Patent ID: 7194673

Claim:
A method for detecting an occurrence of an intermittent error in a data storage system, the method comprising: providing a first signal representing a status of communication signals received by an enclosure in the data storage system, the first signal being in one of a plurality of logical states, a first one of the logical states indicating that the status of the communication signals is invalid and a second one of the logical states indicating that the status of the communication signals is valid, a transition of the first signal from the first logical state to the second logical state within a polling interval being indicative of an intermittent error in the communication signals; asserting a second signal if the first signal is in the first logical state during the polling interval; holding the second signal at an asserted state if the first signal transitions from being in the first logical state to being in the second logical state during the polling interval; and determining at the end of the polling interval whether the second signal is in the asserted state and is thereby indicating that an intermittent error may have occurred in the communication signals.