Security Processor On-Chip Memory Resume Latency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor chips face challenges in efficiently managing power consumption, particularly during transitions from sleep states to active states, due to limitations in assigning low-power states and the time required for reinitialization of components.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a security processor that stores boot firmware and configuration information in persistent on-chip memory, allowing for independent initialization of clients during resume operations without interacting with the operating system or drivers, thereby reducing resume time and power consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the power management circuitry assigns a sleep state to reduce power consumption, then power consumption is reduced, but the reinitialization time of components increases when transitioning back to active state
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by maintaining configuration information in persistent on-chip memory before entering sleep state. This allows the security processor to quickly restore client configurations during resume operations without requiring full reinitialization, thus reducing reinitialization time while maintaining power savings from sleep state.
2Loss of time
If the power management circuitry limits the assigned low-power state to avoid reinitialization duration, then reinitialization latency is reduced, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves this contradiction by preliminarily storing configuration information in persistent on-chip memory before sleep state transitions. This enables deep low-power states to be maintained without incurring high reinitialization latencies, as the security processor can rapidly restore client configurations from the persistent memory during resume operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies copying by maintaining a copy of configuration information in persistent on-chip memory that can be quickly restored during resume operations. This copy allows the system to enter deep sleep states while enabling fast recovery, as the security processor can restore client configurations from the persistent memory copy without requiring full reinitialization sequences.
3Loss of time
If components are initialized independently without operating system interaction during resume, then resume time is reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by separating the initialization process into two distinct phases: a fast security processor-led phase that restores client configurations from persistent memory, and a subsequent operating system phase that handles higher-level initialization. This segmentation enables reduced resume time for critical client restoration while maintaining operating system control for non-critical initialization tasks.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus and method for efficient power management of multiple integrated circuits. In various implementations, a computing system includes an integrated circuit with a security processor. The security processor determines the integrated circuit transitions to an active state from a sleep state that is not intended to maintain configuration information to return to the active state without restarting an operating system. In the sleep state, multiple components of the integrated circuit have a power supply reference level turned off, which provides low power consumption for the integrated circuit. The security processor performs the bootup operation using information stored in persistent on-chip memory. By not using information stored in off-chip memory, the security processor reduces the latency of the transition. The persistent on-chip memory utilizes synchronous random-access memory that receives a standby power supply reference level that continually supplies a voltage magnitude by not being turned off.