System for using rate of exception event generation during execution of translated instructions to control optimization of the translated instructions
AssigneeTransmeta Corporation
InventorsLinus Torvalds, David Keppel
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for modifying operating conditions within a computer which translates instructions from a target instruction set to a host instruction set including the steps of monitoring an event occurring within a component of the computer, counting events occurring within a selected interval, generating an exception if a total of events within the selected interval exceeds a prescribed limit, and responding to the exception by modifying a translated sequence of host instructions.
Claims20
A method for modifying translated instructions within a computer which dynamically translates instructions from a target instruction set to a host instruction set and compiles translated instructions to different levels of optimization comprising the steps of:
- monitoring an event occurring within a component of the computer, wherein the event is the occurrence of a first exception during the execution of a translated sequence of host instructions,
- counting occurrences of said event occurring within a selected interval,
- generating a second exception if a total of the occurrences of said event within the selected interval exceeds a prescribed limit, and
- responding to the second exception by modifying the translated sequence of host instructions.
An apparatus for modifying translated instructions within a computer which dynamically translates instructions from a target instruction set to a host instruction set and compiles translated instructions to different levels of optimization comprising:
- means for monitoring an event occurring within a component of the computer, wherein the event is the occurrence of a first exception during the execution of a translated sequence of host instructions,
- means for counting occurrences of said event occurring within a selected interval,
- means for generating a second exception if a total of the occurrences of said event within the selected interval exceeds a prescribed limit, and
- means for responding to the second exception by modifying the translated sequence of host instructions.
A method for modifying translated instructions within a computer which dynamically translates instructions from a target instruction set to a host instruction set and compiles translated instructions to different levels of optimization comprising the steps of:
- monitoring a event occurring within a component of the computer, wherein the event indicates an attempt to write to protected memory,
- counting occurrences of said event occurring within a selected interval,
- generating an exception if a total of the occurrences of said event within the selected interval exceeds a prescribed limit, and
- responding to the exception by modifying a translated sequence of host instructions.
A method for modifying translated instructions within a computer which dynamically translates instructions from a target instruction set to a host instruction set and compiles translated instructions to different levels of optimization comprising the steps of:
- monitoring a event occurring within a component of the computer, wherein the event indicates a scheduling error in optimizing a translation,
- counting occurrences of said event occurring within a selected interval,
- generating an exception if a total of the occurrences of said event within the selected interval exceeds a prescribed limit, and
- responding to the exception by modifying a translated sequence of host instructions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.