Abstract: A method of managing memory access includes receiving, at an input output memory management unit, a memory access request from a device. The memory access request includes a virtual steering tag associate associated with a virtual machine. The method further includes translating the virtual steering tag to a physical steering tag directing memory access of a cache memory associated with a processor core of a plurality of processor cores. The virtual machine is implemented on the processor core. The method also includes accessing the cache memory to implement the memory access request.

Abstract: An electronic device acquires, from program code, two or more program code loops having specified data dependencies. The electronic device places each of the program code loops into a corresponding blocking loop, each blocking loop including at least one blocking loop induction variable that is incremented by a corresponding block size and used to specify a number of iterations for at least one internal loop induction variable of the respective program code loop. The electronic device fuses the blocking loops into a fused loop by placing all of the blocking loops in the fused loop and replacing the blocking loop induction variables of the blocking loops with a fused loop induction variable that is incremented by the corresponding block size and used to specify the number of iterations for respective internal loop induction variables in the blocking loops.

Abstract: The described embodiments include an electronic device that handles network packets. During operation, the electronic device receives a carrier packet, the carrier packet that includes a tunneled packet in a payload of the carrier packet, wherein the tunneled packet includes a packet priority of the tunneled packet and the carrier packet includes a packet priority of the carrier packet. The electronic device then updates the packet priority of the carrier packet based on the packet priority of the tunneled packet.

Abstract: A system and method for protecting memory instructions against faults are described. The system and method include converting the slave instructions to dummy operations, modifying memory arbiter to issue up to N master and N slave global/shared memory instructions per cycle, sending master memory requests to memory system, using slave requests for error checking, entering master requests to the GM/LM FIFO, storing slave requests in a register, and comparing the entered master requests with the stored slave requests.

Abstract: An electronic device handles accesses of a branch prediction functional block when executing instructions in program code. The electronic device includes a processor having the branch prediction functional block that provides branch prediction information for control transfer instructions (CTIs) in the program code and a minimum predictor use (MPU) functional block. The MPU functional block determines, based on a record associated with a given fetch group of instructions, that a specified number of subsequent fetch groups of instructions that were previously determined to include no CTIs or conditional CTIs that were not taken are to be fetched for execution in sequence following the given fetch group. The MPU functional block then, when each of the specified number of the subsequent fetch groups is fetched and prepared for execution, prevents corresponding accesses of the branch prediction functional block for acquiring branch prediction information for instructions in that subsequent fetch group.

Abstract: A processor employs a hierarchical register file for a graphics processing unit (GPU). A top level of the hierarchical register file is stored at a local memory of the GPU (e.g., a memory on the same integrated circuit die as the GPU). Lower levels of the hierarchical register file are stored at a different, larger memory, such as a remote memory located on a different die than the GPU. A register file control module monitors the status of in-flight wavefronts at the GPU, and in particular whether each in-flight wavefront is active, predicted to be become active, or inactive. The register file control module places execution data for active and predicted-active wavefronts in the top level of the hierarchical register file and places execution data for inactive wavefronts at lower levels of the hierarchical register file.

Abstract: A processing device is provided which includes memory and at least one processor. The memory includes main memory and cache memory in communication with the main memory via a link. The at least one processor is configured to receive a request for a cache line and read the cache line from main memory. The at least one processor is also configured to compress the cache line according to a compression algorithm and, when the compressed cache line includes at least one byte predicted not to be accessed, drop the at least one byte from the compressed cache line based on whether the compression algorithm is determined to successfully compress the cache line according to a compression parameter.

Abstract: A miss in a cache by a thread in a wavefront is detected. The wavefront includes a plurality of threads that are executing a memory access request concurrently on a corresponding plurality of processor cores. A priority is assigned to the thread based on whether the memory access request is addressed to a local memory or a remote memory. The memory access request for the thread is performed based on the priority. In some cases, the cache is selectively bypassed depending on whether the memory access request is addressed to the local or remote memory. A cache block is requested in response to the miss. The cache block is biased towards a least recently used position in response to requesting the cache block from the local memory and towards a most recently used position in response to requesting the cache block from the remote memory.

Abstract: Various integrated heat spreaders and methods of making the same are disclosed. In one aspect, an integrated heat spreader to provide thermal management of a first heat generating component on a circuit board is provided. The integrated heat spreader includes a shell that has an internal space, at least one inlet port to receive a coolant to cool the first heat generating component and at least one outlet port to discharge the coolant. Plural heat fins are connected to the shell in the internal space. The heat fins are selectively connectable to the shell in multiple arrangements to provide selected flow rates of the coolant in one or more regions of the internal space.

Abstract: A processing system includes a plurality of input/output (I/O) devices representing a plurality of I/O resources. Each I/O resource has at least one corresponding memory mapped I/O (MMIO) address range. A trap handler detects a write request targeting a configuration space of an identified I/O resource of the plurality of I/O resources and, responsive to determining the identified I/O resource is a protected I/O resource, selectively blocks the write request from further processing by the processing system based on whether the write request would change an MMIO address decoding of the identified I/O resource.

Abstract: Various semiconductor chips with gettering regions and methods of making the same are disclosed. In one aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes a semiconductor chip that has a first side and a second side opposite the first side. The first side has a plurality of laser ablation craters. Each of the ablation craters has a bottom. A gettering region is in the semiconductor chip beneath the laser ablation craters. The gettering region includes plural structural defects. At least some of the structural defects emanate from at least some of the bottoms of the laser ablation craters.

Abstract: A processing system tracks counts of accesses to memory pages using a set of counters located at the memory module that stores the pages, wherein the counts are adjusted at least in part based on refreshes of the memory pages. This approach allows a processing system to efficiently maintain the counts with relatively small counters and with relatively low overhead. Furthermore, the rate at which the counters are adjusted, relative to the page refreshes, is adjustable, so that the access counts are useful for a wide variety of application types.

Abstract: Various codecs and methods of using the same are disclosed. In one aspect, a method of processing video data is provided that includes encoding or decoding the video data with a codec in aggressive deployment and correcting one or more errors in the encoding or decoding wherein the error correction includes re-encoding or re-decoding the video data in a non-aggressive deployment or generating a skip picture.

Abstract: Devices, methods, and systems for distributed gather and scatter operations in a network of memory nodes. A responding memory node includes a memory; a communications interface having circuitry configured to communicate with at least one other memory node; and a controller. The controller includes circuitry configured to receive a request message from a requesting node via the communications interface. The request message indicates a gather or scatter operation, and instructs the responding node to retrieve data elements from a source memory data structure and store the data elements to a destination memory data structure. The controller further includes circuitry configured to transmit a response message to the requesting node via the communications interface. The response message indicates that the data elements have been stored into the destination memory data structure.

Abstract: An electronic device includes at least one compression-decompression functional block and a hierarchy of cache memories with a first cache memory and a second cache memory. The at least one compression-decompression functional block receives data in an uncompressed state, compresses the data using one of a first compression or a second compression, and, after compressing the data, provides the data to the first cache memory for storage therein. When the data is retrieved from the first cache memory to be stored in the second cache memory, when the data is compressed using the first compression, the compression-decompression functional block decompresses the data to reverse effects of the first compression on the data, thereby restoring the data to the uncompressed state and provides the data compressed using the second compression or in the uncompressed state to the second cache memory for storage therein.

Abstract: A method for operating a memory device includes initiating an access operation to a corresponding row of an array of bit cells of the memory device. Responsive to an expansion mode signal having a first state, the method further includes dynamically operating each column of a plurality of columns of the array to access each bit cell of a corresponding row within the plurality of columns during the access operation. Alternatively, responsive to the expansion mode state signal having a second state different than the first state, the method includes dynamically operating each column of a first subset of columns of the plurality of columns to access each bit cell of a corresponding row within the first subset of columns during the access operation, and maintaining each column of a second subset of columns of the plurality of columns in a static state during the access operation.

Abstract: A pipeline is configured to access a memory that stores a texture block and metadata that encodes compression parameters of the texture block and a residency status of the texture block. A processor requests access to the metadata in conjunction with requesting data in the texture block to perform a shading operation. The pipeline selectively returns the data in the texture block to the processor depending on whether the metadata indicates that the texture block is resident in the memory. A cache can also be included to store a copy of the metadata that encodes the compression parameters of the texture block. The residency status and the metadata stored in the cache can be modified in response to requests to access the metadata stored in the cache.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and devices for near-memory data-dependent gathering and packing of data stored in a memory. A processing device extracts a function, a memory source address, and a memory destination address from a near-memory data-dependent gathering and packing primitive. A signal to perform gathering and packing operations based on the primitive is sent to near-memory processing circuitry of a memory device. The near-memory processing circuitry receives the signal, gathers data from the memory device based on the function and the memory source address, and packs the gathered data into the memory device based on the memory destination address.

Abstract: A computer processing device transitions among a plurality of power management states and at least one power management sub-state. From a first state, it is determined whether an entry condition for a third state is satisfied. If the entry condition for the third state is satisfied, the third state is entered. If the entry condition for the third state is not satisfied, it is determined whether an entry condition for the first sub-state is satisfied. If the entry condition for the first sub-state is determined to be satisfied, the first sub-state is entered, a first sub-state residency timer is started, and after expiry of the first sub-state residency timer, the first sub-state is exited, the first state is re-entered, and it is re-determined whether the entry condition for the third state is satisfied.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for scheduling instructions of a shader program for a graphics processing unit (GPU) with a fixed number of registers. The method and apparatus include computing, via a processing unit (PU), a liveness-based register usage across all basic blocks in the shader program, computing, via the PU, the range of numbers of waves of a plurality of registers for the shader program, assessing the impact of available post-register allocation optimizations, computing, via the PU, the scoring data based on number of waves of the plurality of registers, and computing, via the PU, the number of waves for execution for the plurality of registers.