Abstract: A data processor includes a data fabric, a memory controller, a last level cache, and a traffic monitor. The data fabric is for routing requests between a plurality of requestors and a plurality of responders. The memory controller is for accessing a volatile memory. The last level cache is coupled between the memory controller and the data fabric. The traffic monitor is coupled to the last level cache and operable to monitor traffic between the last level cache and the memory controller, and based on detecting an idle condition in the monitored traffic, to cause the memory controller to command the volatile memory to enter self-refresh mode while the last level cache maintains an operational power state and responds to cache hits over the data fabric.

Abstract: A cache includes an upstream port, a cache memory for storing cache lines each having a line width, and a cache controller. The cache controller is coupled to the upstream port and the cache memory. The upstream port transfers data words having a transfer width less than the line width. In response to a cache line fill, the cache controller selectively determines data bus inversion information for a sequence of data words having the transfer width, and stores the data bus inversion information along with selected inverted data words for the cache line fill in the cache memory.

Abstract: A cache includes an upstream port, a downstream port, a cache memory, and a control circuit. The control circuit temporarily stores memory access requests received from the upstream port, and checks for dependencies for a new memory access request with older memory access requests temporarily stored therein. If one of the older memory access requests creates a false dependency with the new memory access request, the control circuit drops an allocation of a cache line to the cache memory for the older memory access request while continuing to process the new memory access request.

Abstract: Devices and methods for transitioning between power states of a device are provided. A program is executed using data stored in configuration registers assigned to a component of a device. For a first reduced power state, data of a first portion of the configuration registers is saved to the memory using a first set of linear address space. For a second reduced power state, data of a second portion of the configuration registers is saved to the memory using a second set of linear address space and data of a third portion of the configuration registers is saved to the memory using a third set of linear address space.

Abstract: Systems and methods for coordinated memory-side cache prefetching and dynamic interleaving configuration modification involve modifying one or both of the prefetch distance or the prefetch degree used by prefetcher modules of one or more memory-side caches by modifying interleaving configuration data following detection of an interleaving reconfiguration trigger condition indicative, for example, of low prefetch accuracy, low prefetch coverage, high prefetch lateness, or a combination of these. In response an interleaving reconfiguration trigger condition, a processor modifies the interleaving configuration data for the processing system based on the prefetch performance characteristics associated with the interleaving reconfiguration trigger condition. In some embodiments, the interleaving configuration data is modified by changing which physical memory address indices are used to determine the bits that define the channel identification number to which that physical memory address is to be mapped.

Abstract: A method of controlling a cache is disclosed. The method comprises receiving a request to allocate a portion of memory to store data. The method also comprises directly mapping a portion of memory to an assigned contiguous portion of the cache memory when the request to allocate a portion of memory to store the data includes a cache residency request that the data continuously resides in cache memory. The method also comprises mapping the portion of memory to the cache memory using associative mapping when the request to allocate a portion of memory to store the data does not include a cache residency request that data continuously resides in the cache memory.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for implementing dynamic control of a multi-region fabric are disclosed. A system includes at least one or more processing units, one or more memory devices, and a communication fabric coupled to the processing unit(s) and memory device(s). The system partitions the fabric into multiple regions based on different traffic types and/or periodicities of the clients connected to the regions. For example, the system partitions the fabric into a stutter region for predictable, periodic clients and a non-stutter region for unpredictable, non-periodic clients. The system power-gates the entirety of the fabric in response to detecting a low activity condition. After power-gating the entirety of the fabric, the system periodically wakes up one or more stutter regions while keeping the other non-stutter regions in power-gated mode. Each stutter region monitors stutter client(s) for activity and processes any requests before going back into power-gated mode.

Abstract: A method includes, in response to each write request of a plurality of write requests received at a memory-side cache device coupled with a memory device, writing payload data specified by the write request to the memory-side cache device, and when a first bandwidth availability condition is satisfied, performing a cache write-through by writing the payload data to the memory device, and recording an indication that the payload data written to the memory-side cache device matches the payload data written to the memory device.

Abstract: A method of controlling a cache is disclosed. The method comprises receiving a request to allocate a portion of memory to store data. The method also comprises directly mapping a portion of memory to an assigned contiguous portion of the cache memory when the request to allocate a portion of memory to store the data includes a cache residency request that the data continuously resides in cache memory. The method also comprises mapping the portion of memory to the cache memory using associative mapping when the request to allocate a portion of memory to store the data does not include a cache residency request that data continuously resides in the cache memory.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for implementing dynamic control of a multi-region fabric are disclosed. A system includes at least one or more processing units, one or more memory devices, and a communication fabric coupled to the processing unit(s) and memory device(s). The system partitions the fabric into multiple regions based on different traffic types and/or periodicities of the clients connected to the regions. For example, the system partitions the fabric into a stutter region for predictable, periodic clients and a non-stutter region for unpredictable, non-periodic clients. The system power-gates the entirety of the fabric in response to detecting a low activity condition. After power-gating the entirety of the fabric, the system periodically wakes up one or more stutter regions while keeping the other non-stutter regions in power-gated mode. Each stutter region monitors stutter client(s) for activity and processes any requests before going back into power-gated mode.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for implementing dynamic control of a multi-region fabric are disclosed. A system includes at least one or more processing units, one or more memory devices, and a communication fabric coupled to the processing unit(s) and memory device(s). The system partitions the fabric into multiple regions based on different traffic types and/or periodicities of the clients connected to the regions. For example, the system partitions the fabric into a stutter region for predictable, periodic clients and a non-stutter region for unpredictable, non-periodic clients. The system power-gates the entirety of the fabric in response to detecting a low activity condition. After power-gating the entirety of the fabric, the system periodically wakes up one or more stutter regions while keeping the other non-stutter regions in power-gated mode. Each stutter region monitors stutter client(s) for activity and processes any requests before going back into power-gated mode.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for dynamic buffer management in multi-client token flow control routers are disclosed. A system includes at least one or more processing units, a memory, and a communication fabric with a plurality of routers coupled to the processing unit(s) and the memory. A router servicing multiple active clients allocates a first number of tokens to each active client. The first number of tokens is less than a second number of tokens needed to saturate the bandwidth of each client to the router. The router also allocates a third number of tokens to a free pool, with tokens from the free pool being dynamically allocated to different clients. The third number of tokens is equal to the difference between the second number of tokens and the first number of tokens. An advantage of this approach is reducing the amount of buffer space needed at the router.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for dynamic buffer management in multi-client token flow control routers are disclosed. A system includes at least one or more processing units, a memory, and a communication fabric with a plurality of routers coupled to the processing unit(s) and the memory. A router servicing multiple active clients allocates a first number of tokens to each active client. The first number of tokens is less than a second number of tokens needed to saturate the bandwidth of each client to the router. The router also allocates a third number of tokens to a free pool, with tokens from the free pool being dynamically allocated to different clients. The third number of tokens is equal to the difference between the second number of tokens and the first number of tokens. An advantage of this approach is reducing the amount of buffer space needed at the router.

Abstract: A computing system uses a memory for storing data, one or more clients for generating network traffic and a communication fabric with network switches. The network switches include centralized storage structures, rather than separate input and output storage structures. The network switches store particular metadata corresponding to received packets in a single, centralized collapsing queue where the age of the packets corresponds to a queue entry position. The payload data of the packets are stored in a separate memory, so the relatively large amount of data is not shifted during the lifetime of the packet in the network switch. The network switches select sparse queue entries in the collapsible queue, deallocate the selected queue entries, and shift remaining allocated queue entries toward a first end of the queue with a delay proportional to the radix of the network switches.

Abstract: A system for implementing load balancing schemes includes one or more processing units, a memory, and a communication fabric with a plurality of switches coupled to the processing unit(s) and the memory. A switch of the fabric determines a first number of streams on a first input port that are targeting a first output port. The switch also determines a second number of requestors, from all input ports, that are targeting the first output port. Then, the switch calculates a throttle factor for the first input port by dividing the first number of streams by the second number of streams. The switch applies the throttle factor to regulate bandwidth on the first input port for requestors targeting the first output port. The switch also calculates throttle factors for the other ports and applies the throttle factors when regulating bandwidth on the other ports.

Abstract: A computing system uses a memory for storing data, one or more clients for generating network traffic and a communication fabric with network switches. The network switches include centralized storage structures, rather than separate input and output storage structures. The network switches store particular metadata corresponding to received packets in a single, centralized collapsing queue where the age of the packets corresponds to a queue entry position. The payload data of the packets are stored in a separate memory, so the relatively large amount of data is not shifted during the lifetime of the packet in the network switch. The network switches select sparse queue entries in the collapsible queue, deallocate the selected queue entries, and shift remaining allocated queue entries toward a first end of the queue with a delay proportional to the radix of the network switches.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for using a scoreboard to track updates to configuration state registers are disclosed. A system includes one or more processing nodes, one or more memory devices, a plurality of configuration state registers, and a communication fabric coupled to the processing unit(s) and memory device(s). The system uses a scoreboard to track updates to the configuration state registers during run-time. Prior to a node going into a power-gated state, the system stores only those configuration state registers that have changed. This reduces the amount of data written to memory on each transition into power-gated state, and increases the amount of time the node can spend in the power-gated state. Also, configuration state registers are grouped together to match the memory access granularity, and each group of configuration state registers has a corresponding scoreboard entry.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for using a scoreboard to track updates to configuration state registers are disclosed. A system includes one or more processing nodes, one or more memory devices, a plurality of configuration state registers, and a communication fabric coupled to the processing unit(s) and memory device(s). The system uses a scoreboard to track updates to the configuration state registers during run-time. Prior to a node going into a power-gated state, the system stores only those configuration state registers that have changed. This reduces the amount of data written to memory on each transition into power-gated state, and increases the amount of time the node can spend in the power-gated state. Also, configuration state registers are grouped together to match the memory access granularity, and each group of configuration state registers has a corresponding scoreboard entry.

Abstract: Systems, apparatuses, and methods for implementing a fractional pointer lookup table are disclosed. A system includes a fractional pointer lookup table and control logic coupled to the table. The control logic performs an access to the table with a numerator and a denominator, wherein the numerator and the denominator are integers. The control logic receives a result of the lookup, wherein the result is either a rounded-up value of a quotient of the numerator and denominator or a rounded-down value of the quotient. In one embodiment, the control logic provides a fractional pointer to the table with each access and receives a fractional pointer limit from the table. The control logic initializes the fractional pointer to zero, increments the fractional pointer after each access to the table, and resets the fractional pointer to zero when the fractional pointer reaches the fractional pointer limit.

Abstract: A system for implementing load balancing schemes includes one or more processing units, a memory, and a communication fabric with a plurality of switches coupled to the processing unit(s) and the memory. A switch of the fabric determines a first number of streams on a first input port that are targeting a first output port. The switch also determines a second number of requestors, from all input ports, that are targeting the first output port. Then, the switch calculates a throttle factor for the first input port by dividing the first number of streams by the second number of streams. The switch applies the throttle factor to regulate bandwidth on the first input port for requestors targeting the first output port. The switch also calculates throttle factors for the other ports and applies the throttle factors when regulating bandwidth on the other ports.