Method and apparatus for allocating processing resources

A method comprising the steps of:

• configuring a data structure corresponding to a pool of data processing resource units as a hierarchy including:
• first resource blocks, each corresponding to one of individual resource units,
• forming a first lowest level of the hierarchy, and
• second resource blocks, each second resource block corresponding to a group of the first resource blocks,
• forming a second, higher level of the hierarchy;
• receiving a request for a resource unit;
• allocating one of the first resource blocks available at the first level of the hierarchy;
• and
• if no first resource block is available at the first level of the hierarchy, converting one of the second resource blocks at the second level of the hierarchy into plural first resource blocks at the first level of the hierarchy, and allocating one of the converted first resource blocks.

A communications system, comprising:

• a pool of communications resource units configured in a structure having plural levels including:
• first resource blocks, each first resource block corresponding to an individual resource unit, provided in groups of first resource blocks and forming a first, lowest level, and
• second resource blocks, each second resource block corresponding to one of the first groupings of the first resource blocks, forming a second level above the first level;
• and
• a communications resource manager configured to allocate ones of the first and second resource blocks in response to communication resource requests to periodically reorganize resource blocks by moving one or more lower level resource blocks from one grouping to another grouping to create an additional higher level resource block.

A communications system, comprising:

• a pool of communications resource units configured using a list data structure stored in a memory, the pool of communications resource units having plural levels in a hierarchy including:
• first resource blocks, each first resource block corresponding to an individual resource unit, provided in groups of first resource blocks and forming a first, lowest level of the hierarchy, where the list data structure includes a first list storing a corresponding data record for each available, first resource block, and
• second resource blocks, each second resource block corresponding to a first grouping of the first resource blocks, forming a second level of the hierarchy above the first level, where the list data structure includes a second list storing a corresponding data record for each available, second resource block;
• a communications resource manager configured to allocate ones of the first and second resource blocks in response to communication resource requests, to remove allocated resource blocks from a corresponding list, and to periodically reorganize one or more of the first and second lists by moving one or more lower level resource blocks from one list position to another list position.

A communications system, comprising:

• a pool of communications resource units configured using a data structure having plural levels including resource blocks formed at plural levels in the data structure, where different resource blocks are logically linked in the data structure to form various groupings;
• a communications resource manager is configured to analyze a communications request and allocating one or more of the resource blocks;
• and
• a request monitor is configured to monitor the number of requests for communication resources at each level in the data structure and to select a level that receives a greater number of requests,
• wherein the communications resource manager is configured to reorganize the data structure by moving resource blocks from one grouping to another grouping to create additional resource blocks at the selected level.

A communications system, comprising:

• a pool of communications resource units including:
• first resource blocks forming a first, lowest level, each first resource block corresponding to one individual resource unit;
• second resource blocks forming a second higher level, each second resource block logically linked to a group of first resource blocks, and
• a communications resource manager configured to analyze a communications request such that if the request is for a first resource block, to allocate to the communications request one of the first resource blocks available at the first level, and if one of the first resource blocks is not available at the first level, to convert an available one of the second resource blocks at the second level into a group of available first resource blocks, and to allocate one of the converted first resource blocks to the communications request.