Incremental garbage collection
AssigneeMicrosoft Corporation
InventorsDavid M. Sauntry, Michael E. Markley, Mark Gilbert
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An incremental garbage collector is disclosed. Upon termination of a function or program, the incremental garbage collector scans the object heap for objects allocated by the function or program that are not referenced outside the function or program that allocated the objects. Memory occupied by such objects is immediately reclaimed without having to wait for the garbage collector.
Claims14
A method for identifying an object, the method comprising the steps of indicating on the object:
- a thread identification;
- a stack number;
- and
- whether the object is local.
A method for reclaiming a memory area occupied by an object in a heap, the object having indicated thereon a thread identification, a stack number, and whether the object is local, the method comprising the steps of:
- identifying a reclaimable object;
- and
- indicating on the memory area occupied by the object that the memory area occupied by the object is available for future allocation.
A computerized device comprising:
- a virtual machine;
- a computer readable medium having stored thereon:
- a computer program executed within the environment of the virtual machine;
- and
- an incremental garbage collector executed within the environment of the virtual machine;
- and
- memory having an object heap;
- wherein the computer program calls at least one function;
- wherein the at least one function allocates at least one object from the memory having an object heap;
- wherein upon termination of the at least one function that allocated the at least one object, the incremental garbage collector determines whether the at least one object is local to the at least one function;
- and
- wherein, upon determining that the at least one object is local to the at least one function, the incremental garbage collector reclaims such at least one object.
A computer readable medium having a computer program stored thereon to cause a suitably equipped computer to perform a method for identifying an object, the method comprising the steps of indicating on the object:
- a thread identification;
- a stack number;
- and
- whether the object is local.
A computer readable medium having a computer program stored thereon to cause a suitably equipped computer to perform a method for reclaiming a memory area occupied by an object in a heap, the object having indicated thereon a thread identification, a stack number, and whether the object is local, the method comprising the steps of:
- identifying a reclaimable object;
- and
- indicating on the memory area occupied by the object that the memory area occupied by the object is available for future allocation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.