초록 ▼

Management of the processing of relatively large data objects in a communications stack having multiple layers improves the performance in a communications system in preparing relatively large data objects for transmission across a communications network. This reduces or eliminates data movement and

Management of the processing of relatively large data objects in a communications stack having multiple layers improves the performance in a communications system in preparing relatively large data objects for transmission across a communications network. This reduces or eliminates data movement and copying during segmentation of the relatively large data objects into relatively small data objects, and appendage of headers to the relatively small data object segments during processing in the communications stack. A shared storage manager creates and controls multiple tokens representing multiple images of portions of the relatively large data objects to enable separate scheduling of the multiple images from the same storage unit or buffer to be passed from one layer in a communications stack to the next lower layer in the communications stack. The large data object is segmented into a plurality of relatively small data object segments at one or more of the layers in the communications stack. When dictated by the communications stack, header segments are also created for each relatively small data object segment. Each header segment contains specific information for the relatively small data object segment to which the header corresponds. A separate buffer list is generated by the communications stack for each relatively small data object segment and for each corresponding header segment.

대표청구항 ▼

[ That which we claim:] [1.] A method for managing processing of relatively large data objects in a communications stack having multiple layers, said communications stack generally requiring segmentation of the relatively large data objects as the large data objects proceed through the layers of sai

[ That which we claim:] [1.] A method for managing processing of relatively large data objects in a communications stack having multiple layers, said communications stack generally requiring segmentation of the relatively large data objects as the large data objects proceed through the layers of said communications stack and appendage of headers containing protocol specific information to each segment of data, said method comprising the steps of:receiving a relatively large data object from an application for processing in said communications stack;segmenting said relatively large data object into a plurality of relatively small data objects without physically moving the relatively large data object and without creating a copy of the large data object;generating a header containing protocol specific information for each segment of relatively small data objects such that each header is uniquely associated with one segment of small data objects, without physically moving the small data object, without creating a copy of the large data object, and without creating a copy of the associated small data object; anddiscontiguously passing said plurality of relatively small data objects and said plurality of associated headers from one layer in said communications stack to a second layer in said communications stack, whereby each of said plurality of small data objects is passed to said second layer in said communications stack discontiguously from its associated header and without physically moving any of the small data objects and its associated header and without creating a copy of any of the small data objects and its associated header;whereby said headers are added at different layers in the communications stack without physically moving any of the large data objects, the small data objects and the associated headers and without creating a copy of any of the large data objects, small data objects and associated headers.