초록 ▼

In a computer system (FIG. 1), targets (13) comprising peripheral devices (18) and target controllers (17) are connected to the host system by means of a device bus (12), illustratively the standard Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) bus. The device bus is connected to the host computer\s centra

In a computer system (FIG. 1), targets (13) comprising peripheral devices (18) and target controllers (17) are connected to the host system by means of a device bus (12), illustratively the standard Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) bus. The device bus is connected to the host computer\s central control (9) by means of a host adapter (10) and bus (11). The host adapter is controlled from the central control by a host adapter driver (23), while the targets are controlled by target drivers (22). Host adapter driver 23 provides to target drivers a standardized interface (24) for communicating with the targets through the host adapter driver, which interface is optimized to support a simple yet flexible target driver design, and which makes target drivers independent of differences in structure and operation of host computers and hence portable between computers having the same device buses.

대표청구항 ▼

A method of performing a peripheral device job in a system defining any one of a plurality of different operating environments, the system including any one of a plurality of peripheral devices, a driver for controlling the one peripheral device by issuing control communications to the one periphera

A method of performing a peripheral device job in a system defining any one of a plurality of different operating environments, the system including any one of a plurality of peripheral devices, a driver for controlling the one peripheral device by issuing control communications to the one peripheral device, and any one of a plurality of different arrangements each for interfacing the driver to any one of the peripheral devices by conveying the control communications between the driver and the one device either through a different operating environment or through the same operating environment in a different manner, comprising the steps of: the driver issuing identical function calls in any one of a plurality of systems to any one of the plurality of arrangements for any one of the plurality of devices and obtaining in response identical services in any one of the systems from any one of the arrangements irrespective of the manner or the operating environment in which the one arrangement provides the services, thereby making the driver portable between the systems of the plurality of systems, the steps of issuing and obtaining including the steps of the driver issuing a first system-independent, interfacing arrangement-independent, and device-independent call to the interfacing arrangement; in response to receipt of the first call, the interfacing arrangement allocating a data structure to the driver; in response to the allocation, the driver storing in the data structure first information defining a peripheral device job and second information specifying a call to be made upon completion of execution of the job, the first and the second information and manner of storage thereof in the data structure being identical irrespective of either which one of the plurality of interfacing arrangements or which one of the plurality of operating environments is the included arrangement or defined environment; the driver issuing a second system-independent, interfacing arrangement-independent, and device-independent call to the interfacing arrangement; in response to receipt of the second call, the interfacing arrangement executing, in cooperation with the peripheral device, the job defined by the first information; upon completion of execution of the job, the interfacing arrangement issuing to the driver the call specified by the second information; following the receipt of the call from the interfacing arrangement, the driver issuing a third system-independent, interfacing arrangement-independent, and device-independent call to the interfacing arrangement; and in response to receipt of the third call, the interfacing arrangement deallocating the data structure from the driver.