Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates making the files permanently unreadable. During operation, the system encrypts a file with a key K at a file manager and then stores the encrypted file in non-volatile storage. Next, the system stores the key K in a key database located in volatile storage at the file manager. The system then encrypts the key database, and stores the encrypted key database in non-volatile storage. Additionally, a key that can be used to decrypt the encrypted key database is maintained by a key manager, and is not maintained in non-volatile form by the file manager. In this way, if the file manager crashes, losing the contents of its volatile storage, the file manager must interact with the key manager to decrypt the encrypted key database.

Abstract: A PCI-Express interconnect device is provided. The device comprises: first and second upstream ports; first and second downstream ports; and a management entity. The management entity is operable to logically partition the device such that the first upstream port is operable to communicate with the first downstream port and the second upstream port is operable to communicate with the second downstream port. In one example, the management device is additionally operable to migrate the first downstream port from a partition in which the first downstream port is operable to communicate with the first upstream port into a partition in which the first downstream port is operable to communicate with the second upstream port.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present mechanism provides a system for storing long-lived objects defined within an object-oriented programming system. These long-lived objects are created in a virtual machine used for executing platform-independent code and are ordinarily created during initialization of the virtual machine. The system works by allocating a storage area reserved for long-lived objects that is not subject to garbage collection. After the storage area is allocated, the system receives requests to create an object. The system then determines if the object is a long-lived object by referring to a table of long-lived objects. If the object is a long-lived object, it is created and placed in the reserved storage area.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that generates a clock signal within an integrated circuit. This system includes four clocking elements organized into a ring, wherein each clocking element includes at least one input and at least one output, and wherein a signal at an input is complemented at a corresponding output. These clocking elements are spatially distributed throughout the integrated circuit, so that each clocking element provides the clock signal to a different region of the integrated circuit. These clocking elements are also coupled together though a plurality of interconnections, so that each output of each clocking element is coupled to at least one input of a neighboring clocking element. Furthermore, a given signal is inverted an odd number of times in traversing a closed path beginning and ending at any output of any of the four clocking elements and passing through a neighboring clocking element.