Method and system for software control of hardware branch prediction mechanism in a data processor
US6662360B1 · kind B1 · utility
19Cited by
9References
8Claims
0Family size
Assignee
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Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 27, 1999 |
| Grant date | Dec 9, 2003 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 27, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F9/3848
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method and system is disclosed for software manipulation of hardware prediction mechanism in a data processor with software prediction. The hardware branch prediction mechanism is enhanced with at least two bits for path prediction. These bits are settable by a software and are capable of overriding the hardware branch prediction mechanism. Branch prediction information is encoded into a branch instruction in the software. This information includes a pre-determined value for each bit. Finally, a branch path of said instruction is predicted based on the value of the bits.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.