Pre-memory resource contention resolution
US8392640B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 3, 2009 |
| Grant date | Mar 5, 2013 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 31, 2031 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F9/4401
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Techniques are disclosed relating to resource contention resolution in a pre-memory environment. Prior to system memory being accessible, a resource control processing element controls access to a hardware resource by a plurality of processing elements by granting received requests from the processing elements for access to the resource. The resource control processing element may prioritize requests based on a determined amount of utilization of the hardware resource by individual ones of the processing elements. In one embodiment, processing elements request for information from a bus controller (e.g., an SMBus controller) that is usable to initialize system memory. The resource control processing element may respond to the requests by retrieving the requested information from the controller and providing that information to the processing element or by retrieving the requested information from a cache and providing that information to the processing element.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.