Multi-Stream Storage Device Parity Buffering With LRU Swapping

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing storage devices face inefficiencies in managing parity data for multi-stream data, leading to resource utilization challenges and performance issues due to increased types of parity data generation.

Innovation Solution

A storage device architecture that includes a first memory for storing parity and intermediate parity data, with a second memory acting as a buffer, and employs a data swapping mechanism based on the least recently used (LRU) policy to manage memory slots efficiently, ensuring optimal use of resources.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If parity data for multi-stream data is stored in a single memory without data swapping, then the storage structure is simple, but the processing efficiency decreases and resource utilization is poor

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveparity data processing efficiencyVSAvoidmemory management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The memory is divided into multiple slots, with each slot corresponding to an execution unit. This segmentation allows parallel processing of parity data from multiple data streams simultaneously, improving processing efficiency while maintaining manageable complexity through structured organization.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements dynamic data swapping between memory slots based on the least recently used (LRU) policy. When a slot becomes full, the system dynamically swaps data between slots and buffers, allowing the memory management system to adapt to varying data access patterns and optimize resource utilization.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Adaptability or versatility

If the number of memory slots is increased to handle more data streams, then the processing capacity increases, but the memory size and resource consumption increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemulti-stream data handling capacityVSAvoidmemory capacity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The system dynamically manages memory slots and buffers, swapping data between them based on the LRU policy. This allows the same physical memory resources to be reused across different data streams over time, increasing adaptability to handle multiple streams without proportionally increasing total memory capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The LRU policy identifies and swaps out least recently used data from memory slots to buffers when slots are full. This discarding and recovering mechanism allows the system to reuse memory slots for new data streams, effectively increasing handling capacity while maintaining limited memory resources.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #34Discarding and recovering

3Productivity

If data swapping is implemented frequently to optimize memory usage, then resource utilization improves, but the access time and processing latency increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvememory resource utilizationVSAvoiddata access latency
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The data swapping operation is triggered dynamically based on the LRU policy when memory slots become full, rather than following a fixed schedule. This ensures swapping occurs only when necessary, optimizing resource utilization while minimizing unnecessary access delays and processing latency.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

4Loss of time

If the memory slot size is increased to reduce swapping operations, then the access latency decreases, but the overall memory capacity consumption increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata access timeVSAvoidtotal memory capacity
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of timeVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The memory is segmented into multiple slots of optimized size, each corresponding to an execution unit. This segmentation allows the system to maintain small enough slots to enable frequent reuse and swapping, while the collective capacity of all slots provides sufficient space to minimize swapping operations, balancing access time and total memory capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP3709168B1Storage device
Publication Date: 2025.09.17 SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD
  • EP3709168B1 patent drawingFigure 1A
  • EP3709168B1 patent drawingFigure 1B
  • EP3709168B1 patent drawingFigure 2

AI summary

A storage device and a method for operating the storage device are provided. A storage device includes processing circuitry configured to write multi-stream data on a non-volatile memory; generate parity data of the multi-stream data and/or intermediate parity data upon which the parity data is based; store the parity data and/or the intermediate parity data in a first memory; and perform a data swap between the first memory and a second memory, wherein a number of slots of a plurality of slots in the first memory is based on a number of execution units of program buffering of the non-volatile memory.