Compressed cache lines incorporating embedded prefetch history data
US7225297B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 28, 2004 |
| Grant date | May 29, 2007 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 12, 2025 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F2212/6024
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An apparatus and method utilize compressed cache lines that incorporate embedded prefetch history data associated with such cache lines. In particular, by compressing at least a portion of the data in a cache line, additional space may be freed up in the cache line to embed prefetch history data associated with the data in the cache line. By doing so, long-lived prefetch history data may essentially be embedded in a cache line and retrieved in association with that cache line to initiate the prefetching of additional data that is likely to be accessed based upon historical data generated for that cache line, and often with no little or no additional storage overhead.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.