Stacked-device peripheral storage card

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016335220-A1
Application number	US-201615220740-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 27, 2016
Priority date	Apr 25, 2014
Publication date	Nov 17, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

Various computer peripheral cards, devices, systems, methods, and software are provided herein. In one example, a storage card insertable into a connector of a host system includes a plurality of M.2 device connectors in a stacked arrangement comprising a first horizontal row of one or more M.2 device connectors positioned vertically higher in the stacked arrangement than a second horizontal row of one or more M.2 device connectors, the plurality of M.2 device connectors each configured to mate with associated M.2 devices. The storage card also includes a Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) switch circuit configured to communicatively couple the plurality of M.2 device connectors and a connector of the storage card, wherein the PCIe switch circuit is configured to receive storage operations over the connector of the storage card and transfer the storage operations for delivery to ones of the plurality of M.2 device connectors over associated PCIe interfaces.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A storage card insertable into a connector of a host system, comprising:
a plurality of M.2 device connectors in a stacked arrangement comprising a first horizontal row of one or more M.2 device connectors positioned vertically higher in the stacked arrangement than a second horizontal row of one or more M.2 device connectors, the plurality of M.2 device connectors each configured to mate with associated M.2 devices; a Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) switch circuit configured to communicatively couple the plurality of M.2 device connectors and a connector of the storage card, wherein the PCIe switch circuit is configured to receive storage operations over the connector of the storage card and transfer the storage operations for delivery to ones of the plurality of M.2 device connectors over associated PCIe interfaces.

2 . The storage card of claim 1 , wherein the associated M.2 devices each comprise a solid state data storage drive comprising an associated PCIe interface and solid state storage media, and further comprising:
the solid state data storage drives configured to store and retrieve data responsive to the storage operations received from the PCIe switch circuit over the associated PCIe interfaces.

3 . The storage card of claim 1 , wherein the storage card comprises a half-height, half-length (HHHL) PCIe expansion card insertable into a PCIe socket comprising the connector of a host system via the connector of the storage card.

4 . The storage card of claim 3 , wherein the associated M.2 devices each comprise a solid state data storage drive comprising an associated PCIe interface and solid state storage media.

5 . The storage card of claim 4 , wherein the plurality of M.2 device connectors comprises four M.2 device connectors, with a first two of the four M.2 device connectors comprising the first horizontal row and a second two of the four M.2 device connectors comprising the second horizontal row, wherein the first two of the four M.2 device connectors have a height in a vertical axis greater than the second two of the four M.2 device connectors.

6 . The storage card of claim 5 , wherein the first two of the four M.2 device connectors and the second two of the four M.2 device connectors each couple to a same circuit board comprising the storage card.

7 . The storage card of claim 1 , comprising:
holdup circuitry configured to provide power to the associated M.2 devices plugged into the plurality of M.2 device connectors after input power is lost to the storage card.

8 . The storage card of claim 7 , comprising:
the holdup circuitry configured to detect removal of the storage card from the connector of the host system and commit in-flight data directed to ones of the associated M.2 devices plugged into the plurality of M.2 device connectors.

9 . The storage card of claim 1 , comprising:
at least one auxiliary connector configured to carry PCIe signaling associated with the PCIe switch circuit to couple the storage card to at least one further storage card over a PCIe interface.

10 . The storage card of claim 1 , comprising:
stacked end support members configured to structurally support ends of the associated M.2 devices opposite the plurality of M.2 device connectors.

11 . A peripheral storage card, comprising:
two or more M.2 connectors comprising a first connector rank having a shorter vertical height in a vertical axis than two or more M.2 connectors comprising a second connector rank, with each of the M.2 connectors of the first connector rank and the second connector rank configured to mate with solid state drive (SSD) devices having associated Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) interfaces; a PCIe switch circuit configured to receive storage operations from a host system over the edge connector of the peripheral storage card and transfer the storage operations for delivery to selected SSD devices mated with the M.2 connectors over the associated PCIe interfaces.

12 . The peripheral storage card of claim 11 , wherein the M.2 connectors each couple to a circuit board shared with the PCIe switch circuit and the edge connector.

13 . The peripheral storage card of claim 11 , comprising:
the SSD devices mated with associated ones of the M.2 connectors and configured to store and retrieve data responsive to the storage operations received from the PCIe switch circuit over the associated PCIe interfaces.

14 . The peripheral storage card of claim 11 , wherein the peripheral storage card comprises a half-height, half-length (HHHL) PCIe expansion card insertable into a PCIe socket of the host system via the edge connector of the peripheral storage card.

15 . The peripheral storage card of claim 11 , comprising:
holdup circuitry configured to provide power to the SSD devices mated with associated ones of the M.2 connectors after input power is lost to the peripheral storage card.

16 . The peripheral storage card of claim 15 , comprising:
the holdup circuitry configured to detect removal of the peripheral storage card from a connector of the host system and commit in-flight data directed to ones of the SSD devices mated with associated ones of the M.2 connectors.

17 . The peripheral storage card of claim 11 , comprising:
at least one auxiliary connector configured to carry PCIe signaling associated with the PCIe switch circuit to couple the peripheral storage card to at least one further peripheral storage card over a PCIe interface.

18 . The peripheral storage card of claim 11 , comprising:
stacked end support members configured to structurally support ends of the first connector rank and the second connector rank of the SSD devices when mated with associated ones of the M.2 connectors.

19 . A Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) storage card insertable into a connector of a host system, comprising:
four M.2 storage devices in a stacked arrangement comprising two upper M.2 storage devices positioned above two lower M.2 storage devices, each of the four M.2 storage devices comprising a PCIe interface and solid state storage media, and configured to store and retrieve data responsive to storage operations received over the associated PCIe interface; a PCIe switch circuit communicatively coupled to the PCIe interfaces of the four M.2 storage devices and configured to receive the storage operations issued by the host system over a PCIe connector of the PCIe storage card and transfer the storage operations for delivery to ones of the four M.2 storage devices over associated PCIe interfaces; and holdup circuitry configured to provide power to at least the four M.2 storage devices after input power is lost to the PCIe storage card.

20 . The PCIe storage card of claim 19 , wherein the PCIe storage card comprises a half-height, half-length (HHHL) PCIe expansion card insertable into a PCIe socket of the host system via the PCIe connector of the PCIe storage card.

Assignees

• Liqid Inc

Inventors

• Breakstone Jason
• Heyd Andrew Rudolph
• Long Christopher R
• Cannata James Scott

Classifications

• G06F1/185

  Mounting of expansion boards · CPC title

• G06F13/4068 Primary

  Electrical coupling · CPC title

• G06F13/4022 Primary

  using switching circuits, e.g. switching matrix, connection or expansion network (G06F13/4009 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G06F13/4282

  on a serial bus, e.g. I2C bus, SPI bus (on daisy chain buses G06F13/4247) · CPC title

• Y02D10/00

  Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management · CPC title