User space pci device emulation for peer processes

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2020233687-A1
Application number	US-201916251048-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jan 17, 2019
Priority date	Jan 17, 2019
Publication date	Jul 23, 2020
Grant date	—

Abstract

A system and method include receiving, at a host device, a request from a virtual machine to communicate with an emulated device. The host device establishes a socket connection between an emulator and the emulated device and communicates input-output messages via the socket connection from the virtual machine to the emulated device where the input-output messages use a virtual function input/output (VFIO) message protocol.

First claim

1 . A method comprising:
receiving, at a host device, a request to communicate with an emulated device; establishing, at the host device, an inter-process communication connection between an application in user space at the host device and the emulated device; and communicating an input-output message via the inter-process communication connection from the application to the emulated device, wherein the input-output message uses a message protocol.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the inter-process communication connection is a UNIX socket connection.

3 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the storage device is a non-volatile memory (NVMe) device.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the application receives the request to communicate with the emulated device from a virtual machine coupled to the application in the user space of the host device.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the application is an emulator.

6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the emulator and the emulated device are located in the user space of the host device.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the emulated device is a storage device or a network device.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the emulated device is a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) device.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the message protocol is a virtual function input/output message protocol.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the message protocol is a virtual function input/output-like message protocol.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the emulated device controls a portion of an external memory that is accessible to the application in the user space at the host device using the emulated device.

12 . A host device comprising:
a user space including a device emulator and an application, wherein the application requests communication with an emulated device associated with the user space and establishes an inter-process communication connection with the emulated device upon receiving a request via the device emulator; wherein the application and the emulated device communicate an input-output message via the inter-process communication connection; and wherein the input-output message uses a message protocol.

13 . The host device of claim 12 , wherein the inter-process communication connection is a UNIX socket connection.

14 . The host device of claim 12 , wherein the emulated device is a storage device or a network device.

15 . The host device of claim 12 , wherein the application receives the request to communicate with the emulated device from a virtual machine coupled to the application in the user space of the host device.

16 . The host device of claim 12 , wherein the application is an emulator.

17 . The host device of claim 16 , wherein the emulator and the emulated device are located in the user space of the host device.

18 . A non-transitory computer readable media with computer-executable instructions embodied thereon that, when executed by a processor of a virtual computing system, cause the virtual computing system to perform a process comprising:
receiving, at a host device, a request to communicate with an emulated device; establishing, at the host device, an inter-process communication connection between an application in user space at the host device and the emulated device; and communicating an input-output message via the inter-process communication connection from the application to the emulated device, wherein the input-output message uses a message protocol.

19 . The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 18 , wherein the application receives the request to communicate with the emulated device from a virtual machine coupled to the application in the user space of the host device.

20 . The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 18 , wherein the message protocol is a virtual function input/output message protocol or a virtual function input/output-like message protocol.

Assignees

• Nutanix Inc

Inventors

• Franciosi Felipe
• Davies Jonathan

Classifications

• G06F2009/45579

  I/O management, e.g. providing access to device drivers or storage · CPC title

• G06F9/4411

  Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers · CPC title

• G06F9/45558 Primary

  Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects · CPC title

• G06F13/4221 Primary

  being an input/output bus, e.g. ISA bus, EISA bus, PCI bus, SCSI bus · CPC title

• G06F2213/0024

  Peripheral component interconnect [PCI] · CPC title