Abstract: Systems, apparatuses and methods may provide for technology that exchanges activation information between system firmware and an operating system (OS), wherein the activation information includes one or more of status information, activation state information, capability information, activation time information or quiesce time information. The technology also conducts a runtime upgrade of the device firmware based on the activation information, wherein the runtime upgrade bypasses a reboot of the computing system.

Abstract: An apparatus and method are described for detecting and correcting data fetch errors within a processor core. For example, one embodiment of an instruction processing apparatus for detecting and recovering from data fetch errors comprises: at least one processor core having a plurality of instruction processing stages including a data fetch stage and a retirement stage; and error processing logic in communication with the processing stages to perform the operations of: detecting an error associated with data in response to a data fetch operation performed by the data fetch stage; and responsively performing one or more operations to ensure that the error does not corrupt an architectural state of the processor core within the retirement stage.

Abstract: There is disclosed in one example a processor, including: a protected runtime mode (PRM) module to receive a PRM interrupt and to: suspend operation of a software task executing on the processor; save processor state information; place the microprocessor into PRM; access a PRM handler in a designated PRM memory region, wherein the PRM handler comprises a platform specific task; restore the processor state; and resume operation of the software task.

Abstract: A shared memory controller is to service load and store operations received, over data links, from a plurality of independent nodes to provide access to a shared memory resource. Each of the plurality of independent nodes is to be permitted to access a respective portion of the shared memory resource. Interconnect protocol data and memory access protocol data are sent on the data links and transitions between the interconnect protocol data and memory access protocol data can be defined and identified.

Abstract: Examples may include a basic input/output system (BIOS) for a computing platform communicating with a controller for a non-volatile dual in-line memory module (NVDIMM). Communication between the BIOS and the controller may include a request for the controller to scan and identify error locations in non-volatile memory at the NVDIMM. The non-volatile memory may be capable of providing persistent memory for the NVDIMM.

Abstract: Embodiments of systems, apparatuses and methods provide enhanced function as a service (FaaS) to users, e.g., computer developers and cloud service providers (CSPs). A computing system configured to provide such enhanced FaaS service include one or more controls architectural subsystems, software and orchestration subsystems, network and storage subsystems, and security subsystems. The computing system executes functions in response to events triggered by the users in an execution environment provided by the architectural subsystems, which represent an abstraction of execution management and shield the users from the burden of managing the execution. The software and orchestration subsystems allocate computing resources for the function execution by intelligently spinning up and down containers for function code with decreased instantiation latency and increased execution scalability while maintaining secured execution.

Abstract: Technologies for composing a managed node with multiple processors on multiple compute sleds to cooperatively execute a workload include a memory, one or more processors connected to the memory, and an accelerator. The accelerator further includes a coherence logic unit that is configured to receive a node configuration request to execute a workload. The node configuration request identifies the compute sled and a second compute sled to be included in a managed node. The coherence logic unit is further configured to modify a portion of local working data associated with the workload on the compute sled in the memory with the one or more processors of the compute sled, determine coherence data indicative of the modification made by the one or more processors of the compute sled to the local working data in the memory, and send the coherence data to the second compute sled of the managed node.

Abstract: Techniques and mechanisms for a processor to efficiently identify a circuit resource as being a source of data poisoning. In an embodiment, metadata is communicated, in association with a communication of poisoned data to which the metadata pertains, to a first circuit block of a processor. The metadata indicates a poisoned state of the data, wherein the metadata identifies a second circuit block—which is included in or coupled to the processor—as being a poisoner of the data. Based on the metadata, the first circuit block generates a fault message which identifies the second circuit block as the poisoner of the data. In another embodiment, the processor further comprises the second circuit block, which poisons the data (based on the detection of an error condition) by providing in the metadata a unique identifier which is assigned to the second circuit block.

Abstract: Provided are a method, system, computer readable storage medium, and switch for configuring a switch to assign partitions in storage devices to compute nodes. A management controller configures the switch to dynamically allocate partitions of at least one of the storage devices to the compute nodes based on a workload at the compute node.

Abstract: A processor of an aspect includes a decode unit to decode a read from memory instruction. The read from memory instruction is to indicate a source memory operand and a destination storage location. The processor also includes an execution unit coupled with the decode unit. The execution unit, in response to the read from memory instruction, is to read data from the source memory operand, store an indication of defective data in an architecturally visible storage location, when the data is defective, and complete execution of the read from memory instruction without causing an exceptional condition, when the data is defective. Other processors, methods, systems, and instructions are disclosed.

Abstract: A non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM) is used in a computer system to enhance support to sleep states. The computer system includes a processor, a non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM) that is byte-rewritable and byte-erasable, and power management (PM) module. A dynamic random access memory (DRAM) provides a portion of system address space. The PM module intercepts a request initiated by an operating system for entry into a sleep state, copies data from the DRAM to the NVRAM, maps the portion of the system address space from the DRAM to the NVRAM, and turns off the DRAM when transitioning into the sleep state. Upon occurrence of a wake event, the PM module returns control to the operating system such that the computer system resumes working state operations without the operating system knowing that the portion of the system address space has been mapped to the NVRAM.

Abstract: An apparatus and method are described for detecting and correcting data fetch errors within a processor core. For example, one embodiment of an instruction processing apparatus for detecting and recovering from data fetch errors comprises: at least one processor core having a plurality of instruction processing stages including a data fetch stage and a retirement stage; and error processing logic in communication with the processing stages to perform the operations of: detecting an error associated with data in response to a data fetch operation performed by the data fetch stage; and responsively performing one or more operations to ensure that the error does not corrupt an architectural state of the processor core within the retirement stage.

Abstract: Technologies for efficiently booting sleds in a disaggregated architecture include a sled. The sled includes a network interface controller, a set of processors, and firmware that includes an operating system. Additionally, the sled includes circuitry to perform, with multiple processors in the set of processors, a boot process. The circuitry is also to initialize the operating system present in the firmware, receive, with the network interface controller and from another sled, an assignment of a workload, and execute the assigned workload with the operating system.

Abstract: Dynamically configurable server platforms and associated apparatus and methods. A server platform including a plurality of CPUs installed in respective sockets may be dynamically configured as multiple single-socket servers and as a multi-socket server. The CPUs are connected to a platform manager component comprising an SoC including one or more processors and an embedded FPGA. Following a platform reset, an FPGA image is loaded, dynamically configuring functional blocks and interfaces on the platform manager. The platform manager also includes pre-defined functional blocks and interfaces. During platform initialization the dynamically-configured functional blocks and interfaces are used to initialize the server platform, while both the pre-defined and dynamically-configured functional blocks and interfaces are used to support run-time operations.

Abstract: Technologies for composing a managed node with multiple processors on multiple compute sleds to cooperatively execute a workload include a memory, one or more processors connected to the memory, and an accelerator. The accelerator further includes a coherence logic unit that is configured to receive a node configuration request to execute a workload. The node configuration request identifies the compute sled and a second compute sled to be included in a managed node. The coherence logic unit is further configured to modify a portion of local working data associated with the workload on the compute sled in the memory with the one or more processors of the compute sled, determine coherence data indicative of the modification made by the one or more processors of the compute sled to the local working data in the memory, and send the coherence data to the second compute sled of the managed node.

Abstract: A method performed by a first hardware element in a hierarchical arrangement of hardware elements in an object storage system is described. The method includes performing a hash on a name of an object of the object storage system. The name is part of a request that is associated with the object. A result of the hash is to identify a second hardware element directly beneath the first hardware element in the hierarchical arrangement. The request is to be sent to the second hardware element to advance the request toward being serviced by the object storage system.

Abstract: A microcode (uCode) hot-upgrade method for bare metal cloud deployment and associated apparatus. Under the uCode hot-upgrade method, a uCode path is received at an out-of-band controller (e.g., baseboard management controller (BMC)) and buffered in a memory buffer in the out-of-band controller. The out-of-band controller exposes the memory buffer as a Memory-Mapped Input-Output (MMIO) range to a host CPU. A uCode upgrade interrupt service is triggered to upgrade uCode for one or more CPUs in a bare-metal cloud platform during runtime of a tenant host operating system (OS) using an out-of-bound process. This innovation enables cloud service providers to deploy uCode hot-patches to bare metal servers for live-patch without touching the tenant operating system environment.

Abstract: Non-volatile Memory Express over Fabric (NVMeOF) using Volume Management Device (VMD) schemes and associated methods, systems and software. The schemes are implemented in a data center environment including compute resources in compute drawers and storage resources residing in pooled storage drawers that are communicatively couple via a fabric. Compute resources are composed as compute nodes or virtual machines/containers running on compute nodes to utilize remote storage devices in pooled storage drawers, while exposing the remote storage devices as local NVMe storage devices to software running on the compute nodes. This is facilitated by virtualizing the system's storage infrastructure through use of hardware-based components, firmware-based components, or a combination of hardware/firmware- and software-based components. The schemes support the use of remote NVMe storage devices using an NVMeOF protocol and/or use of non-NVMe storage devices using NVMe emulation.

Abstract: Trusted platform telemetry mechanisms and associated methods, apparatus, and firmware components. Trusted telemetry mechanisms are provided for securely collecting platform telemetry data from telemetry data sources on a compute platform, such as machine specific registers (MSRs), device registers, system management bus (SMBus) and memory controllers. The telemetry data is collected from the telemetry data sources using various mechanisms, and securely stored on the compute platform in a manner that is inaccessible to software running on the compute platform. A submission queue and completion queue model may also be implemented to facilitate collection of telemetry data. In addition, a memory-mapped input-output (MMIO) aliasing scheme is provided to facilitate collection of telemetry data from platform telemetry data sources using various access mechanisms.

Abstract: Embodiments provide for a processor including a cache a caching agent and a processing node to decode an instruction including at least one operand specifying an address range within a distributed shared memory (DSM) and perform a flush to a first of a plurality of memory devices in the DSM at the specified address range.