Peripheral Device Mount Time Reduction via Prefetching
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing technologies for peripheral devices such as disk drives and mass storage class devices experience lengthy mount and dismount times when connecting to or disconnecting from external host devices, leading to inefficient data transfer and potential data loss or corruption.
Innovation Solution
The techniques involve detecting a connection between the peripheral device and the host device, pre-fetching file system data into memory, and delaying the response to data access messages until the device has switched modes, allowing for concurrent mode switching and data access, thereby reducing the time required for communication establishment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the peripheral device waits for host requests before accessing storage media, then power consumption is reduced during playback mode, but mount time increases when connecting to host
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by detecting the host connection and proactively retrieving file system data from storage media into memory before the host actually requests it. This anticipatory approach eliminates the waiting period, reducing mount time while maintaining low power consumption during playback mode by only activating storage access when needed.
2Speed
If the device switches modes immediately upon connection, then responsiveness improves, but data access errors occur due to incomplete mode transition
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses an intermediary buffering mechanism where file system data is retrieved into memory as a intermediate step between storage media and host access. During mode transition, this buffer acts as a mediator that allows the host to access data without directly interacting with the storage media, ensuring reliable data access even while the device is switching modes.
3Reliability
If the device performs full mode switching procedures, then operational reliability is ensured, but connection time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the mode switching process into independent concurrent operations: retrieving file system data, switching playback/disk modes, and responding to host requests can all proceed simultaneously. This segmentation allows the device to maintain full operational reliability through complete mode transitions while reducing overall connection time by eliminating sequential dependencies.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for reducing mount time for a peripheral device connected to an external host device are presented. In some implementations, when a connection is detected, file system data is pre-fetched before a request for such data is sent by the external host device. This allows faster access to the file system data used for initiating read/write communications. In other implementations, in response to a data access command from the external host device, a reply message is delayed from the peripheral device to prevent data access command failures. This delayed response prevents the external host device from pausing before attempting subsequent communication requests.