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EP0310446A2 Expired / Lapsed EP ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Cache memory management method

Assignee: COMPUTER CONSOLES Inc (a Delaware corporation)
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Filing: 1988-09-30
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2008-09-30
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Abstract

Abstract A data processing system includes an instruction processor (101) and a main memory (105) that has such a relatively large number of addressable memory locations that the main memory has a latency time that is substantially longer than the time in which the instruction processor can initiate successive accesses to the memory. Buffer memory means is provided having a relatively small number of buffer locations into which data read from the main memory are stored initially as a duplicate of data stored in the main memory and thereafter modified and marked dirty. Sequentially operating means (109) including multi-biffer means provides for replacing data marked dirty with other data read from the main memory and thereafter causing the data marked dirty to be written into the main memory.

Inventors

  • 👤 Jack Benkual
  • 👤 Shmuel Shottan

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction EP
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-03 07:51
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06F; G06F9/00; G06F9/06; G06F9/22; G06F9/28; G06F12/00; G06F12/02; G06F12/08; G06F12/0802; G06F12/0804

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 8
Claim 1
Independent Claim 128 words
In a data processing system that includes an instruction processor (101) and a main memory (105) with such a relatively large number of addressable memory locations that the main memory has a latency time that is substantially longer than the time in which the instruction processor can initiate successive accesses to the main memory, a subsystem characterised by: buffer memory means (201) having a relatively small number of buffer locations into which data read from the main memory are stored initially as a duplicate of data stored in the main memory and thereafter modified and marked dirty; sequentially operating means (109) for replacing data marked dirty with other data read from the main memory and thereafter causing the data marked dirty to be written into the main memory.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 128 words
In a data processing system that includes an instruction processor (101) and a main memory (105) with such a relatively large number of addressable memory locations that the main memory has a latency time that is substantially longer than the time in which the instruction processor can initiate successive accesses to the main memory, a subsystem characterised by: buffer memory means (201) having a relatively small number of buffer locations into which data read from the main memory are stored initially as a duplicate of data stored in the main memory and thereafter modified and marked dirty; sequentially operating means (109) for replacing data marked dirty with other data read from the main memory and thereafter causing the data marked dirty to be written into the main memory.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 62 words
A subsystem according to claim 1, wherein the buffer memory means comprises a processor-to-memory buffer (301) and a memory-to-processor buffer (303), and wherein the data marked dirty are stored into the procesor-to-memory buffer during the latency time to read the replacement data, and wherein the replacement data are stored into the memory-to-processor buffer before the data marked dirty are written to memory.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 42 words
A subsystem according to claim 2, wherein each buffer has multiple registers (301-0 to 301-7 and 303-0 to 303-7) for use in support of means (BS0 to BS5) for susbtantially matching the bandwidth of memory-to-buffer transfers with the bandwidth of buffer-to-processor transfers.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 30 words
A subsystem according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the buffer memory means is defined by a set of integrated circuit chips organized for bit slice arangement.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 25 words
A subsystem according to claim 4, wherein each such chip includes plurality of memory cells that the chip contributes to define the buffer memory means.
Claim 7
Independent Claim 146 words
A method of operating a data processing system in which a cache memory is provided to store data in cache locations each of which is associated with a large number of main memory locations having a latency time, the method comprising: writing data into a cache location and in the course of doing so setting a dirty bit for that cache memory location; initiating a read-replacement sequence of steps upon detecting a cache miss on that cache location; proceeding with the read-replacement operation by initiating a read of data from an addressed main memory location; further proceeding during the latency time to transfer data from that cache location to a processor-to-memory buffer; transferring data read from the addressed memory location, through a memory-to-­processor buffer, to that cache location; and performing a write to another addressed memory location to store in it data from the processor-to-memory buffer.
Claim 8
Independent Claim 146 words
A method of operating a data processing system in which a cache memory is provided to store data in cache locations each of which is associated with a large number of main memory locations having a latency time, the method comprising: writing data into a cache location and in the course of doing so setting a dirty bit for that cache memory location; initiating a read-replacement sequence of steps upon detecting a cache miss on that cache location; proceeding with the read-replacement operation by initiating a read of data from an addressed main memory location; further proceeding during the latency time to transfer data from that cache location to a processor-to-memory buffer; transferring data read from the addressed memory location, through a memory-to-­processor buffer, to that cache location; and performing a write to another addressed memory location to store in it data from the processor-to-memory buffer.

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