled to the host system and including a processor, transmit logic, a transmit storage device, and a communication interface coupled to the communication network;b) host descriptor means for transferring the data in frames from the host system to the transmit storage device under control of the processor;c) control word means for transferring the data in frames from the transmit storage device to the network via the communication interface until the last data for the frame has been transferred or a transmit underrun condition is detected in the storage device;d) means for rewinding a pointer control unit in the transmit logic to the start of a frame when an underrun condition is detected; ande) means for detecting the transmit underrun condition and retransmitting the last frame in the storage device without retransmitting the frame from the host system.