Nonvolatile Memory Controller Using Signatures to Skip Unchanged Writes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional nonvolatile memory controllers write unchanged data portions unnecessarily, leading to performance degradation and reduced lifespan of memory devices due to duplication and extended data writing times, as they fail to differentiate between unchanged and amended data effectively.
Innovation Solution
A nonvolatile memory controller with a signature calculating circuit, signature buffer, signature comparison circuit, and nonvolatile memory interface circuit calculates and compares signatures to determine if new data differs from existing data, thereby avoiding duplication and optimizing the writing process by directly writing only changed data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional nonvolatile memory controller writes all new data without differentiation, then data writing process is simple, but writing time increases and memory lifespan decreases due to unnecessary duplication
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the changed portions of data for writing to memory, while skipping unchanged portions. The controller compares new data with existing data, identifies differences, and writes only those differences to the memory device, thereby eliminating unnecessary writing operations and reducing overall writing time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the new data into changed and unchanged portions through comparison with existing data. By dividing the data writing task into identifying changed portions and writing only those segments, the system avoids writing entire data blocks when only small portions have changed, thus improving writing efficiency.
2Reliability
If conventional nonvolatile memory controller writes all new data, then data integrity is maintained, but memory lifespan is reduced due to unnecessary write operations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and writes only the changed data portions to memory, while leaving unchanged portions untouched. This selective writing approach reduces the total number of write operations on the memory device, thereby extending its lifespan while maintaining data integrity through proper comparison and error correction code verification.
3Measurement precision
If nonvolatile memory controller reads error correction code from memory to compare, then data accuracy is verified, but writing process time is extended
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary comparison of new data with existing data (and their error correction codes) before initiating the writing process. By determining whether data has changed in advance, the controller avoids unnecessary read-write operations, thus reducing the overall writing process time while maintaining accurate data verification.
4Productivity
If nonvolatile memory controller compares error correction codes, then unchanged data is identified, but complexity of controller increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses error correction codes as an intermediary to compare data without requiring full data retrieval and comparison. By comparing these compact codes first, the controller can quickly identify unchanged data portions and avoid unnecessary write operations, improving efficiency while adding minimal complexity through the use of standard error correction mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a nonvolatile memory controller. In one embodiment, the nonvolatile memory controller receives new data for writing a nonvolatile memory from a host, and comprises a signature calculating circuit, a signature buffer, a signature comparison circuit, a data comparison circuit, and a nonvolatile memory interface circuit. The signature calculating circuit calculates a first signature according to the new data. The signature buffer outputs a second signature corresponding to old data stored in the nonvolatile memory, wherein the old data has the same logical address as that of the new data. The signature comparison circuit determines whether the first signature is identical to the second signature. The nonvolatile memory interface circuit writes the new data to the nonvolatile memory when the first signature is determined to be different from the second signature by the signature comparison circuit.