Performance Monitor Unit for Sampling all Performance Events Generated by a Processor

A computer program product, comprising a computer recordable medium, in a performance monitor hardware unit, the computer recordable medium tangibly embodying a plurality of instructions executable by a processor, the instructions comprising:

• instructions for receiving, within the performance monitor hardware unit, a plurality of performance event signals, a plurality of performance event signals indicating a current full event state of the processor at a particular time;
• instructions for counting only a selected subset of the plurality of performance event signals by a plurality of hardware counters included in the performance monitor hardware unit;
• instructions for intercepting, by a hardware event register included in the performance monitor hardware unit, the plurality of performance event signals;
• and instructions for outputting, by the hardware event register, the selected subset of the performance signals to the plurality of counters;
• and
• instructions for storing current values of the plurality of performance event signals together as a single unit in the hardware event register, the single unit being a full set of available performance event signals that indicate the current full event state of the processor at a particular time.