Patent ID: 6820129
Filing Date: 2004-11-16
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
A method of managing network buffers in a system during receipt of data from a plurality of network connections, the system having a pool of network buffers that are adapted to be distributed among active network connections, the system having a frontplane window for each connection adapted to have a variable assigned number of network buffers, a frontplane interface for receiving data from the assigned network buffers, at least one application using at least one network connection for receiving data from the frontplane interface, a backplane interface for receiving data from the application(s) and for sending the data to a peripheral device, and a buffer manager for controlling the assignment of buffers of the pool of buffers among the network connections, said method comprising the steps of:assigning a predetermined number of buffers to each frontplane window for each connection, with at least one buffer being assigned to each connection unless a sufficient number of buffers are not available to do so; the frontplane window receiving data from a connection in the assigned buffers; the frontplane window giving said assigned buffers to the application through the frontplane interface, thereby emptying the window of assigned buffers; the application acquiring the buffers from the frontplane window through the frontplane interface and writing the same to the backplane interface; the backplane interface writing said data to the peripheral device, thereby emptying the backplane interface; the buffer manager monitoring the buffers of the pool that are assigned to connections for the purpose of varying the number of buffers assigned to the frontplane window of each connection to efficiently distribute the buffers so that data throughput for all connections is optimized.