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US 9,804,871 B2Granted
Instruction-set support for invocation of VMM-configured services without VMM intervention
AssigneeIntel Corporation
InventorsGilbert Neiger, Barry E. Huntley, Ravi L. Sahita, Vedvyas Shanbhogue, Jason W. Brandt
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A processing core comprising instruction execution logic circuitry and register space. The register space to be loaded from a VMCS, commensurate with a VM entry, with information indicating whether a service provided by the processing core on behalf of the VMM is enabled. The instruction execution logic to, in response to guest software invoking an instruction: refer to the register space to confirm that the service has been enabled, and, refer to second register space or memory space to fetch input parameters for said service written by said guest software.
Claims21
A method performed by a processor comprising:
- writing, into a virtual machine control structure (VMCS), an indication that an instruction is enabled for a virtual machine of the processor, and a plurality of services the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine;
- loading, upon entry into the virtual machine, the indication from the VMCS into register space of the processor;
- receiving a request from the virtual machine, to perform the instruction;
- decoding the instruction into a decoded instruction with a decode unit of the processor;
- and
- executing the decoded instruction with an execution unit of the processor to:
- check if the instruction, requested for execution by the virtual machine of the processor, is enabled for the virtual machine by reading the register space,
- check if a service requested by the virtual machine of the processor is one of the plurality of services the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine by reading the register space, wherein the plurality of services comprises at least one non-interrupt service the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine, and
- perform the service without exiting the virtual machine if the instruction is enabled for the virtual machine and the service is one of the plurality of services.
6 more elements
A processor comprising:
- a decode unit to decode an instruction into a decoded instruction in response to receiving a request from a virtual machine to perform the instruction;
- and
- an execution unit to execute the decoded instruction to:
- check if the instruction, requested for execution by the virtual machine of the processor, is enabled for the virtual machine by reading a register space of the processor,
- check if a service requested by the virtual machine of the processor is one of a plurality of services the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine by reading the register space, wherein the plurality of services comprises at least one non-interrupt service the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine, and
- perform the service without exiting the virtual machine if the instruction is enabled for the virtual machine and the service is one of the plurality of services, wherein a virtual machine control structure (VMCS) is to store an indication that the instruction is enabled for the virtual machine of the processor, and the plurality of services the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine, and the indication is loaded into the register space of the processor from the VMCS upon entry into the virtual machine.
3 more elements
A non-transitory machine readable medium containing stored program code that when processed by a machine causes a method to be performed, said method comprising:
- writing, into a virtual machine control structure (VMCS), an indication that an instruction is enabled for a virtual machine of the processor, and a plurality of services the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine;
- loading, upon entry into the virtual machine, the indication from the VMCS into register space of the processor;
- receiving a request from the virtual machine, to perform the instruction;
- decoding the instruction into a decoded instruction with a decode unit of the processor;
- and
- executing the decoded instruction with an execution unit of the processor to:
- check if the instruction, requested for execution by the virtual machine of the processor, is enabled for the virtual machine by reading the register space,
- check if a service requested by the virtual machine of the processor is one of the plurality of services the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine by reading the register space, wherein the plurality of services comprises at least one non-interrupt service the processor is to perform without exiting the virtual machine, and
- perform the service without exiting the virtual machine if the instruction is enabled for the virtual machine and the service is one of the plurality of services.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.