Semiconductor storage device, with organizing-state notify processing
AssigneeKabushiiki Kaisha Toshiba
InventorsNaoki Ootsuka, Hirokazu Morita, Hirokuni Yano
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Abstract
According to the embodiments, a first storing unit as a cache, second and third storing units included in a nonvolatile semiconductor memories, and a controller are included, in which the controller includes an organizing unit that increases a resource by organizing data in the nonvolatile semiconductor memories, and an organizing-state notifying unit that, when an organizing-state notification request is input from a host, outputs an organizing state by the organizing unit to the host as an organizing-state notification, thereby improving a command response speed and the writing efficiency.
Claims21
A semiconductor storage device comprising:
- a first storing unit as a cache memory;
- a second storing unit and a third storing unit included in a nonvolatile semiconductor memory in which data reading and writing is performed by a page unit and data erasing is performed by a block unit larger than the page unit;
- and
- a controller that allocates storage areas of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory to the second storing unit and the third storing unit by a logical block unit associated with one or more blocks, wherein
- the controller includes
- a write control unit that writes a plurality of data in a sector unit into the first storing unit,
- a flush control unit that flushes a plurality of data written in the first storing unit to the second storing unit as data in a first management unit having a size N times a size of the sector unit, wherein N is a natural number 2 or greater, and flushes a plurality of data written in the first storing unit to the third storing unit as data in a second management unit having a size M times a size of the first management unit, wherein M is a natural number 2 or greater,
- an organizing unit that, when a resource usage of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory exceeds a predetermined threshold, increases a resource by organizing data in the nonvolatile semiconductor memory, and
- an organizing-state notifying unit that, when an organizing-state notification request is input from a host, analyzes an organizing state by the organizing unit and outputs an analysis result to the host as an organizing-state notification.
A method of controlling a semiconductor storage device that includes a first storing unit as a cache memory, and a second storing unit and a third storing unit included in a nonvolatile semiconductor memory in which data reading and data writing is performed by a page unit and data erasing is performed by a block unit larger than the page unit, the method comprising:
- allocating a storage area of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory to the second storing unit and the third storing unit by a logical block unit associated with one or more blocks;
- writing a plurality of data in a sector unit into the first storing unit;
- flushing a plurality of data written in the first storing unit to the second storing unit as data in a first management unit having a size N times as a size of the sector unit, wherein N is a natural number 2 or greater, and flushing a plurality of data written in the first storing unit to the third storing unit as data in a second management unit having a size M times as a size of the first management unit, wherein M is a natural number 2 or greater;
- increasing, when a resource usage of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory exceeds a predetermined threshold, a resource by organizing data in the nonvolatile semiconductor memory;
- and
- analyzing an organizing state and outputting an analysis result to a host as an organizing-state notification when an organizing-state notification request is input from the host.
An information processing apparatus comprising:
- a host;
- and
- a semiconductor storage device that includes
- a first storing unit as a cache memory,
- a second storing unit and a third storing unit included in a nonvolatile semiconductor memory in which data reading and writing is performed by a page unit and data erasing is performed by a block unit larger than the page unit;
- and
- a controller that allocates storage areas of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory to the second storing unit and the third storing unit by a logical block unit associated with one or more blocks, wherein the host includes a unit that issues an organizing-state notification request, and the controller of the semiconductor storage device includes
- a write control unit that writes a plurality of data in a sector unit into the first storing unit,
- a flush control unit that flushes a plurality of data written in the first storing unit to the second storing unit as data in a first management unit having a size N times as a size of the sector unit, wherein N is a natural number 2 or greater, and flushes a plurality of data written in the first storing unit to the third storing unit as data in a second management unit having a size M times as a size of the first management unit, wherein M is a natural number 2 or greater,
- an organizing unit that, when a resource usage of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory exceeds a predetermined threshold, increases a resource by organizing data in the nonvolatile semiconductor memory, and
- an organizing-state notifying unit that, when an organizing-state notification request is input from the host, analyzes an organizing state by the organizing unit and outputs an analysis result to the host as an organizing-state notification.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.