Patents Examined by Ngoc V Dinh
  • Patent number: 8332574
    Abstract: User data are stored in a memory that includes one or more blocks of pages by, for one of the blocks, and optionally for all of the blocks, whenever writing any of the user data to that block, writing the block according to a predefined plan for specifying, with respect to each page of that block, a portion of the user data that is to be written to that page. Alternatively or additionally, each page that stores user data has associated therewith a metadatum related to the age of the user data stored therein; and, for one of the blocks, at any time that two or more of the pages of that block store user data, a common value of the metadatum is associated with all such pages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2012
    Assignee: Sandisk IL Ltd.
    Inventors: Menahem Lasser, Mark Murin
  • Patent number: 8312202
    Abstract: A system, method and computer program product for optimizing handling of guest code in a Virtual Machine include means for identifying, in the guest code, a predetermined pattern that includes privileged but unsafe instructions and an instruction that raises an exception; means for executing the guest code in a native mode; means for, upon encountering the instruction that raise the exception, transferring control to a Virtual Machine Monitor; means for emulating the pattern in the Virtual Machine Monitor; and means for rolling back the effects of privileged but unsafe instructions and any intervening instructions to ensure correct Virtual Machine Monitor context. The pattern can include, for example, a privileged but unsafe instruction, followed by safe instructions, followed by an exception raising instruction, followed by safe instructions, followed by a privileged but unsafe instruction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2012
    Assignee: Parallels IP Holdings GmbH
    Inventors: Alexey B. Koryakin, Nikolay N. Dobrovolskiy, Andrey A. Omelyanchuk
  • Patent number: 8041910
    Abstract: This storage apparatus further includes a control unit for creating a second volume as a backup volume of the first volume upon receiving a backup command of the first volume from the host apparatus, and sending a completion reply of the backup command to the host apparatus while the formatting of the second volume and the replication from the first volume to the second volume are incomplete.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2011
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Takeshi Shigemura, Koji Nagata, Kosuke Sakai
  • Patent number: 8015365
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the present invention includes a method for receiving an indication of a pending capacity eviction from a caching agent, determining whether an invalidating writeback transaction from the caching agent is likely for a cache line associated with the pending capacity eviction, and if so moving a snoop filter entry associated with the cache line from a snoop filter to a staging area. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2011
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Tsvika Kurts, Kai Cheng, Jeffrey D. Gilbert, Julius Mandelblat
  • Patent number: 8006061
    Abstract: Technologies are described for implementing a migration mechanism in a data storage system containing multiple tiers of storage with each tier having different cost and performance parameters. Access statistics can be collected for each territory, or storage entity, within the storage system. Data that is accessed more frequently can be migrated toward higher performance storage tiers while data that is accessed less frequently can be migrated towards lower performance storage tiers. Each tier can be associated with a range of ILM statistics referred to as the bucket for that tier. A pivot table may be provided that relates the tiers and the buckets. Operations on the pivot table can provide counts of how many territories may be promoted or demoted between any two pairs of tiers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2011
    Assignee: American Megatrends, Inc.
    Inventors: Paresh Chatterjee, Ajit Narayanan, Loganathan Ranganathan, Sharon Enoch
  • Patent number: 8006031
    Abstract: The invention relates to a memory system which is connected to a host system by means of a host bus (HB). Said system contains a memory controller (FC) having an internal memory (IR) and flash memory chips (F1 . . . Fn) which are organised in individually deletable memory blocks. Said blocks contain a plurality of writeable and readable memory sectors, and the sectors are divided into sector sections which are secured by an ECC-word. The sectors are temporarily stored in the alternating sector buffers (SB1, SB2) in order to communicate with the host system and are transmitted between the sector buffers (SB1, SB2) and the flash memory chips (F1 . . . Fn), by means of a direct-flash-access-unit (DFA), without having to be temporarily stored in the internal memory (IR) of the memory controller (FC).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2011
    Assignee: Hyperstone GmbH
    Inventor: Reinhard Kühne
  • Patent number: 8001323
    Abstract: A storage system, a storage management method, and a control program product are provided. The storage system is improved in comfortability, convenience, and economy by reducing the amount of copies in a storage device in a network storage system, by heightening storage efficiency and increasing an access speed. In a network storage system in which a plurality of client terminals are directly connected to a storage device via a network, the storage device includes an MV logical disk that stores read-only shared data and a BV logical disk from/onto which data specific to each client terminal is read/written. A control unit that controls read/write operations includes, with an access management table, an LDK management table which has a reference logical disk number column used to issue a command to refer to the MV logical disk when data other than the write data is read.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2011
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventor: Kazuya Honma
  • Patent number: 7979648
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus provide for a Dynamic Interleaver to modify the interleaving distribution spanning physical memory modules. Specifically, dynamic interleaving provides the ability to increase the number of interleaved physical memory modules when a current interleaved group of memory locations is experiencing heavy use. By increasing the number of interleaved memory locations, a system can make optimal use of memory by allowing more parallel accesses to physical memory during the period of heavy utilization. However, if the current interleaved group of memory locations experience low use, the Dynamic Interleaver can choose to interleave across fewer physical memory modules and apply power management techniques to those memory locations that are no longer being accessed. Prior to “re-interleaving” interleaved memory locations, the Dynamic Interleaver migrates data out of the current interleaved memory locations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Oracle America, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric C. Saxe, Sherry Q. Moore, Darrin P. Johnson
  • Patent number: 7975098
    Abstract: A recording medium, such as a high-density and/or optical recording medium and apparatus and methods for recording to and reproducing from the recording medium, in order to initialize, reinitialize, format, and/or re-format the high-density and/or optical recording medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2011
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventor: Yong Cheol Park
  • Patent number: 7970987
    Abstract: Data in less than all of the pages of a non-volatile memory block are updated by programming the new data in unused pages of either the same or another block. In order to prevent having to copy unchanged pages of data into the new block, or to program flags into superceded pages of data, the pages of new data are identified by the same logical address as the pages of data which they superceded and a time stamp is added to note when each page was written. When reading the data, the most recent pages of data are used and the older superceded pages of data are ignored. This technique is also applied to metablocks that include one block from each of several different units of a memory array, by directing all page updates to a single unused block in one of the units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: Sandisk Corporation
    Inventor: Kevin M. Conley
  • Patent number: 7970988
    Abstract: A recording medium, such as a high-density and/or optical recording medium and apparatus and methods for recording to and reproducing from the recording medium, in order to initialize, reinitialize, format, and/or re-format the high-density and/or optical recording medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: LG Electronics Inc.
    Inventor: Yong Cheol Park
  • Patent number: 7945725
    Abstract: A system may include a content addressable memory (CAM) that is configured to include multiple services, receive a key, where the key includes source port information and IP information related to a packet received on one of multiple ports, and output a match index value in response to a search of the CAM using the key. The system may include a policy memory module that is configured to receive the match index value and to output meter controls and a meter address based on the match index value, a port meter map module that is configured to receive the source port information and to output a mask value and a per port meter value, and a remapping module that is configured to receive the meter address, receive the mask value and the per port meter value, and modify the meter address based on those values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2011
    Assignee: Broadcom Corporation
    Inventors: Eric Baden, Puneet Agarwal
  • Patent number: 7930488
    Abstract: A non-volatile memory sharing system is provided. The non-volatile memory sharing system includes a plurality of processors comprising at least a first processor and a second processor, a non-volatile memory, and a processor bridge coupled between the first processor and the second processor. The non-volatile memory is coupled to the first processor, and is used for storing a plurality of program codes or data comprising at least a first program code or data for the first processor and a second program code or data for the second processor. The first processor is for executing the first program code stored in the non-volatile memory, and the second processor is for obtaining the second program code or data from the non-volatile memory via the first processor and the processor bridge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: Mediatek Inc.
    Inventor: Hsin-Chung Yeh
  • Patent number: 7908449
    Abstract: For a storage system having plural control units to which plural disk devices are connected, in the method for creating replication in a volume of the disk devices connected to different control units, when receiving update I/O of a replication source during an initial copy for replication, the reflection of update to the replication destination is performed on an extension of the same I/O. When a pair is divided after the completion of copying, the update position is retained on the differential bitmap disposed in the individual control units, and the differential bitmap is merged to one of the control units at a time of resynchronization to perform copy processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2011
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Ai Satoyama, Noboru Morishita, Yasutomo Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 7877555
    Abstract: Logical memories and other logic functions specified in designs are mapped to power-optimized implementations using physical memories and other device resources. A logical memory may be automatically mapped to numerous potential physical implementations. Power consumption is estimated for each potential physical implementation to select the physical implementation providing the best performance with respect to power consumption and any other design constraints. Potential physical implementations can suppress clock transitions via clock enable inputs when embedded memory is not accessed. Read-enable and write-enable signals can be converted to functionally equivalent clock enable signals. Clock enable signals can be created to deactivate unused memory access ports and to deactivate embedded memory blocks during don't-care conditions. Potential physical implementations can slice logical memory into two or more embedded memory blocks to minimize power consumption.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2011
    Assignee: Altera Corporation
    Inventors: Russell George Tessier, Vaughn Betz, Thiagaraja Golpalsamy, David Neto
  • Patent number: 7865682
    Abstract: Even when a host does not give a write time to write data, consistency can be kept among data stored in secondary storage systems. The present system has plural primary storage systems each having a source volume and plural secondary storage systems each having a target volume. Once data is received from a host, each of the plural storage systems creates write-data management information having sequential numbers and reference information and sends, to one of the primary storage systems, the data, sequential number and reference information. Each of the secondary storage systems records reference information corresponding to the largest sequential number among serial sequential numbers and stores, in a target volume in an order of sequential numbers, data corresponding to reference information having a value smaller than the reference information based on the smallest value reference information among reference information recorded in each of the plural secondary storage systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 4, 2011
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Arakawa, Takashige Iwamura, Kenta Ninose, Yusuke Hirakawa
  • Patent number: 7818490
    Abstract: Data in less than all of the pages of a non-volatile memory block are updated by programming the new data in unused pages of either the same or another block. In order to prevent having to copy unchanged pages of data into the new block, or to program flags into superceded pages of data, the pages of new data are identified by the same logical address as the pages of data which they superceded and a time stamp is added to note when each page was written. When reading the data, the most recent pages of data are used and the older superceded pages of data are ignored. This technique is also applied to metablocks that include one block from each of several different units of a memory array, by directing all page updates to a single unused block in one of the units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: SanDisk Corporation
    Inventor: Kevin M. Conley
  • Patent number: 7694071
    Abstract: A disk drive capable of being configured into a plurality of data storage zones, wherein some of the zones have different performance characteristics than other zones; a method for performing such a zoning configuration; and, a host device utilizing such a disk drive. The disk drive comprises a disk having a plurality of sectors for storing data, a head for reading and writing the data, and a disk drive controller for controlling the head, wherein the plurality of the sectors are organized into the plurality of zones. In one embodiment of the present invention, the performance characteristics of the zones are dictated by configuration settings in the disk drive controller. The configuration settings may include settings for a plurality of parameters. In some embodiments of the present invention, the plurality of parameters comprises a CCT (command completion time) parameter, a Write Verify parameter, a Write Continuous parameter, a Read Continuous parameter, and an Error Re-allocation parameter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 6, 2010
    Assignee: Seagate Technology LLC
    Inventors: Jasbir Sidhu, Andrew Vogan
  • Patent number: 7689792
    Abstract: For a storage system having plural control units to which plural disk devices are connected, in the method for creating replication in a volume of the disk devices connected to different control units, when receiving update I/O of a replication source during an initial copy for replication, the reflection of update to the replication destination is performed on an extension of the same I/O. When a pair is divided after the completion of copying, the update position is retained on the differential bitmap disposed in the individual control units, and the differential bitmap is merged to one of the control units at a time of resynchronization to perform copy processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2010
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Ai Satoyama, Noboru Morishita, Yasutomo Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 7685366
    Abstract: Provided are a system, and article of manufacture, wherein a first storage unit is coupled to a second storage unit. The first storage unit and the second storage unit are detected. A determination is made that the first storage unit is capable of responding to a write operation faster than the second storage unit, and that the second storage unit is capable of responding to a read operation at least as fast as the first storage unit. Data is written to the first storage unit. A transfer of the data is initiated from the first storage unit to the second storage unit. The data is read from the second storage unit, in response to a read request directed at both the first and the second storage units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2010
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Russell Lee Lewis