Abstract: In general, in one aspect, the invention relates to a method for deploying an operating system on a client. The method includes downloading a boot configuration file, downloading a boot kernel and boot loader specified in the boot configuration file, booting the boot kernel on the client, executing the boot loader, by the kernel, to download of a ramdisk image, and mounting the ramdisk image in memory on the client, where the ramdisk image comprises the operating system.

Abstract: A single management facility in a virtualized system that facilitates the presentation of either a virtual element view or system view to a network management user depending upon the user's access rights is disclosed. The view presented to the user is modified based on the scope and type of access rights, which are found in a profile object, that is stored in an environmental object, established during the user login. Each virtualized element in the system includes management information that is associated with the virtual element via a virtual identifier. The management information indicates the level of the user access rights necessary to view the associated virtual element. Requests by a user to access management information associated with a virtual element are analyzed to determine if the access rights specified in the user profile enable the user to access the information associated with the virtual element.

Abstract: The invention is applied in a software management system. It comprises an MBean server (2100) which enables the management of Java object e.g. Dynamic MBean by introspecting the Dynamic MBean and providing the result of the introspection in an MbeanInfo object (3108). The invention permits to manage non-MBean object (3106) via the MBean server (2100) and a new object called Automanager (3105). The automanager (3105) inherits the specificities of a Dynamic MBean by implementing a Dynamic MBean interface (3107). Moreover, the Automanager (3105) receives the non-MBean object (3106) as parameter in its constructor. Thus, all management possibilities of a Dynamic MBean are retrieved to render the non-MBean object manageable.

Abstract: A computer server includes a printed circuit board and a fan. The printed circuit board includes electronic components and a handling device mounted thereon. The fan is arranged to blow air across the electronic components mounted on the printed circuit board. The handling device is disposed in a path of airflow of the fan. The handling device comprises an airflow opening.

Abstract: The air flow optimization apparatus includes a first member configured to attach to openings of an air vent on a server enclosure, such that the attachment of the first member to the air vent prevents air leakage. Further, the air flow optimization apparatus includes a second member configured to mount on top of a fan module connector within the server enclosure. A method for installing the air flow optimization apparatus includes inserting the first member into the openings of the air vent in a server enclosure, such that the first member includes attaching fins configured to be inserted into outer ends of the openings of the air vent. Further, the method for installing the air flow optimization apparatus also includes mounting the second member on top of a fan module connector, such that the second member includes engaging portions configured to engage with the fan module connector.

Abstract: A device, system, and method are directed towards upgrading software on a cluster. A cluster of nodes is divided into two partitions. The first partition is brought offline, and the software on each of its nodes is updated. The nodes are partially initialized and form an offline cluster, leaving uninitialized subsystems that share external resources or external communication. The second partition is brought offline. The nodes of the first partition complete their initialization and the first partition cluster is brought online. The nodes of the second partition are updated and join the first partition cluster. Quorum mechanisms are adjusted to allow each partition to operate as a cluster. The system thereby updates each node of the cluster with minimal time offline and without requiring software of different versions to intercommunicate.

Abstract: A fan module, including a housing for receiving a fan, a connector configured to mate with a connector housing, and a vibration pad configured to isolate vibrations of the fan from transferring through the fan module, wherein the fan module is configured to receive an alignment attachment standoff.

Abstract: Techniques for implementing virtual machine instructions suitable for execution in virtual machines are disclosed. The inventive virtual machine instructions can effectively represent the complete set of operations performed by the conventional Java Bytecode instruction set. Moreover, the operations performed by conventional instructions can be performed by relatively fewer inventive virtual machine instructions. Thus, a more elegant, yet robust, virtual machine instruction set can be implemented. This, in turn, allows implementation of relatively simpler interpreters as well as allowing alternative uses of the limited 256 (28) Bytecode representation (e.g., a macro representing a set of commands). As a result, the performance of virtual machines, especially, those operating in systems with limited resources, can be improved by using the inventive virtual machine instructions.

Abstract: A system that detects a change point in a time series of telemetry signals from a computer system. During operation, the system receives the time series of telemetry signals from the computer system. For each element in the time series, the system (1) inserts the element into a data structure which keeps track of the number of elements in the data structure that have a value greater than and that have a value less than the value of the inserted element; and (2) uses the information stored in the data structure to add a contribution by the inserted element to a trend statistic for the time series. The system then uses the trend statistic to select a hypothesis for the trend in the time series.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates finding terminal classes in a collection of programming language classes, wherein a terminal class is a class that is not extended by any other class. The system operates by receiving a collection of classes. The system then adds the classes to a map of the collection of classes, wherein keys to each class in the map include each class' superclass and the interfaces each class directly implements. Next, the system analyzes a given class in the map of the collection of classes to determine if the given class extends any other class in the collection of classes. If so, the system removes this extended class from the collection of classes. Finally, the system repeats the steps of analyzing classes and removing extended classes until all remaining classes in the collection of classes are terminal classes.

Abstract: A configurable firewall for computing systems is disclosed. The configurable firewall provides a firewall control block that can be used as a mechanism to implement and control access privileges between various components of the computing environment. As such, the firewall control block can be used to determine whether one component (e.g., applet) can access another component in the computing environment. This allows a flexible environment where firewall boundaries can be configured in such a way that each applet can allow access to a desired set of other applets. In addition, the control block can be implemented using a variety of techniques that may be suitable for different system requirements (e.g., processing speed, memory). As such, the configurable firewall is useful for implementing security for various computing systems, especially those that operate with relatively limited processing power and/or provide highly specialized functionality (e.g., smart cards).

Abstract: A cluster file system including a file server primary configured to satisfy a plurality of file operation requests, a file server secondary configured to be promoted to the file server primary in the event of a failure of a node on which the file server primary is located, a plurality of file agents configured to process the plurality of file operation requests on the node, and a reference counting subsystem configured to track an object reference of the plurality of file agents.

Abstract: A device is described, including a first diffusion region having a first terminal, a second diffusion region having a second terminal, and a channel region disposed between the first diffusion region and the second diffusion region. Further, the first terminal and the second terminal are offset to enable a non-Manhattan current flow. A system is also described, including the previously described device and a second transistor. The pathway for the flow of the majority of the current carriers in the device defines a first direction. The second transistor also has at least two terminals, and a pathway for a majority of current carriers between the two terminals defines a second direction. The angle between the first direction and the second direction is nonzero and acute.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that estimates residual life of a software system under a software-based failure mechanism. During operation, the system first constructs a prognostic database for the software-based failure mechanism based on a plurality of software systems of the same type as the software system, wherein the prognostic database includes a set of prognostic readings associated with the software-based failure mechanism from the plurality of software systems. Note that a given prognostic reading in the prognostic database comprises: (1) a symptom index, which is a function of one or more variables associated with the software-based failure mechanism; and (2) a residual life, which is the remaining time to a failure under the software-based failure mechanism. Next, the system obtains a symptom index value from the software system which is being monitored.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that enhances throughput and fault-tolerance in a parallel-processing system. During operation, the system first receives a task. Next, the system partitions N computing nodes into M set-aside nodes and N-M primary computing nodes, wherein M?1. The system then processes the task in parallel across the N-M primary computing nodes. While doing so, the system proactively monitors the health of each of the N-M primary computing nodes. If the system detects a node in the N-M primary computing nodes to be at risk of failure, the system copies the portion of the task associated with the at-risk node to a subset of the M set-aside nodes. The system then processes the portion of the task in parallel across the subset of the M set-aside nodes while the N-M primary computing nodes continue executing.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for improved performance for reloading translation look-aside buffers in multithreading, multi-core processors. TSB prediction is accomplished by hashing a plurality of data parameters and generating an index that is provided as an input to a predictor array to predict the TSB page size. In one embodiment of the invention, the predictor array comprises two-bit saturating up-down counters that are used to enhance the accuracy of the TSB prediction. The saturating up-down counters are configured to avoid making rapid changes in the TSB prediction upon detection of an error. Multiple misses occur before the prediction output is changed. The page size specified by the predictor index is searched first. Using the technique described herein, errors are minimized because the counter leads to the correct result at least half the time.

Abstract: Errors in a shift result can be detected with a residue-based mechanism, instead of with duplication of an entire shifter. The commutative property of residue computation over a bit string allows the residue of a value to be independent of the actual bit positions when the divisor is a Merrill number. Without a duplicated shifter, an operand that is the subject of a shift operation is formatted to become a multiple of k, where divisor=2k?1, and the divisor is used for computation of residues. The shift operation is translated to a single position shift or a zero position shift. The translated shift is applied to the formatted operand to generate a shift check value. Despite different values, the residues of the shift result and the shift check value will be the same as long as bit groups are consistent between the two. An error(s) is detected by comparing the residue of the shift check value with the residue of the shift result.

Abstract: The storage of data line in one or more L1 caches and/or a shared L2 cache of a chip multiprocessor is dynamically optimized based on the sharing of the data line. In one embodiment, an enhanced L2 cache directory entry associated with the data line is generated in an L2 cache directory of the shared L2 cache. The enhanced L2 cache directory entry includes a cache mask indicating a storage state of the data line in the one or more L1 caches and the shared L2 cache. In some embodiments, where the data line is stored in the shared L2 cache only, a portion of the cache mask indicates a storage history of the data line in the one or more L2 caches.

Abstract: A mechanism has been developed for transforming different test suites, written for different test harnesses, into a common XML-type format that can be read by one test harness. Thus differences in the structure of the test suites is transparent to the test harness. To implement this mechanism, a component has been developed that parses XML descriptors and provides an API to the test harness.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that selectively executes different versions of executable code for the same source code. During operation, the system first receives an executable code module which includes two or more versions of executable code for the same source code, wherein the two or more versions of the executable code are optimized in different ways. Next, the system executes the executable code module by first evaluating a test condition, and subsequently executing a specific version of the executable code based on the outcome of the evaluation, so that the execution is optimized for the test condition.