Propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment

Propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network including identifying, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; broadcasting an update request requesting an update to the firmware; receiving a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; determining, in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update; and updating the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The field of the invention is data processing, or, more specifically, methods, apparatus, and products for propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment.

2. Description of Related Art

Data centers today often house many computers which are connected in a peer-to-peer network. Often one or more of these computers may have a new version of firmware than one or more other similarly situated computers. One way to update the firmware is to have a systems administrator manually update the firmware of each computer. To manually update the firmware on each computer with each new version release through the use of a systems administrator is burdensome and inefficient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment including identifying, by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; broadcasting, by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware; receiving, from a plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; determining, in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update; and updating, by the downlevel node, the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary methods, apparatus, and products for propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment in accordance with the present invention are described with reference to the accompanying drawings, beginning withFIG. 1.FIG. 1sets forth a block diagram of a system for propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. The system ofFIG. 1includes a data center (200). A data center is a facility used to house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and storage systems. Data centers generally include redundant or backup power supplies, redundant data communications connections, environmental controls such as air conditioning and security devices and other computers and components as will occur to those of skill in the art.

The data center (200) ofFIG. 1includes a plurality of nodes connected in a peer-to-peer network (101). A node as that term is used in this specification means automated computing machinery capable of supporting firmware that may be propagated according to embodiments of the present invention and capable of data communications with other nodes in a peer-to-peer network. Firmware as that term is used in this specification means software typically contained in read-only memory (ROM).

In the example ofFIG. 1, the nodes of the peer-to-peer network are blade environments (102). ‘Blade environment,’ as the term is used in this specification, refers generally to a blade server system installed in a chassis and including a number of blade servers, one or more blade management modules, a media tray, a blade server system power supply, and other components. One example of a blade environment useful in propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention is the BladeCenter available from IBM®.

In the example ofFIG. 1, each of the blade environments (102) of the data center (200) are connected to a peer-to-peer network (101). A peer-to-peer network architecture is composed of nodes that make a portion of their resources directly available to other network nodes, without the need for central coordination instances such as servers or stable hosts. Nodes in a peer-to-peer network are commonly both suppliers and consumers of resources, in contrast to the traditional client-server model where servers supply and clients consume.

Each of the blade environments (102) in the example ofFIG. 1includes a blade management module (152) capable of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. In the example ofFIG. 1, only one blade environment (102b) is illustrated with a blade management module (152). This is for explanation and not for limitation. Each of the blade environments (102) in the example ofFIG. 1includes a blade management module (152) that supports firmware which may periodically be updated and each of the blade management modules are capable of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention.

In the example ofFIG. 1, nodes (102b) has installed upon its blade management module (152) firmware which is downlevel with respect to the firmware installed on nodes (102a,102c, and102d). The blade management modules ofFIG. 1are capable of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment by identifying, by a downlevel node (102b) in the peer-to-peer network (101), that one or more nodes (102a,102c, and102d) in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node (102b). The term ‘downlevel’ in this specification is used to mean a version of the firmware which is older with respect to another version. The term ‘uplevel’ in this specification is used to mean a more recent version release of the firmware. In the example ofFIG. 1, a ‘−’ symbol is used to designate that firmware on the blade management module (152) of blade environment (102b) is downlevel with respect to firmware on the blade management modules of blade environments (102a,102c, and102d) designated as uplevel with the ‘+’ symbol. Furthermore, in this specification a node having installed upon it firmware that is downlevel with respect to the firmware installed on one or more other nodes of the network is often called a ‘downlevel node.’ Similarly, a node having installed upon it firmware which is uplevel with respect to the firmware installed on another node of the network is often called in this specification an ‘uplevel node.’

As just mentioned above, the blade management modules ofFIG. 1are capable of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment by identifying, by a downlevel node (102b) in the peer-to-peer network (101), that one or more nodes (102a,102c, and102d) in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node (102b). The blade management module is capable of identifying that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node by receiving a message broadcast from the node having firmware that is uplevel. Such a message may be broadcast to all nodes on the network upon installation of the uplevel node or periodically nodes may broadcast a message including an identification of the firmware currently installed on the node.

Alternatively, the blade management module ofFIG. 1may periodically broadcast a request for identification of firmware on other nodes in the network and receive, in response to the broadcast, a plurality of identifications of firmware installed on a plurality of other nodes in the network. In still other embodiments, furthermore, the blade management module ofFIG. 1may broadcast a request for identification of firmware on other nodes in the network upon installation in that network and receive, in response to the broadcast, a plurality of identifications of firmware installed on a plurality of other nodes in the network.

In the example ofFIG. 1, the downlevel node (102b), implemented as a blade environment, is capable through its management module of broadcasting an update request requesting an update to the firmware and receiving, from a plurality of nodes (102a,102c, and102d) having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node (102b), a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node. The metadata describing the portion of the update typically identifies information about the portion sent and the metadata describing the firmware installed on the uplevel node typically identifies information about the firmware itself such that the downlevel node may identify whether the entire firmware update has been received from the plurality of uplevel nodes (102a,102c, and102d).

In the example ofFIG. 1, the downlevel node (102b), implemented as a blade environment, is capable through its management module of determining, in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update and updating the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update. Updating the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update may be carried out by installing the received portions of the update on the downlevel node, the blade management module (102) of blade environment (102b) in the example ofFIG. 1.

In the example ofFIG. 1, the downlevel node (102b), implemented as a blade environment, is capable through its management module of broadcasting again an update request if the portions of the update received do not comprise the entire update. The downlevel node may repeat broadcasting update requests and receiving portions of the update until the portions received comprise an entire update of the firmware.

In the example ofFIG. 1, the downlevel node (102b), implemented as a blade environment, is capable through its management module of determining in dependence upon metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node whether one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware and notifying the nodes having a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware if one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware. The metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node may include a checksum of the entire firmware. All the checksums of all the uplevel firmware which are identical should be the same. A downlevel node may compare such received checksums and identify a checksum that does not match the majority of the other checksums of uncorrupted firmware. The downlevel node may then notify the node sending the portion of the update with the checksum indicating that the firmware on that node is corrupted.

Exemplary methods, apparatuses, and products for propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment are described for example with referent to blade environments. For further explanation,FIG. 2sets forth a block diagram of an exemplary blade environment (102) useful in propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. In this example, the blade environment includes a two-bay chassis (104,106), a number of blade servers (124), one or more blade management modules (152), a media tray (122), fans (155) and a blade server system power supply (132).

The blade management module (152) is a small computer in its own right, including software and hardware components, one or more computer processors and computer memory, that provide system management functions for all components in the example blade environment (102) including the blade servers (124) and the media tray (122). The blade management module ofFIG. 1also makes available connections for user input devices such as mice or keyboards (181) that are not generally connected directly to the blade servers or to the blade environment chassis. The blade servers themselves (124), installed in cabinet bay (104) of the exemplary blade environment (102) in the example ofFIG. 1, are several computing devices implemented in blade form factor. The blade servers share access to the media tray (122). The blade servers (124) are connected to one another and to the blade management module (152) for data communications through a local area network (‘LAN’)(191). The LAN (191) is a small network installed within the chassis of the blade environment.

The media tray (122) houses non-volatile memory media generally. A media tray may typically include Compact Disc read-only media drives (CD-ROM), Digital Video Disc ROM drives (DVD-ROM), CD-RW drives, DVD-RW drives, floppy disk drives, and so on as will occur those of skill in the art.

Each of the blade servers (124) is cooled by one of the two fans (155) in the example ofFIG. 2. The depiction of two fans in the example ofFIG. 1is for explanation and not for limitation. In fact, blade environments useful in propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment may include any number of fans as will occur to those of skill in the art.

In the example ofFIG. 2, the blade management module (152) has installed upon it a firmware propagation module (138), a module of automated computing machinery capable of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. The firmware propagation module (138) ofFIG. 2includes computer program instructions for identifying, by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; broadcasting, by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware; receiving, from a plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; and determining, in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update; and updating, by the downlevel node, the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update. The firmware propagation module (138) ofFIG. 2also includes computer program instructions for broadcasting again, by the downlevel node, again an update request if the portions of the update received do not comprise the entire update.

The firmware propagation module (138) ofFIG. 2also includes computer program instructions for determining, by the downlevel node in dependence upon metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node whether one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware; and notifying, by the downlevel node, the nodes having a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware if one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware.

For further explanation,FIG. 3sets forth a diagram of a further example data processing system useful in propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. The example data processing system ofFIG. 3is similar to the example ofFIG. 2, including as it does a blade environment (102), blade servers (124) connected through an internal LAN (191) to a blade management module (152), fans (155), a fan adapter (171), a media tray (122) connected to the blade management module. In addition, however, by contrast withFIG. 2,FIG. 3also includes a functional block diagram showing more detail of the blade management module (152). The blade management module (152) ofFIG. 3includes at least one computer processor (156) or ‘CPU’ as well as random access memory (168) (RAM′) which is connected through a high speed memory bus (166) and bus adapter (158) to processor (156) via a front side bus (162) and to other components of the blade management module (152).

Stored in RAM in this example is a firmware propagation module (138), a module of automated computing machinery capable of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. The firmware propagation module (138) ofFIG. 3includes computer program instructions for identifying, by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; broadcasting, by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware; receiving, from a plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; and determining, in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update; and updating, by the downlevel node, the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update. The firmware propagation module (138) ofFIG. 3also includes computer program instructions for broadcasting again, by the downlevel node, again an update request if the portions of the update received do not comprise the entire update.

The firmware propagation module (138) ofFIG. 3also includes computer program instructions for determining, by the downlevel node in dependence upon metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node whether one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware; and notifying, by the downlevel node, the nodes having a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware if one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware.

The firmware propagation module (138) in the example ofFIG. 3is shown in RAM. This is for explanation and not for limitation. Alternatively, a firmware propagation module according to embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in hardware or using a combination of hardware and software.

Also stored in RAM (168) is an operating system (154). Operating systems useful according to embodiments of the present invention include UNIX™, Linux™, Microsoft Windows XP™, Microsoft Vista™, AIX™, IBM's i5/OS™, and others as will occur to those of skill in the art. The operating system (154) and the firmware propagation module in the example ofFIG. 3are shown in RAM (168), but many components of such software typically are stored in non-volatile memory also, such as, for example, on a disk drive or in firmware (136) on an EEPROM drive, here shown as flash memory (134).

The exemplary blade management module (152) ofFIG. 3includes one or more input/output (‘I/O’) adapters (167) coupled to the bus adapter (158) via an expansion bus (160). I/O adapters implement user-oriented input/output through, for example, software drivers and computer hardware for controlling output to display devices such as computer display screens, as well as user input from user input devices (181) such as keyboards and mice.

The exemplary blade management module (152) ofFIG. 3also includes a communications adapter (169) that couples the blade management module (152) internally within the blade environment (102) for data communications with blade servers (124) through a local area network (191) and externally to the data center management module (200). The local area network (191) may be implemented, for example, as an Internet Protocol (‘IP’) network or an Ethernet™ network, an I2C network, a System Management Bus (‘SMBus’), an Intelligent Platform Management Bus (‘IPMB’), for example, and in other ways as will occur to those of skill in the art.

Such a communications adapter (169) are electronic modules that implement the hardware level of data communications through which one computer sends data communications to another computer through a data communications network. Examples of communications adapters useful according to embodiments of the present invention include modems for wired dial-up communications, Ethernet (IEEE 802.3) adapters for wired data communications network communications, and 802.11 adapters for wireless data communications network communications.

The arrangement of the blade management module (152), the blade servers (124), and other devices making up the exemplary system illustrated inFIG. 3are for explanation, not for limitation. Data processing systems useful according to various embodiments of the present invention for propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention may include additional servers, routers, and other devices, not shown inFIG. 3, as will occur to those of skill in the art. Networks in such data processing systems may support many data communications protocols, including for example TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), IP (Internet Protocol), HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol), WAP (Wireless Access Protocol), HDTP (Handheld Device Transport Protocol), and others as will occur to those of skill in the art. Various embodiments of the present invention may be implemented on a variety of hardware platforms in addition to those illustrated inFIG. 3.

For further explanation,FIG. 4sets forth a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to the present invention. The method ofFIG. 4includes identifying (402), by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node. Identifying (402), by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node may be carried out by receiving a message broadcast from the node having firmware that is uplevel. Such a message may be received without provocation by the downlevel node. For example, an uplevel node may broadcast a message identifying the version of currently installed firmware on the node upon installation of the node in the peer-to-peer network or upon update of the firmware. Alternatively, each node on the peer-to-peer network may periodically broadcast a message identifying the version of currently installed firmware on that node.

Identifying (402), by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node may also be carried out by periodically broadcasting, by the downlevel node, a request for identification of firmware on other nodes in the network and receiving, in response to the broadcast, a plurality of identifications of firmware installed on a plurality of other nodes in the network. In such embodiments, each node upon its own motion may periodically determine whether it is downlevel with respect to other nodes.

The method ofFIG. 4also includes broadcasting (404), by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware. Broadcasting (404), by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware may be carried out by sending an update request to all the nodes on the peer-to-peer network. Broadcasting (404), by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware may include packetizing the update request and sending the packet with a predetermined broadcast address.

The method ofFIG. 4also includes receiving (406), from a plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node in response to the broadcast, a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node. The nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node may copy a portion of the firmware installed upon the node and send the copy of the portion of the firmware to the downlevel node. In some embodiments, the portion sent may vary from node to node according to a dynamic parameters such as other jobs currently executing on the node, network congestion, size of the firmware, and other factors as will occur to those of skill in the art. In other embodiments, the portion sent may be predetermined for a particular uplevel node, may be a randomly selected portion of a fixed size, a randomly selected portion of a random size, or any other portion of the firmware as will occur to those of skill in the art.

Metadata describing each portion of the update is information describing the portion. Such information may include the size of the portion, the functionality of the firmware included in the portion, a checksum of the portion, or any other metadata describing the portion of the update that will occur to those of skill in the art. Metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node is information describing the firmware. Such information may include the size of the firmware, a version identification of the firmware, a checksum of the firmware or any other metadata describing the firmware that will occur to those of skill in the art.

The method ofFIG. 4also includes determining (408), in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update. Determining (408) whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update may be carried out by comparing the received metadata describing each portion of the update received and the received metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node and identifying whether any portion of the firmware was not received from the uplevel nodes.

The method ofFIG. 4also includes updating (410), by the downlevel node, the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update. Updating, by the downlevel node, the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update may be carried out by installing the received portions of the update.

In some cases, in response to a broadcasted update request all of the portions of the update may not be received. The likelihood of this occurring increases as the number of downlevel nodes decreases and as the portions of the update transmitted decreases. The method ofFIG. 4therefore also includes broadcasting (404) again, by the downlevel node, an update request if the portions of the update received do not comprise the entire update. Broadcasting (404) again an update request may be carried out by sending an update request to all of the nodes of the peer-to-peer network that includes an identification of the portions of the update not received in response to the previous broadcast. Broadcasting (404) again an update request may also be carried out by sending the same update request previously broadcast to all of the nodes of the peer-to-peer network that includes an identification of the portions of the update not received in response to the previous broadcast.

As mentioned above, in response to a broadcasted update request, uplevel nodes send metadata describing the firmware currently installed on the uplevel node. For further explanation, therefore,FIG. 5sets forth a flow chart illustrating an additional exemplary method of propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention. The method ofFIG. 5is similar to the method ofFIG. 4in that the method ofFIG. 5includes identifying (402), by a downlevel node in the peer-to-peer network, that one or more nodes in the network have firmware that is uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; broadcasting (404), by the downlevel node, an update request requesting an update to the firmware; receiving (406), from a plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, a plurality of portions of the update, metadata describing each portion of the update received, and metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node; determining (408), in dependence upon the metadata describing each portion of the update received and the metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node, whether the portions of the update received comprise an entire update; and updating (410), by the downlevel node, the firmware if the portions of the update received comprise the entire update.

The method ofFIG. 5differs from the method ofFIG. 4in that the method ofFIG. 5also include determining (502), by the downlevel node in dependence upon metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node whether one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware and notifying (504) the nodes having a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware if one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware.

Determining (502), by the downlevel node in dependence upon metadata describing the firmware installed on each of the plurality of nodes having firmware uplevel with respect to the downlevel node whether one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware may be carried out by comparing all the checksums of each firmware image sent by each uplevel node and identifying one or more the checksums do not match other checksums. Typically, the received checksums will be identical for identical images of the firmware. If a checksum is received which does not match the other checksums received, a determination may be made that the firmware image producing the mismatched checksum is corrupted.

The method ofFIG. 5also includes notifying (504) the nodes having a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware if one of the nodes sending a portion of the update has a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware. Notifying (504) the nodes having a corrupted image of the uplevel firmware may be carried out by sending a message to the node informing the node of the corrupted firmware image.

Propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment according to embodiments of the present invention has been described largely in the context of data centers and blade server environments. This is for explanation and not for limitation. Propagating firmware updates in a peer-to-peer network environment may be carried out in any peer-to-peer network having nodes that support firmware and require firmware updates as will occur to those of skill in the art.