GE Intelligent Solutions PMC675 Next-generation intelligent dual 100BaseFX Ethernet

GE PMC675
pmc	powerpc	v. 4.0
Market:	military and aerospace

Incorporating state-of-the-art technology, the PMC675 sets a new standard for high performance data exchange. Two 100BaseFX Ethernet controllers are combined with a local RISC processor (PPC@400MHz w/DDR memory) and PCI bridge system. The result is a very high performance, extremely flexible solution to a variety of data transfer requirements.

Designed using standard protocols (100Mbit Ethernet and PCI/PMC), the PMC675 is intrinsically economical, both in terms of direct unit cost and ability to utilize commodity LAN hubs and switches. In addition, card edge PCI systems can be accommodated using a GE Intelligent Solutions Embedded Systems PMC239 adapter for rapid prototype and development.

• On-board RISC co-processor
• Two 100FX fiber Ethernet ports
• Options for SC, ST, LC, MTRJ or VF-45 fiber connectors
• Failover, embedded TCP/IP firmware, etc....
• Trunking capabilities
• PCI 64/66MHz
• 64 Mbytes of DDR memory

Application-specific intelligence

Users can add application specific functionality to the on board firmware, migrating appropriate control into the PMC675.

Local intelligence

The on-board RISC processor allows the PMC675 to be utilized in a wide range of applications. In the simplest mode, all control can be kept in the system host with the PMC675 providing dual Ethernet access. Other options include "dual rail" access, where the choice of physical access is automatically switched by the PMC675 "fail over". GE Intelligent Solutions Embedded Systems' embedded TCP/IP allows the host to off-load the TCP/IP overhead to the local I/O co-processor. The on-board processor has 64 Mbytes of DRAM.

Fail-over firmware

Many applications have requirements for fault tolerance in the network connections. Some have traditionally used FDDI, which had dual physical connections as part of the basic specification. FDDI has become end-of-life, both existing and new applications need a replacement.

A GE Intelligent Solutions Embedded Systems IEC (Intelligent Ethernet Controller) with Failover (FOB) firmware is one solution, designed specifically as an evolutionary step that can be rapidly integrated into existing network systems. Running on one of the GE Intelligent Solutions Embedded Systems Intelligent Dual Ethernet cards (either copper or fiber media), at any time there is an active port (on which Ethernet activity takes place) and a backup port (which maintains the Ethernet controller in a suspended state). In the event of a failure of the active port, the FOB firmware suspends this controller and activates the backup controller. As all characteristics of the connection (e.g. MAC address) are maintained, no other machine on the LAN will be aware of this transfer. Transition occurs when a failure on the link is detected, either from physical indication or watchdog timeout. When responding to link errors the failover is very fast (<50mSec).

Integration with existing operating systems is easy, because the FOB firmware allows the IEC to appear as a single Ethernet device, which is consistent with the current standards. This is a critical issue as the network system is complex and generally not easy to modify. By having the IEC as a simple network controller, integration falls into a well defined, existing category. Experience has shown that a network driver for a simple PCI-based Ethernet controller can be ported to support the GE Intelligent Solutions Embedded Systems IEC/FOB in less than a week.

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