Virtual machine monitors for scalable multiprocessors
US6075938A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 10, 1998 |
| Grant date | Jun 13, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 10, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F12/1045
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The problem of extending modern operating systems to run efficiently on large-scale shared memory multiprocessors without a large implementation effort is solved by a unique type of virtual machine monitor. Virtual machines are used to run multiple commodity operating systems on a scalable multiprocessor. To reduce the memory overheads associated with running multiple operating systems, virtual machines transparently share major data structures such as the operating system code and the file system buffer cache. We use the distributed system support of modem operating systems to export a partial single system image to the users. Two techniques, copy-on-write disks and the use of a special network device, enable transparent resource sharing without requiring the cooperation of the operating systems. This solution addresses many of the challenges facing the system software for these machines. The overheads of the monitor are small and the approach provides scalability as well as the ability to deal with the non-uniform memory access time of these systems. The overall solution achieves most of the benefits of operating systems customized for scalable multiprocessors yet it can be achie…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.