PCI bus control system having intelligent devices that own and manage non-intelligent devices for relaying information from non-intelligent devices

摘要

In a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus system in which both intelligent and non-intelligent devices are connected to the PCI bus, each non-intelligent device is owned and managed by an intelligent device. The intelligent device owning a non-intelligent device provides access to the service functions of the non-intelligent device, making these service functions available even to other devices not possessing device drivers for the non-intelligent device. Accordingly, the PCI bus master does not have to access all devices connected to the PCI bus.