Method and apparatus for efficiently providing data from a data storage medium to a processing entity
US5848436A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 6, 1996 |
| Grant date | Dec 8, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 6, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F9/34
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method and apparatus for causing a data line to be fetched in an order consistent with the data structure of a processor's modified little endian mode or big endian mode of operation is accomplished when the processor requests a particular word that is not currently stored in cache memory. The request includes an address of the particular word and an indication is provided as to whether the processor is operating in the modified little endian mode or the big endian mode. A memory manager, upon receiving the request, retrieves a line of data from memory (storage device) based on the address and the mode of operation. For example, when the big endian mode is used, the line of data is retrieved using a target word first ordering and when the modified little endian mode is used, the line of data is retrieved using a reverse target word first ordering.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.