BIOS Preboot Telemetry Volume Prediction and NVRAM Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Preboot telemetry agents in information handling systems face issues when no operating system agent is present, leading to NVRAM space overflow and loss of critical telemetry data due to the inability to clear out data, which affects diagnostic capabilities and increases boot time.
Innovation Solution
A BIOS system that predicts the volume of incoming telemetry data and manages storage among memory resources, including identifying the absence of an operating system agent to adjust data logging and storage policies, ensuring critical data is preserved and NVRAM is maintained for effective system diagnostics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the preboot telemetry agent stores telemetry data in NVRAM with fixed allocation, then telemetry data can be persisted between boot sessions, but NVRAM space fills up over time when no operating system agent is present to clear data, causing loss of critical telemetry data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the NVRAM allocation dynamic rather than fixed. The BIOS dynamically adjusts the amount of NVRAM allocated to the preboot telemetry agent based on whether an operating system agent is detected. When no OS agent is present, the BIOS increases NVRAM allocation to prevent data loss, and when an OS agent is present, it reduces allocation since the OS agent will clear the data anyway.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback by having the preboot telemetry agent detect the presence or absence of an operating system agent and report this information back to the BIOS. The BIOS then uses this feedback to adjust NVRAM allocation accordingly. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures that NVRAM space is optimized based on actual system conditions.
2Productivity
If the preboot telemetry agent continues to process and present telemetry data during each boot, then data can be made available to the operating system, but boot time unnecessarily increases when no operating system agent is present
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having the preboot telemetry agent perform a preliminary check during boot to determine whether an operating system agent is present before proceeding with data processing and presentation. If no OS agent is detected, the agent skips the unnecessary processing steps, thereby reducing boot time while still maintaining data availability for future use.
3Device complexity
If the preboot telemetry agent allocates fixed NVRAM space for telemetry storage, then memory management is simplified, but the agent cannot adapt when the operating system agent is deleted, leading to NVRAM overflow
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves this contradiction by making the NVRAM allocation dynamic. Rather than using a fixed allocation that is simple to manage but inflexible, the system dynamically adjusts allocation based on system conditions. The BIOS monitors whether an OS agent is present and automatically adjusts the NVRAM quota for the preboot telemetry agent, thereby achieving both adaptability and manageable complexity through automated policies.
Data Source
AI summary
An information handling system may include a processor and a basic input/output system configured to identify, test, and/or initialize information handling resources of the information handling system, and further configured to predict a volume of incoming telemetry data collected by a preboot driver of the basic input/output system and based on the volume predicted, manage storage of the telemetry data among memory associated with the basic input/output system.