Patent ID: 6865157

Claim:
A system resource providing system resource services to clients communicating with the system resource through a network including a plurality of client/server communication paths, comprising: a system resource sub-system for performing system resource operations, and a control/processing sub-system including a multiplicity of peer blade processors, each blade processor having a port connected to each client/server network communication path and each client being connected to correspond ports of each of the blade processors, each blade processor including a network mechanism supporting communications operations between the blade processor and the clients, including a communications routing table identifying the communication routing for each client, an inter-processor communications processor providing communications between the blade processor and the system resource sub-system and an inter-processor communications link between the blade processors, and a communications monitoring mechanism, including a network fault detector for exchanging beacon transmissions with another blade processor through the network communications paths connecting corresponding ports of the blade processors, a response generator responsive to the network fault detector upon failing to receive a beacon transmission from a failed port of an other blade processor for transmitting a redirection message to the clients redirecting the client communications to the failed port to the corresponding port of the blade processor, and a path manager responsive to operation of the response generator for modifying the communications routing table to correspond with the redirection message to route the client communications with the other processor blade through the inter-processor communications link.