Patents by Inventor Simon C. Steely, Jr.

Simon C. Steely, Jr. 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).

  • Publication number: 20120084497
    Abstract: An apparatus of an aspect includes a prefetch cache line address predictor to receive a cache line address and to predict a next cache line address to be prefetched. The next cache line address may indicate a cache line having at least 64-bytes of instructions. The prefetch cache line address predictor may have a cache line target history storage to store a cache line target history for each of multiple most recent corresponding cache lines. Each cache line target history may indicate whether the corresponding cache line had a sequential cache line target or a non-sequential cache line target. The cache line address predictor may also have a cache line target history predictor. The cache line target history predictor may predict whether the next cache line address is a sequential cache line address or a non-sequential cache line address, based on the cache line target history for the most recent cache lines.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2010
    Publication date: April 5, 2012
    Inventors: Samantika Subramaniam, Aamer Jaleel, Simon C. Steely, JR.
  • Publication number: 20120079208
    Abstract: An apparatus to resolve cache coherency is presented. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a microprocessor comprising one or more processing cores. The apparatus also includes a probe speculative address file unit, coupled to a cache memory, comprising a plurality of entries. Each entry includes a timer and a tag associated with a memory line. The apparatus further includes control logic to determine whether to service an incoming probe based at least in part on a timer value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2010
    Publication date: March 29, 2012
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, JR., William C. Hasenplaugh
  • Patent number: 8145847
    Abstract: A system comprises a first node having an associated cache including data having an associated first cache state. The first cache state is capable of identifying the first node as being an ordering point for serializing requests from other nodes for the data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2012
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 8090914
    Abstract: A system comprises a first node operative to provide a source broadcast requesting data. The first node associates an F-state with a copy of the data in response to receiving the copy of the data from memory and receiving non-data responses from other nodes in the system. The non-data responses include an indication that at least a second node includes a shared copy of the data. The F-state enabling the first node to serve as an ordering point in the system capable of responding to requests from other nodes in the system with a shared copy of the data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2012
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Gregory Edward Tierney, Stephen R. Van Doren, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Publication number: 20110145501
    Abstract: An apparatus and method is described herein for intelligently spilling cache lines. Usefulness of cache lines previously spilled from a source cache is learned, such that later evictions of useful cache lines from a source cache are intelligently selected for spill. Furthermore, another learning mechanism—cache spill prediction—may be implemented separately or in conjunction with usefulness prediction. The cache spill prediction is capable of learning the effectiveness of remote caches at holding spilled cache lines for the source cache. As a result, cache lines are capable of being intelligently selected for spill and intelligently distributed among remote caches based on the effectiveness of each remote cache in holding spilled cache lines for the source cache.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 16, 2009
    Publication date: June 16, 2011
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, JR., William C. Hasenplaugh, Aamer Jaleel, George Z. Chrysos
  • Patent number: 7962696
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed for updating owner predictor structures. In one embodiment, a multi-processor system includes an owner predictor control that provides an ownership update message corresponding to a block of data to at least one of a plurality of owner predictors in response to a change in an ownership state of the block of data. The update message comprises an address tag associated with the block of data and an identification associated with an owner node of the block of data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 14, 2011
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7856534
    Abstract: One disclosed embodiment may comprise a system that includes a home node that provides a transaction reference to a requester in response to a request from the requester. The requester provides an acknowledgement message to the home node in response to the transaction reference, the transaction reference enabling the requester to determine an order of requests at the home node relative to the request from the requester.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2010
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7818391
    Abstract: A system includes a first node that broadcasts a request for data. A second node having a first state associated with the data defines the second node as an ordering point for the data. The second node provides a response to the first node that transfers the ordering point to the first node in response to the request for the data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7769959
    Abstract: A system may comprise a first node that includes an ordering point for data, the first node being operative to employ a write-back transaction associated with writing the data back to memory. The first node broadcasts a write-back message to at least one other node in the system in response to an acknowledgement provided by the memory indicating that the ordering point for the data has migrated from the first node to the memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2010
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7725657
    Abstract: In one embodiment, the present invention includes a method for associating a first priority indicator with data stored in a first entry of a shared cache memory by a core to indicate a priority level of a first thread, and associating a second priority indicator with data stored in a second entry of the shared cache memory by a graphics engine to indicate a priority level of a second thread. Other embodiments are described and claimed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2010
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: William C. Hasenplaugh, Li Zhao, Ravishankar Iyer, Ramesh Illikkal, Srihari Makineni, Donald Newell, Aamer Jaleel, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7620696
    Abstract: A system comprises a first node that provides a broadcast request for data. The first node receives a read conflict response to the broadcast request from the first node. The read conflict response indicates that a second node has a pending broadcast read request for the data. A third node provides the requested data to the first node in response to the broadcast request from the first node. The first node fills the data provided by the third node in a cache associated with the first node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 17, 2009
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Stephen R. Van Doren, Gregory Edward Tierney, Simon C. Steely, Jr.
  • Patent number: 7409500
    Abstract: Multi-processor systems and methods are disclosed. One embodiment may comprise a multi-processor system with a processor having a processor pipeline that executes program instructions with data from speculative data fills that are provided in response to source requests. The multi-processor system may comprise a first cache that retains cache data associated with program instructions employing data from speculative data fills, and a second cache that retains cache data associated with data from speculative data fills that have been determined to be coherent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7409503
    Abstract: Multi-processor systems and methods are provided. One embodiment relates to a multi-processor system that may comprise a multi-processor system with a processor having a processor pipeline that executes program instructions with data from speculative fills that are provided in response to source requests. The multi-processor system may comprise a first register file that retains register values associated with program instruction employing data from speculative fills, and a second register file that retains register values associated with data from speculative fills that have been determined to be coherent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • Patent number: 7406565
    Abstract: Multi-processor systems and methods are disclosed. One embodiment may comprise 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, and a backup system that retains information associated with a previous processor execution state corresponding to an instruction associated with the speculative fill. The backup system may initiate a backup of the processor pipeline to the previous processor execution state if the speculative fill is determined to be non-coherent, and the processor pipeline may continue execution of program instructions if the speculative fill is determined to be coherent.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2008
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Simon C. Steely, Jr., Gregory Edward Tierney
  • 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