Apparatus and method for efficient sharing of virtual memory translations
US5630087A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 2, 1994 |
| Grant date | May 13, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 2, 2014 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F12/10
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method and apparatus to share virtual memory translations in a computer is described. The apparatus includes an operating system that runs in conjunction with a central processing unit. The operating system is programmed to include an address identification routine to identify distinct virtual memory translation entries, associated with a plurality of distinct processes running on the computer, that map to one or more common physical memory page addresses. The operating system also includes a mask assignment routine to assign a first mask value to the distinct virtual memory translation entries, and a write routine to write, to a translation-lookaside buffer or a page table, the distinct virtual memory translation entries as a single address associated with the first mask value. A comparison mechanism is used to compare a second mask value of a translation-request virtual memory translation value to the first mask value to determine whether the second mask value corresponds to said first mask value. If the two mask values correspond, then the single address associated with the first mask value is used as a virtual memory translation address.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.