Memory Controller Overlay Backup for Task Switching
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Solution Overview
Problem
In computing systems with hierarchical memory structures, there is a need to efficiently manage task backups and restorations between internal and external memory to minimize copy overhead and optimize resource usage, especially when switching between tasks.
Innovation Solution
A memory management method that uses an overlay scheme, where a memory controller identifies and copies only the changed data from the internal memory to the external memory, utilizing a stack structure with pointers to manage data access and storage efficiently, thereby reducing unnecessary data copies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If all data associated with a task is copied to external memory during task backup, then the task can be fully restored later, but the copy overhead increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary portion of data (changed data) from the task's data structure for copying to external memory, rather than copying all data. This is achieved by identifying and copying only the data that has been modified since the last backup, thereby reducing copy overhead while maintaining task restoration capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by copying only a portion of the task data (specifically, only the changed data) instead of the entire data set. This selective copying approach reduces the amount of data transferred between internal and external memory, directly reducing copy overhead while preserving the essential information needed for task restoration.
2Ease of operation
If a stack structure is used to manage task data, then data access is simplified, but identifying changed data requires additional pointers and tracking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces pointers as intermediary elements that facilitate the identification of changed data within the stack structure. By using pointers to track the boundaries and locations of modified data, the system simplifies the process of identifying what needs to be copied, even though this adds some complexity to the data structure management.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a computing system and method. The computing system may back up, based on an overlay scheme, a task of an internal memory in an external memory, and the task may be restored to the internal memory from the external memory. The computing system may include a first memory to store data associated with a first task processed in a processor, as a first data structure, a second memory to store backup data of the data associated with the first task, and a memory controller to copy, to the second memory, data other than data previously backed up in the second memory among the data associated with the first task, when the data associated with the first task is backed up in the second memory to process a second task in the processor.