Patent · US Expired

Real-time hardware memory scrubbing

US6832340B2 · kind B2 · utility

64Cited by
15References
40Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJan 25, 2001
Grant dateDec 14, 2004
Priority date
Expiry dateJul 3, 2022

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG06F2211/1088
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A system and technique for correcting data errors in a memory device. More specifically, data errors in a memory device are corrected by scrubbing the corrupted memory device. Generally, a host controller delivers a READ command to a memory controller. The memory controller receives the request and retrieves the data from a memory sub-system. The data is delivered to the host controller. If an error is detected, a scrub command is induced through the memory controller to rewrite the corrected data through the memory sub-system. Once a scrub command is induced, an arbiter schedules the scrub in the queue. Because a significant amount of time can occur before initial read in the scrub write back to the memory, an additional controller may be used to compare all subsequent READ and WRITE commands to those scrubs scheduled in the queue. If a memory location is rewritten with new data prior to scheduled scrub corresponding to the same address location, the controller will cancel the scrub to that particular memory location.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.