Systems and methods for frame presentation and modification in a networking environment

In a data processing system having a first processing core, a queue manager, a system memory external to the first processing core, and a memory access engine, a method comprising:

• executing a task within the first processing core which requires access to a frame stored within the system memory, wherein the frame includes one or more contiguous portions, and wherein the queue manager stores a frame descriptor identifying the frame;
• in response to receiving the frame descriptor from the queue manager, creating, by the memory access engine, a working frame descriptor using the frame descriptor, and storing the working frame descriptor in storage circuitry of the memory access engine, wherein the working frame descriptor identifies a location of each contiguous portion of the frame in the system memory;
• during execution of the task, requesting access to a first segment of the frame;
• in response to the requesting access to the first segment, copying, by the memory access engine, the requested first segment of the frame from the system memory to a workspace of the first processing core and creating a first segment handle in the working frame descriptor to identify the requested first segment in the workspace;
• modifying the requested first segment in the workspace;
• and
• after the modifying the requested first segment in the workspace, updating, by the memory access engine, the frame in the system memory using the first segment handle and the modified requested first segment.