Dynamic Address Translation Format Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current dynamic address translation facilities lack enhanced functionality, capability, and protection mechanisms, limiting their effectiveness in managing virtual addresses and translating them into real or absolute addresses efficiently within computer systems.
Innovation Solution
An enhanced dynamic address translation facility is introduced, which utilizes a hierarchy of translation tables to translate virtual addresses into real or absolute addresses, incorporating a segment table entry format control field to determine whether to generate a segment-frame absolute address or a page-frame real address, and includes additional protection bits for secure data access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a dynamic address translation facility is implemented, then virtual address translation capability is provided, but the facility lacks enhanced functionality and protection mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The translation table entry is segmented into distinct fields including a format control field and separate protection fields. This segmentation allows independent control of translation format selection and protection mechanisms, enabling enhanced functionality without compromising the existing address translation capability
Solution Approach 2:
A format control field is introduced as an intermediary element within the translation table entry. This field acts as a mediator that directs the address translation facility to select between different translation formats (e.g., segment-page-table or segment-direct), thereby enhancing adaptability while maintaining system reliability through controlled format selection
2Ease of operation
If translation table entries use a fixed format, then simple processing is achieved, but the facility cannot identify different translation formats
Solution Approach 1:
The format control field acts as an indicator that changes the interpretation mode of the translation table entry. Similar to how color changes indicate different meanings, the format control field value determines whether the entry should be processed as segment-page-table format or segment-direct format, enabling format identification while maintaining fixed-format simplicity
3Reliability
If protection mechanisms are added to the address translation facility, then data security is improved, but the facility complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Protection fields are merged into the existing translation table entry structure rather than being implemented as separate mechanisms. This integration combines address translation and protection functions into a unified structure, improving data security while minimizing the increase in facility complexity through shared infrastructure
Data Source
AI summary
An enhanced dynamic address translation facility is provided. In one embodiment, a virtual address to be translated and an initial origin address of a translation table of the hierarchy of translation tables are obtained. An index portion of the virtual address is used to reference an entry in the translation table. If a format control field contained in the translation table entry is enabled, the table entry contains a frame address of a large block of data of at least 1M byte in size. The frame address is then combined with an offset portion of the virtual address to form the translated address of a small 4K byte block of data in main storage or memory.