Shared Memory Page Tables for Faster Context Switching
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional memory modules lack efficient mechanisms for sharing address spaces and contexts among multiple processors, leading to suboptimal performance and resource utilization, particularly in systems requiring task-level parallelism and graphics processing.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a memory module system with a global shared context, where logical addresses are globally shared across modules, and page tables facilitate virtual to physical address mapping, enabling synchronization and efficient context sharing among processors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional memory module systems use separate address spaces for each processor, then address space isolation is maintained, but context switching efficiency deteriorates and parallel processing capability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges separate address spaces into a unified shared address space that is accessible by multiple processors simultaneously. The memory module system implements a global address space that eliminates the need for context switching between processors, allowing them to access the same memory regions without interruption. This combining of previously separate address spaces directly enables continuous execution and parallel processing across multiple processors.
Solution Approach 2:
The shared address space serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a common memory region for all processors, provides a mechanism for inter-processor communication, enables task-level parallelism, and maintains address translation through page tables. This universal address space structure replaces multiple separate address spaces and performs diverse functions that previously required separate mechanisms.
2Productivity
If a shared address space is implemented across multiple memory modules, then context sharing efficiency is improved, but address mapping complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces page tables as an intermediary mechanism that manages the mapping between virtual addresses and physical addresses in the shared address space. The memory module system uses page table structures to handle address translation, which abstracts the complexity of managing a shared address space across multiple modules. This intermediary layer simplifies the interface for processors while providing the necessary mapping functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The address mapping system is segmented into multiple manageable components including page directories, page tables, and page table entries. This segmentation allows the complex address mapping task to be divided into smaller, more manageable units that can be independently managed and updated. The hierarchical structure of page tables enables efficient address translation without requiring a complete mapping structure to be managed as a single complex entity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If logical addresses are mapped to physical addresses across multiple modules, then data sharing capability is enhanced, but synchronization overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The memory module system implements self-service mechanisms where each processor can independently access the shared address space using its own address translation unit and page tables. Processors autonomously perform address translation and memory access without requiring centralized coordination for each operation. This self-service approach enables efficient data sharing while minimizing synchronization overhead, as processors operate independently within the shared address space framework.
Data Source
AI summary
A memory module system with a global shared context. A memory module system can include a plurality of memory modules and at least one processor, which can implement the global shared context. The memory modules of the system can provide the global shared context at least in part by providing an address space shared between the modules and applications running on the modules. The address space sharing can be achieved by having logical addresses global to the modules, and each logical address can be associated with a certain physical address of a specific module.