Method, apparatus and system for seamlessly sharing devices amongst virtual machines
US7454756B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 5, 2004 |
| Grant date | Nov 18, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 23, 2026 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F2009/45579
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method, apparatus and system are described for seamlessly sharing I/O devices amongst multiple virtual machines (“VMs”) on a host computer. Specifically, according to one embodiment of the invention, the virtual machine manager (“VMM”) on the host cycles access to the I/O devices amongst the VMs according to a round robin or other such allocation scheme. In order to provide direct access to the devices, the VMM may save the device state pertaining to the currently active VM, store the state in a memory region allocated to the currently active VM, retrieve a device state for a new VM from its memory region and restore the device using the retrieved device state, thus providing the illusion that each VM has direct, full-speed, exclusive access to the I/O device.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.