Deferred System Dump via Memory Relocation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern computer servers face significant downtime and potential costly system failures when attempting to collect diagnostic information due to the time-intensive process of dumping physical memory, leading some to forego fault diagnosis.
Innovation Solution
A method involving an initial operating system that reallocates memory to preserve diagnostic data, transfers control to a subsequent operating system, and performs a deferred system dump using the preserved data, ensuring data integrity and reducing downtime.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If physical memory is dumped to a file system for diagnostic information collection, then diagnostic data is preserved, but system downtime increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by creating a preservation list of physical memory addresses before the system panic occurs. The initial operating system identifies and marks pages that need to be preserved for diagnostic purposes, storing this information in a preservation list data structure. This preparation ensures that when a panic occurs, the system can quickly transfer control to a subsequent operating system without needing to perform time-consuming memory dumping operations at that later stage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism by using a preservation list as a data structure that mediates between the initial operating system and the subsequent operating system. This preservation list contains physical memory addresses and serves as a communication interface, allowing the subsequent operating system to identify which pages need to be preserved without requiring complex coordination or time-consuming operations during the panic handling process.
2Reliability
If memory pages are relocated to preserve diagnostic data, then data integrity is maintained, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the physical memory into distinct pages and organizing them using a preservation list data structure. Each page is individually tracked with its physical memory address, allowing selective preservation of specific pages while managing others differently. This segmentation approach maintains data integrity through precise control over which memory regions are preserved, without requiring complex holistic memory management solutions.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for performing a deferred system dump includes storing a preservation list referencing physical memory addresses allocated to pages by an initial operating system executing on a computer system. The method further includes identifying a subset of the pages that are at least partially allocated below a first physical memory address, relocating the subset to new physical memory addresses above the first physical memory address, and updating the preservation list with the new physical memory addresses. The method further includes transferring control of the computer system from the initial operating system to a subsequent operating system. The subsequent operating system accesses the preservation list to identify preserved pages. The method further includes assigning each of the preserved pages to an address segment in an address space of the subsequent operating system, storing a subset of the preserved pages, and freeing the preserved pages.