Buffer descriptor prefetch in network and I/O design
US5606665A · kind A · utility
126Cited by
5References
6Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 1, 1994 |
| Grant date | Feb 25, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 1, 2014 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L9/40
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The invention improves the efficiency of buffer descriptor processing by performing descriptor prefetches, where multiple descriptors are read within the same descriptor bus transaction. The invention reads multiple buffer descriptors each time the bus is accessed. This allows for a smaller FIFO in a cut-through network adapter because it reduces the number of bus transactions needed to transfer data.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.