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US 8,621,144 B2Granted
Accelerated resume from hibernation in a cached disk system
AssigneeIntel Corporation
InventorsMichael K. Eschmann, Wayne Allen
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A non-volatile (NV) memory may store hiberfile data before entering a hibernate state, and retrieve the data upon resume from hibernation. The reserve space in the NV memory (i.e., the erased blocks available to be used while in the run-time mode) may be used to store hiberfile data. Further, a write-through cache policy may be used to assure that all of the hiberfile data saved in cache will also be stored on the disk drive during the hibernation, so that if the cache and the disk drive are separated during hibernation, the full correct hiberfile data will still be available for a resume operation.
Claims22
A computer system, comprising:
- a processor;
- a disk drive coupled to the processor;
- and
- a non-volatile (NV) memory coupled to the disk drive to operate as a cache memory for the disk drive during runtime operations and to operate as a storage for hiberfile data during a low power state, the low power state being relative to a higher power state of the runtime operations, the NV memory to be used to provide access to relatively frequently-used data on the disk drive when the disk drive has been spun down during the runtime operations;
- wherein a reserve space in the NV memory during runtime operations is to be used as storage for the hiberfile data, the reserve space being erased blocks that are available to be used during the runtime operations to store the hiberfile data, the NV memory to use a write-through cache policy that results in all of the hiberfile data that is cached in the NV memory also being stored in the disk drive during the low power state;
- also wherein, in determining the hiberfile data that is to be saved, unpopulated pinned data is given priority over unpinned data.
3 more elements
An apparatus, comprising:
- a non-volatile (NV) memory to be coupled to a disk drive to operate as a cache memory for the disk drive during runtime operations and to operate as a storage for hiberfile data during a low power state, the low power state being relative to a higher power state of the runtime operations, the NV memory to be used to provide access to relatively frequently-used data on the disk drive when the disk drive has been spun down during the runtime operations;
- wherein a reserve space in the NV memory during runtime operations is to be used as storage for the hiberfile data, the reserve space being erased blocks that are available to be used during the runtime operations to store the hiberfile data, the NV memory to use a write-through cache policy that results in all of the hiberfile data that is cached in the NV memory also being stored in the disk drive during the low power state;
- also wherein, in determining the hiberfile data that is to be saved, unpopulated pinned data is given priority over unpinned data.
A method, comprising:
- using a non-volatile (NV) memory as a disk cache during runtime operations in a computer system having a disk drive, the NV memory to be used to provide access to relatively frequently-used data on the disk drive when the disk drive has been spun down during the runtime operations;
- and
- using the NV memory to store hiberfile data during a low power state of the computer system, the low power state being relative to a higher power state of the runtime operations, wherein the NV memory is to use a reserve space in the NV memory as storage for the hiberfile data, the reserve space being erased blocks that are available to be used during the runtime operations to store the hiberfile data, the NV memory to use a write-through cache policy that results in all of the hiberfile data that is cached in the NV memory also being stored in the disk drive during the low power state;
- also wherein, in determining the hiberfile data that is to be saved, unpopulated pinned data is given priority over unpinned data.
1 more element
A non-transitory a tangible machine-readable medium that contains instructions, which when executed by one or more processors result in performing operations comprising:
- using a non-volatile (NV) memory as a disk cache during runtime operations in a computer system having a disk drive, the NV memory to be used to provide access to relatively frequently-used data on the disk drive when the disk drive has been spun down during the runtime operations;
- and
- using the NV memory to store hiberfile data during a low power state of the computer system, the low power state being relative to a higher power state of the runtime operations, wherein the NV memory is to use a reserve space in the NV memory as storage for the hiberfile data, the reserve space being erased blocks that are available to be used during the runtime operations to store the hiberfile data, the NV memory to use a write-through cache policy that results in all of the hiberfile data that is cached in the NV memory also being stored in the disk drive during the low power state;
- also wherein, in determining the hiberfile data that is to be saved, unpopulated pinned data is given priority over unpinned data.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.