Patents by Inventor Gregory Edward Tierney

Gregory Edward Tierney has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7395374
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for interaction between different cache coherency protocols. One system may comprise a home node that receives a request for data from a first node in a first cache coherency protocol. A second node provides a conflict response to a request for the data from the home node. The conflict response indicates that an ordering point for the data is migrating according to a second cache coherency protocol, which is different from the first cache coherency protocol.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Gregory Edward Tierney, Stephen R. Van Doren, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7383409
    Abstract: One disclosed embodiment is a multi-processor system comprising a processor having a processor pipeline that executes program instructions with data from a speculative fill that is provided in response to a source request. The multi-processor system can further comprise a non-retired store cache that retains non-retired store data based on program instructions to store data into a data cache associated with the processor. The non-retired store data can be written to the data cache if data of a speculative fill associated with the non-retired store data is determined to be coherent. Other apparatus and methodologies are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7380107
    Abstract: Multi-processor systems and methods are disclosed that employ speculative source requests to obtain speculative data fills in response to a cache miss. In one embodiment, a source processor generates a speculative source request and a system source request in response to a cache miss. At least one processor provides a speculative data fill to a source processor in response to the speculative source request. The processor system provides a coherent data fill to the processor in response to the system source request.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney, Stephen R. Van Doren
  • Patent number: 7376794
    Abstract: Multi-processor systems and methods are disclosed. One embodiment may comprise a multi-processor system comprising at least one data fill provided to a source processor in response to a source request by the source processor, and a coherent signal generated by the multi-processor system that provides an indication of which data fill of the at least one data fill is a coherent data fill.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney, Stephen R. Van Doren
  • Patent number: 7360069
    Abstract: Multi-processor systems and methods are provided. One embodiment relates to a multi-processor system that may comprise a processor having a processor pipeline that executes program instructions across at least one memory barrier with data from speculative data fills that are provided in response to source requests, and a log that retains executed load instruction entries associated with executed program instruction. The executed load instruction entries may be retired if a cache line associated with data of the speculative data fill has not been invalidated in an epoch that is different from the epoch in which the executed load instruction is executed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7340565
    Abstract: Multiprocessor systems and methods are disclosed. One embodiment may comprise a plurality of processor cores. A given processor core may be operative to generate a request for desired data in response to a cache miss at a local cache. A shared cache structure may provide at least one speculative data fill and a coherent data fill of the desired data to at least one of the plurality of processor cores in response to a request from the at least one processor core. A processor scoreboard arbitrates the requests for the desired data. A speculative data fill of the desired data is provided to the at least one processor core. The coherent data fill of the desired data may be provided to the at least one processor core in a determined order.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7240165
    Abstract: A multi-processor system includes a requesting node that provides a first request for data to a home node. The requesting node being operative to provide a second request for the data to at least one predicted node in parallel with first request. The requesting node receives at least one coherent copy of the data from at least one of the home node and the at least one predicted node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 3, 2007
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7177987
    Abstract: Systems and method are disclosed for providing responses for different cache coherency protocols. One embodiment may comprise a system that includes a first node employing a first cache coherency protocol. A detector associated with the first node detects a condition based on responses provided by the first node to requests provided according to a second cache coherency protocol, the second cache coherency protocol being different from the first cache coherency protocol. The first node provides a response to a given one of the requests to the first node that varies based on the condition detected by the detector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2007
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7149852
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for blocking data responses. One system includes a target node that, in response to a source broadcast request for requested data, provides a response that includes a copy of the requested data. The target node also provides a blocking message to a home node associated with the requested data. The blocking message being operative cause the home node to provide a non-data response to the source broadcast request if the blocking message is matched with the source broadcast request at the home node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2006
    Assignee: Hewlett Packard Development Company, LP.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7143245
    Abstract: A system comprises a first node including data having an associated D-state and a second node operative to provide a source broadcast requesting the data. The first node is operative in response to the source broadcast to provide the data to the second node and transition the state associated with the data at the first node from the D-state to an O-state without concurrently updating memory. An S-state is associated with the data at the second node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2006
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Gregory Edward Tierney, Stephen R. Van Doren, Simon C. Steely, Jr.