Abstract: Methods and apparatuses for firm partitioning of a computing platform.

Abstract: An embodiment of the present invention is a technique to process system management interrupt. A system management interrupt (SMI) is received. The SMI is associated with a system management mode (SMM). A conditional SMI inter-processor interrupt (IPI) message is broadcast to at least a processor. The SMI is processed without waiting for the at least processor to check into the SMM. A clear pending SMI is broadcast to the processors at end of SMI processing to clear a pending SMI condition.

Abstract: A method is described that involves directing a configuration request through a switch core to a configuration agent. The method also involves processing the configuration request at the configuration agent. The method also involves sending a configuration command derived from the configuration request from the configuration agent to the switch core. The method also involves executing the configuration command at an agent to which the configuration command pertains.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to the handling of interrupts in a environment that utilizes virtual machines, and, more specifically, to the steering of interrupts between multiple logical processors running virtual machines.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a comparator compares an incoming memory address with a memory address currently being copied by a memory copy operation. A holding buffer holds the incoming address prior to forwarding it to a memory read/write queue if the incoming memory address is the same as the memory address currently being copied by the memory copy operation, forwards the buffered incoming memory address to the read/write queue once the memory copy operation for the memory address currently being copied has finished. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a memory transaction is received that was sent over an unordered interconnect. A determination is made as to whether an address conflict exists between the memory transaction and another memory transaction. If the address conflict exists the memory transaction is forwarded only after waiting until the conflict is resolved. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a comparator compares an incoming memory address with a memory address currently being copied by a memory copy operation. A holding buffer holds the incoming address prior to forwarding it to a memory read/write queue if the incoming memory address is the same as the memory address currently being copied by the memory copy operation, forwards the buffered incoming memory address to the read/write queue once the memory copy operation for the memory address currently being copied has finished. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: A dynamic reconfiguration to include on-line addition, deletion, and replacement of individual modules of to support dynamic partitioning of a system, interconnect (link) reconfiguration, memory RAS to allow migration and mirroring without OS intervention, dynamic memory reinterleaving, CPU and socket migration, and support for global shared memory across partitions is described. To facilitate the on-line addition or deletion, the firmware is able to quiesce and de-quiesce the domain of interest so that many system resources, such as routing tables and address decoders, can be updated in what essentially appears to be an atomic operation to the software layer above the firmware.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is described herein for supporting direct memory accesses between peer I/O devices. It is determined whether a guest physical address (GPA) referenced by an access generated from an I/O device, is within a range of GPAs associated with local I/O devices based at least in part on a GPA base and a GPA window size. If the GPA is within the window, then the GPA is translated to an HPA based at least in part on a base HPA associated with a local device and then forwarded to that local device. However, if the GPA is not within the window, then the access is forwarded upstream.

Abstract: An embodiment of the present invention is a technique to perform address translation. A table structure is indexed by a source identifier of an input/output (I/O) transaction specifying a guest physical address and requested by an I/O device to map the I/O device to a domain assigned to the I/O device. An address translation structure translates the guest physical address to a host physical address corresponding to the I/O transaction.

Abstract: An embodiment of the present invention is a technique to process faults in a direct memory access address translation. A register set stores global control or status information for fault processing of a fault generated by an input/output (I/O) transaction requested by an I/O device. An address translation structure translates a guest physical address to a host physical address. The guest physical address corresponds to the I/O transaction and is mapped to a domain. The address translation structure has at least an entry associated with the domain and domain-specific control information for the fault processing.

Abstract: An embodiment of the present invention is a technique to provide cache support for direct memory access address translation. A cache structure stores cached entries used in address translation of a guest physical address to a host physical address. The guest physical address corresponds to a guest domain identified by a guest domain identifier in an input/output (I/O) transaction requested by an I/O device. A register stores an invalidating domain identifier identifying an invalidating domain and an indicator indicating invalidating an entry in the cached entries having a tag.

Abstract: An embodiment of the present invention is a technique to enhance address translation performance. A register stores capability indicators to indicate capability supported by a circuit in a chipset for address translation of a guest physical address to a host physical address. A plurality of multi-level page tables is used for page walking in the address translation. Each of the page tables has page table entries. Each of the page table entries has at least an entry specifier corresponding to the capability indicated by the capability indicators.

Abstract: In one embodiment of the present invention, a method includes verifying an initiating logical processor of a system; validating a trusted agent with the initiating logical processor if the initiating logical processor is verified; and launching the trusted agent on a plurality of processors of the system if the trusted agent is validated. After execution of such a trusted agent, a secure kernel may then be launched, in certain embodiments. The system may be a multiprocessor server system having a partially or fully connected topology with arbitrary point-to-point interconnects, for example.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention relate to methods and apparatus for managing transaction requests in a multi-node architecture. In one embodiment, a previously received ordered group request may be forwarded to a destination agent. Whether a next received ordered group request belongs to a same ordered group as the previously received ordered group request may be determined. Additionally, it may be determined whether an ordering fork is encountered if the next received ordered group request belongs to the same ordered group as the previously received ordered group request. If an ordering fork is encountered, it may be determined whether a request complete message for the previously received ordered group request has been received.

Abstract: In some embodiments an apparatus includes a transmission error detector to detect an error of a transmission of an interconnect and a transmitting agent to retry the transmission in response to the detected error. The apparatus also includes a hard failure detector to detect a hard failure of the interconnect if the retry is unsuccessful, and a transmission width reducer to reduce a transmission width of the interconnect in response to the hard failure detector. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: A configuration agent may control domain partition management in a server platform. A configuration agent may allow out-of-band system management agents to directly access configuration registers which control domain partitions. Accesses by in-band agents may only be allowed, in some embodiments, during a configuration mode, such as a system management mode.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a memory transaction is received that was sent over an unordered interconnect. A determination is made as to whether an address conflict exists between the memory transaction and another memory transaction. If the address conflict exists the memory transaction is forwarded only after waiting until the conflict is resolved. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a comparator compares an incoming memory address with a memory address currently being copied by a memory copy operation. A holding buffer holds the incoming address prior to forwarding it to a memory read/write queue if the incoming memory address is the same as the memory address currently being copied by the memory copy operation, forwards the buffered incoming memory address to the read/write queue once the memory copy operation for the memory address currently being copied has finished. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to the resource management of virtual machine(s) using hardware address mapping, and, more specifically, to facilitate direct access to devices from virtual machines, utilizing control of hardware address translation facilities.