Write data mask for power reduction
AssigneeIntel Corporation
InventorsDavid J. Zimmerman, Robert M. Ellis, Rajesh Sundaram
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Devices, systems, and methods having increased efficiency selective writing to memory are disclosed and described. A memory controller, upon receiving a dirty data segment, performs a read-modify-write to retrieve a corresponding data line from memory, saves a copy of the data line, merges the dirty data segment into the appropriate location in the data line to create a modified data line, and generates a write mask from the modified data line and the copy of the data line.
Claims23
A memory apparatus, comprising:
- a memory controller to:
- receive a dirty data segment from a host;
- initiate a read-modify-write (RMW) operation to retrieve a RMW data line having a data segment corresponding to the dirty data segment from a write-in-place non-volatile memory (NVM);
- create a copy of the RMW data line;
- replace the data segment of the RMW data line with the dirty data segment to create a modified data line;
- generate a write mask from the modified data line and the copy of the data line;
- and
- send the modified data line, a write request, and the write mask to the NVM to write only bits that have been altered in the dirty data segment.
A memory system, comprising:
- a write-in-place non-volatile memory (NVM);
- a write data buffer (WDB);
- and
- a memory controller communicatively coupled to the NVM and the WDB, the memory controller to:
- receive a dirty data segment from a host;
- initiate a read-modify-write (RMW) operation to retrieve a RMW data line having a data segment corresponding to the dirty data segment from the NVM;
- create a copy of the RMW data line;
- replace the data segment of the RMW data line with the dirty data segment to create a modified data line;
- generate a write mask from the modified data line and the copy of the RMW data line;
- and
- send the modified data line, a write request, and the write mask to the NVM to write only bits that have been altered in the dirty data segment.
A method of increasing efficiency of selective writing to memory, comprising:
- receiving, at a memory controller, a dirty data segment from a host;
- initiating, from the memory controller, a read-modify-write (RMW) operation to retrieve, from a write-in-place non-volatile memory (NVM), a RMW data line having a data segment corresponding to the dirty data segment;
- creating, in the memory controller, a copy of the RMW data line;
- replacing, in the memory controller, the data segment of the RMW data line with the dirty data segment to create a modified data line;
- generating, in the memory controller, a write mask from the modified data line and the copy of the RMW data line;
- sending, to the NVM, the modified data line, a write request, and the write mask;
- and
- writing, to the NVM, only bits that have been altered in the dirty data segment.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.