Method for reading a nonvolatile memory by means of metadata and of a look-up table

An integrated circuit comprising:

• a processing unit;
• at least one nonvolatile memory, communicatively coupled to the processing unit, including electrically programmable and erasable memory cells, and wherein the processing unit is configured to receive write commands and read commands and to execute commands that cause the following to be performed:
• writing, in erased blocks of a nonvolatile first memory zone, data each having a logical address defined in relation to a virtual memory;
• writing, in a second nonvolatile memory zone, metadata structures associated with the data present in the first memory zone, the metadata structures including, for each datum:
• a physical address of the datum in the first memory zone;
• the logical address of the datum;
• and
• an information on a status, valid or invalid, of the datum;
• configuring, in a volatile memory zone, a look-up table including, for each logical address of the data stored in the first memory zone, addresses of metadata structures that include the logical address;
• and
• reading the look-up table, then reading metadata structures that the look-up table designates, to find, from the logical address of one of the data, an address in the first memory zone of a block containing a valid datum having the logical address.

A portable device comprising:

• a portable device housing;
• an integrated circuit within the housing, the integrated circuit including:
• a processing unit;
• at least one nonvolatile memory, communicatively coupled to the processing unit, including electrically programmable and erasable memory cells, and wherein the processing unit is configured to receive write commands and read commands and to execute commands that cause the following to be performed:
• writing, in erased blocks of a first memory zone, data each having a logical address defined in relation to a virtual memory;
• writing, in a second memory zone, metadata structures associated with the data present in the first memory zone, the metadata structures including, for each datum:
• an address of the datum in the first memory zone;
• the logical address of the datum;
• and
• an information on a status, valid or invalid, of the datum;
• configuring, in a volatile memory zone, a look-up table that includes, for each logical address of a datum stored in the first memory zone, addresses of metadata structures including the logical address;
• and
• reading the look-up table, then reading metadata structures that the look-up table designates, to find, from the logical address of a datum, an address in the first memory zone of a block containing a valid datum having the logical address.