CN102340517B - A server system with multiple motherboards - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a server system, comprising: a management board having a baseboard management controller; and a plurality of motherboards respectively coupled to the management board, each motherboard comprising: a central processing unit; a chipset; a connector; the complex programmable logic device is used for recording the state information of the mainboard where the complex programmable logic device is located; and a network module comprising: the first network controller is connected to the chipset and the first network port and connects the mainboard to the network through the first network port; a second network controller connected to a second network port; and a first switch for switching the first or second network controller to be connected to the connector. By adopting the server system, a plurality of mainboards share one baseboard management controller, each mainboard is provided with one complex programmable logic device to record the state information of the mainboard, and an independent baseboard management controller is not required to be arranged on each mainboard, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost.

Description

A server system with multiple motherboards

technical field

The invention relates to a baseboard management controller of a server, in particular to a network interface design of the baseboard management controller.

Background technique

Currently, in a server system with multiple mainboards, a Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) is usually provided on each mainboard. In this way, the server system can separately manage and monitor the corresponding mainboards through the respective baseboard management controllers on each mainboard, and multiple baseboard management controllers can coordinate and control the operation between each mainboard. At the same time, the remote control terminal is used to connect and communicate with the baseboard management controller through the network port to perform remote monitoring and management of the server system, including: real-time acquisition of working status, remote fan control, remote power on and off control, etc. In such a hardware architecture configuration, since each motherboard is provided with a baseboard management controller, the manufacturing cost of the server system will be significantly increased.

Therefore, how to design a more optimized control architecture in the existing server system and reduce the manufacturing cost of the system as much as possible is a major issue faced by relevant technical personnel.

Contents of the invention

The present invention provides a new type of server system aiming at the aforementioned defects caused by the architecture design of the server system with multiple motherboards in the prior art.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a server system is provided, and the server system includes at least:

a management board having a baseboard management controller; and

A plurality of main boards are respectively coupled to the management board, and each main board includes:

CPU;

a chipset connected to the central processing unit;

a connector connected to the management board;

A complex programmable logic device, connected to the chipset and the connector, the complex programmable logic device is used to record the state information of the motherboard where it is located, and communicate with the baseboard management controller through the connector to communicate; and

Network modules, including:

A first network controller, connected to the chipset and a first network port, the first network port is suitable for connecting to a network or a remote control terminal, the first network controller passes through the first network port connecting said motherboard where it is located to the network;

a second network controller connected to a second network port adapted to be connected to the remote control terminal; and

The first switch is connected to the first network controller and the second network controller, and switches the connection of the first network controller or the second network controller to the connector, thereby switching the remote The control end communicates with the baseboard management controller through the first network controller or the second network controller.

Wherein, when the first switch is switched to the first network controller, the remote control terminal communicates with the baseboard management controller through the first network controller on the motherboard; when the second When a switch is switched to the second network controller, the remote control terminal communicates with the baseboard management controller through the second network controller on the motherboard.

Wherein, the management board further includes a second switching switch, which is connected to the baseboard management controller and the multiple connectors of the multiple main boards, and switches any one of the multiple main boards communicate with the baseboard management controller.

Wherein, the plurality of mainboards include a first mainboard and at least one second mainboard, the remote control terminal is coupled to the network module of the first mainboard, and the remote control terminal is connected to a baseboard management controller The communication is carried out through the network module and the connector of the first motherboard. According to an embodiment, when the baseboard management controller receives an instruction from the remote control terminal to acquire the working state information of the first mainboard, it obtains the working status information of the first mainboard from the complex programmable logic device of the first mainboard. The state information is transmitted to the remote control terminal through the connector of the first motherboard and the network module. According to another embodiment, when the baseboard management controller receives an instruction from the remote control terminal to obtain the working state information of the second motherboard, it obtains the information from the complex programmable logic device of the second motherboard. The working status information of the second motherboard is transmitted to the remote control terminal through the connector and the network module of the first motherboard.

Wherein, the baseboard management controller is connected to the complex programmable logic devices through the connectors, acquires the working status information of the motherboards, and monitors and manages the working status of the server system accordingly.

Wherein, the first network port includes a first sub-network port and a second sub-network port, when the first sub-network port is dedicated to connecting to the network, when the second sub-network port is simultaneously connected to the When connecting to the network, the first network controller controls the first sub-network port and the second sub-network port to be mutually redundant, and is used to connect the host board where it is located to the network. According to an embodiment, when the second sub-network port is connected to the remote control terminal, when the first network controller receives data from the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port, first judging whether the received data comes from the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port, and time-sharingly transmitting the data to the chipset or the baseboard management controller. According to another embodiment, when the second sub-network port is connected to the remote control terminal, when the first network controller receives data from the chipset or baseboard management controller, it first determines that the The data comes from the chipset or the baseboard management controller, and the data is time-divisionally transmitted to the network or the remote control terminal through the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port.

Wherein, the chipset includes a south bridge and a north bridge, the first network controller is connected to the north bridge, and the complex programmable logic device is connected to the south bridge.

Wherein, the remote control terminal communicates with the baseboard management controller through the network module of any one of the motherboards.

Using the server system with multiple main boards in the present invention, a plurality of main boards share a baseboard management controller, and each main board is provided with a complex programmable logic device to record the status information of the main board, and it is not necessary to An independent baseboard management controller is set on the motherboard, which reduces the manufacturing cost. In addition, two network controllers are arranged in the network module of each main board, and one of the network controllers is dedicated to the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller, so that the present invention has multiple main boards The server system has multiple network controllers dedicated to communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller, so that users can flexibly select any network control module on the motherboard to establish a connection between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller. communication. In addition, another network controller on each motherboard can be used not only for the network communication of the motherboard, but also for the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller, and the switches in each motherboard are used for The two network controllers are selected so that each motherboard has two different ways to establish the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller. The flexibility and reliability of the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller are guaranteed from different levels.

Description of drawings

Readers will have a clearer understanding of various aspects of the present invention after reading the detailed description of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. in,

FIG. 1 shows a schematic structural block diagram of a server system with multiple motherboards according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the principle of reading the working status information of each motherboard by using the server system in FIG. 1 .

Detailed ways

The specific implementation manners of the present invention will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic structural block diagram of a server system with multiple motherboards according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 , the server system includes multiple main boards 10 and management boards 20 . Those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that the configuration of each mainboard is substantially the same, so only any one mainboard 10 among the plurality of mainboards is marked in the figure for detailed description.

The management board 20 has a baseboard management controller 210, which is used to manage and monitor the working status of the mainboard 10, and at the same time manage and monitor the working status of the entire server system. Preferably, the baseboard management controller 210 monitors and manages the working state of the mainboard 10, including the working temperature and working voltage of each part, and controls and adjusts the operation of the fan according to the working temperature of each part of the mainboard 10, that is, the baseboard management The controller 210 generates management data, which includes relevant data information such as temperature, voltage, fan speed, etc., and the baseboard management controller 210 is always in the working state no matter the motherboard 10 is in the power-on state, power-off state or standby state.

The motherboard 10 is connected to the management board 20 , specifically, the motherboard 10 is coupled to the BMC 210 of the management board 20 . Each motherboard 10 includes a CPU 110 , a chipset 120 , a connector 140 , a complex programmable logic device 160 and a network module. Wherein, the complex programmable logic device 160 is connected to the chipset 120 and the connector 140 , and the complex programmable logic device 160 is used to record the status information of the motherboard 10 where it is located, and communicate with the BMC 210 through the connector 140 . Preferably, the chipset 120 is connected to the central processing unit 110 , the chipset 120 includes a south bridge and a north bridge, and the north bridge is connected to the network module, and the south bridge is connected to the complex programmable logic device 160 .

In the motherboard 10 of the present invention, the network module is used to connect the motherboard 10 to a network, and to connect the baseboard management controller 210 to a remote control terminal (not shown in the figure). The network module includes a switch 170, a first network controller 180 and a second network controller 190, wherein the first network controller 180 is specially used to connect the mainboard 10 to the network, and can also connect the baseboard management controller 210 to the remote control terminal; the second network controller 190 is dedicated to connecting the baseboard management controller 210 to the remote control terminal. The switch 170 is connected to the first network controller 180 and the second network controller 190, and switches the first network controller 180 or the second network controller to be connected to the connector 140, thereby switching the remote control end through the first network controller 180 or the second network controller 190 communicates with the baseboard management controller 210 . The first network controller 180 is connected to the chipset 120 and the first network port 1801, the first network port 1801 is suitable for connecting to a network or a remote control terminal, and the first network controller 180 connects to the first network port 1801 The host board 10 is connected to the network. The second network controller 190 is connected to the second network port 1901, and the second network port 1901 is adapted to be connected to the above-mentioned remote control terminal. For example, the second network controller 190 can connect the baseboard management controller 210 of the management board 20 to the remote control terminal through the second network port 1901 .

Those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that, in an embodiment of the present invention, when the switch 170 is switched to the first network controller 180, the remote control terminal can communicate with the first network controller 180 on the motherboard 10 and the substrate The management controller 210 communicates; when the switch 170 is switched to the second network controller 190 , the remote control terminal can communicate with the baseboard management controller 210 through the second network controller 190 on the motherboard 10 . It can be seen that, through the above-mentioned network module in the server system of the present invention, a variety of options are provided to the user, and the user can connect the remote control terminal to the first network port 1801 or to the second network port 1901. When there is a problem with one of the first network port 1801 and the second network port 1901, the remote control terminal can still be connected to another network port to communicate with the baseboard management controller 210 for real-time management and monitoring of the server system and the motherboard 10 working status.

According to an embodiment, the first network port 1801 shown in FIG. 1 further includes two sub-network ports, namely a first sub-network port and a second sub-network port, the first sub-network port is dedicated to connecting the motherboard 10 to the network , and the second sub-network port can be connected to the network or remote control terminal according to the user's choice. Specifically, when the second sub-network port is connected to the network at the same time, the first network controller 180 controls the first sub-network port and the second sub-network port to be mutually redundant, so as to connect the mainboard 10 where it is located to the network. the network. At this time, the remote control terminal needs to be connected to the second network port 1901, and the switch 170 needs to be switched to connect to the second network controller 190. At this time, the remote control terminal communicates with the baseboard management controller 210 through the second network controller 190. communication. And when the second sub-network port is connected to the remote control terminal, and the switch 170 is switched to be connected with the first network controller 180, the first network controller 180 receives from the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port When receiving data, it first judges whether the received data is from the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port, and transmits the data to the chipset 120 or the baseboard management controller 210 in time division, that is, the The data from the second sub-network port is sent to the chipset 120 , and the data from the second sub-network port is sent to the BMC 210 . In another embodiment of the present invention, when the second sub-network port is connected to the remote control terminal, and the switch 170 is switched to connect with the first network controller 180, the first network controller 180 receives the or baseboard management controller 210, first judge whether the received data is from chipset 120 or baseboard management controller 210, and transmit the data to the network or network through the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port The remote control terminal transmits data from the chipset 120 to the first sub-network port, and transmits data from the BMC 210 to the second sub-network port. Therefore, the remote control terminal can communicate with the baseboard management controller 210 through the network module of any one of the motherboards 10 of the server system.

According to another embodiment, the management board 20 further includes another switch (not shown in the figure), the switch of the management board 20 is connected to the baseboard management controller 210 and the respective connector 140 of each motherboard 10, and switches Any one of the motherboards 10 in the plurality of motherboards communicates with the BMC 210 . Preferably, the switch on the management board 20 is connected to each connector 140 through a bus, and then performs data interaction with each motherboard 10 in the plurality of motherboards.

Referring again to FIG. 1 , the baseboard management controller 210 of the management board 20 can also receive the USB data signal from the motherboard 10 through the connector 140 of the motherboard 10 . In addition, the connector 140 is also used to transmit audio signals and video signals between the BMC 210 and the plurality of motherboards 10 . At the same time, the baseboard management controller 210 is also connected to each complex programmable logic device 160 through each connector 140, so as to obtain the working status information of each motherboard 10, and monitor and manage the working status of the server system accordingly.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the principle of reading the working status information of each motherboard by using the server system architecture in FIG. 1 . Referring to FIG. 2 , as a schematic example, the server system includes at least a management board 20 , main boards 40 and 50 and a network port 4801 . Wherein, the management board 20 includes a baseboard management controller 210 and a switch 220 . For example, both motherboards 40 and 50 of FIG. 2 may correspond to motherboard 10 of FIG. 1 . The motherboard 40 includes a connector 440 , a complex programmable logic device 460 and a first network controller 480 , and the motherboard 50 includes a connector 540 , a complex programmable logic device 560 and a first network controller 580 . In addition, the network port 4801 includes a first sub-network port 4803 and a second sub-network port 4805 that are redundant with each other. Those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that although FIG. 2 shows that the first network controllers 480 and 580 are electrically connected to the connectors 440 and 540 respectively, the present invention is not limited thereto. A switch of the board, such as the switch 170 of FIG. 1 , can also electrically connect the respective second network controllers of the motherboards 40 and 50 to the connectors 440 and 540 .

In more detail, when the remote control terminal is coupled to the first network controller 480 (or the second network controller) of the motherboard 40 through the first sub-network port 4803 or the second sub-network port 4805, the remote control terminal It communicates with the baseboard management controller 210 via the network module of the motherboard 40 and the connector 440 . According to one embodiment, when the baseboard management controller 210 receives an instruction from the remote control terminal to obtain the working state information of the mainboard 40, it obtains the working state information of the mainboard 40 from the complex programmable logic device 460 of the mainboard 40, and passes The connector 440 of the motherboard 40 and the network module are transmitted to the remote control terminal. According to another embodiment, when the baseboard management controller 210 receives an instruction from the remote control terminal to obtain the working status information of the main board 50, it obtains the working status information of the main board 50 from the complex programmable logic device 560 of the main board 50, and passes The connector 440 of the motherboard 40 and the network module are transmitted to the remote control terminal.

To sum up, using the server system with multiple motherboards in the present invention, multiple motherboards share a baseboard management controller, and each motherboard is provided with a complex programmable logic device to record the status information of the motherboard Therefore, it is not necessary to set up an independent baseboard management controller on each motherboard, which reduces the manufacturing cost. In addition, two network controllers are arranged in the network module of each main board, and one of the network controllers is dedicated to the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller, so that the present invention has multiple main boards The server system has multiple network controllers dedicated to communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller, so that users can flexibly select any network control module on the motherboard to establish a connection between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller. communication. In addition, another network controller on each motherboard can be used not only for the network communication of the motherboard, but also for the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller, and the switches in each motherboard are used for The two network controllers are selected so that each motherboard has two different ways to establish the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller. The flexibility and reliability of the communication between the remote control terminal and the baseboard management controller are guaranteed from different levels.

Hereinbefore, specific embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, those skilled in the art can understand that without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, various changes and substitutions can be made to the specific embodiments of the present invention. These changes and substitutions all fall within the scope defined by the claims of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. A server system, characterized in that the server system at least includes: a management board having a baseboard management controller; and A plurality of motherboards are respectively coupled to the management board, and each motherboard includes a central processing unit, a chipset, a connector, a complex programmable logic device, and a network module; wherein the chipset is connected to the central Processor; the connector is connected to the management board; the complex programmable logic device is connected to the chipset and the connector, and the complex programmable logic device is used to record the state of the motherboard where it is located information, and communicate with the baseboard management controller through the connector; and the network module also includes a first network controller, a second network controller, and a first switch; wherein the first network The controller is connected to the chipset and the first network port, the first network port is suitable for connecting to a network or a remote control terminal, and the first network controller connects all the The motherboard is connected to the network; the second network controller is connected to a second network port, and the second network port is suitable for being connected to the remote control terminal; and the first switch is connected to the The first network controller and the second network controller, and switch the connection of the first network controller or the second network controller to the connector, thereby switching the remote control terminal through the first network control or the second network controller communicates with the baseboard management controller. 2. The server system according to claim 1, wherein when the first switch is switched to the first network controller, the remote control terminal is controlled by the first network on the motherboard The controller communicates with the baseboard management controller; when the first switch is switched to the second network controller, the remote control terminal communicates with the second network controller on the motherboard Baseboard management controller communication. 3. The server system according to claim 1, wherein the management board further comprises a second switch connected to the baseboard management controller and the plurality of connectors of the plurality of motherboards, And switching any one of the multiple motherboards to communicate with the baseboard management controller. 4. The server system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of mainboards comprise a first mainboard and at least one second mainboard, and the remote control terminal is coupled to the first mainboard The network module of the said remote control terminal communicates with the baseboard management controller via the network module and the connector of the first motherboard. 5. The server system according to claim 4, wherein when the baseboard management controller receives an instruction from the remote control terminal to acquire the working status information of the first motherboard, the complex The programmable logic device obtains the working state information of the first motherboard, and transmits the information to the remote control terminal through the connector and the network module of the first motherboard; when the baseboard management controller receives the When the instruction of the working status information of the second motherboard is obtained, the working status information of the second motherboard is obtained from the complex programmable logic device of the second motherboard, and the connector and the network of the first motherboard are used to obtain the working status information of the second motherboard. The module is sent to the remote control terminal. 6. The server system according to claim 1, wherein the baseboard management controller is connected to the complex programmable logic devices through the connectors to obtain the working status information of the motherboards, And monitor and manage the working status of the server system accordingly. 7. The server system according to claim 1, wherein the first network port comprises a first sub-network port and a second sub-network port, and when the first sub-network port is dedicated to connecting to the network , when the second sub-network port is connected to the network at the same time, the first network controller controls the first sub-network port and the second sub-network port to be mutually redundant, and is used to connect the host board Connect to said network. 8. The server system according to claim 7, wherein when the second sub-network port is connected to the remote control terminal, the first network controller receives the or the data of the second sub-network port, first judge whether the received data comes from the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port, and transmit the data to the chipset or the substrate in time division a management controller; or, when the second sub-network port is connected to the remote control terminal, when the first network controller receives data from the chipset or baseboard management controller, it first judges that the The data comes from the chipset or the baseboard management controller, and the data is time-divisionally transmitted to the network or the remote control terminal through the first sub-network port or the second sub-network port. 9. The server system according to claim 1, wherein the chipset includes a south bridge and a north bridge, the first network controller is connected to the north bridge, and the complex programmable logic device is connected to the south bridge. 10. The server system according to claim 1, wherein the remote control terminal communicates with the baseboard management controller through the network module of any one of the motherboards.

Images