DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Claims 1-5 are currently pending.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
3. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
4. The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
5. Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Publication No. 2019/0075158 A1 (hereinafter “Sun”), in view of U.S. Patent No. 12,549,512 A1 (hereinafter “Bezen”), and alternatively in further view of U.S. Publication No. 2013/0117766 A1 (hereinafter “Bax”).
Regarding claim 1: Sun teaches a multi-node server network system, comprising: a chassis manager, managing a plurality of server nodes (see, e.g., figure 1; the server system 200 includes chassis management module(s) and servers), wherein the chassis manager is configured to:
assign a plurality of network addresses to the plurality of server nodes respectively; set up a plurality of port numbers respectively for the plurality of server nodes; and forward the first data packet to a first server node corresponding to the first network address among the plurality of server nodes (see, e.g., [0016]-[0019]; the servers are addressed and implement ports for receiving packets).
Sun does not explicitly state the features of: utilizing virtual network addresses, setting up the ports based on a specific network address, and mapping (via a mapping table) of the virtual network addresses to the ports. Therefore, Sun doesn’t explicitly state “establish a mapping table between the plurality of virtual network addresses and the plurality of port numbers; in response to receiving a first data packet corresponding to a first port number among the plurality of port numbers, find a first virtual network address corresponding to the first port number from the plurality of virtual network addresses based on the mapping table.” However, in a similar field of endeavor, Bezen teaches these features (see, e.g., 4:18-24, 4: 58-61, 6:42-43, 9:40-41, 10:51-55, 21:3). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate features from the system of Bezen, such as the address and mapping functionality, within the system of Sun, in order to conserve physical resources.
Sun modified by Bezen teaches chassis management modules (e.g., Sun figure 1), but does explicitly state a single chassis manager implementing the said functions. To the extent this feature is not inherent to Sun modified by Bezen, it is nevertheless taught in Bax (see, e.g., [0297], [0324], [0364], [0493], [0516]; note also overlapping teachings with respect to virtual address implementation). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to incorporate features from the system of Bezen, such as the address and mapping functionality, within the system of Sun, in order to enhance server efficiency and/or availability.
Regarding claim 2: Sun modified by Bezen and alternatively Bax further teaches wherein the chassis manager comprises a baseboard management controller and a network switch, and the network switch is coupled to the baseboard management controller and the plurality of server nodes (see, e.g., Sun figure 1; also Bax [0100]-[0102]; note switch and baseboard management controller functionality),
the baseboard management controller is configured to: assign the plurality of virtual network addresses to the plurality of server nodes respectively; set up the plurality of port numbers respectively for the plurality of server nodes based on the specific network address (see, e.g., Sun [0016]-[0019]; the servers are addressed and implement ports for receiving packets; also Bezen 4:18-24; and/or Bax [0324]; note virtual address implementation);
establish the mapping table between the plurality of virtual network addresses and the plurality of port numbers and provide the mapping table to the network switch; and in response to receiving the first data packet corresponding to the first port number among the plurality of port numbers, forward the first data packet to the network switch; wherein the network switch is configured to: find the first virtual network address corresponding to the first port number from the plurality of virtual network addresses based on the mapping table; and forward the first data packet to the first server node corresponding to the first virtual network address among the plurality of server nodes (see, e.g., Sun [0016]-[0019]; the servers are addressed and implement ports for receiving packets; also Bezen 4:18-24, 4: 58-61, 6:42-43, 9:40-41, 10:51-55, 21:3); and/or Bax [0324]; with respect to mapping for forwarding).
The motivation for modification set forth regarding claim 1 is applicable to claim 2.
Regarding claim 3: Sun modified by Bezen and alternatively Bax further teaches wherein a target address of the first data packet comprises the specific network address and the first port number (see, e.g., Bezen 8:36-39, 10:3-5, 10:44-55; and/or Bax [0143], [0217]; note the physical address and port functionality).
The motivation for modification set forth regarding claim 1 is applicable to claim 3.
Regarding claim 4: Sun modified by Bezen and alternatively Bax further teaches wherein the chassis manager is further configured to: in response to receiving a second data packet corresponding to a second port number among the plurality of port numbers, find a second virtual network address corresponding to the second port number from the plurality of virtual network addresses based on the mapping table; and forward the second data packet to a second server node corresponding to the second virtual network address among the plurality of server nodes (see, e.g., Sun [0016]-[0019]; the servers are addressed and implement ports for receiving packets; also Bezen 4:18-24, 4: 58-61, 6:42-43, 9:40-41, 10:51-55, 21:3); and/or Bax [0324]; with respect to mapping for forwarding).
The motivation for modification set forth regarding claim 1 is applicable to claim 4.
Regarding claim 5: Sun modified by Bezen and alternatively Bax further teaches wherein each of the plurality of server nodes has a corresponding node baseboard management controller (see, Sun figure 1; and/or Bax [0246]).
The motivation for modification set forth regarding claim 1 is applicable to claim 5.
Relevant Art
6. The following prior art not relied upon in this Office action is considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure: See form PTO-892.
Conclusion
7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NICHOLAS SLOMS whose telephone number is (571)270-7520. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM EST.
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/NICHOLAS SLOMS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2476
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