Techniques for graphics profiling

• US 20050200627A1
• Filed: 03/11/2004
• Published: 09/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Desylva, Chuck V.
• Application Number:
  US10/797,957
• Publication Number:
  US 20050200627A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/520
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/323 Visualisation of programs or trace data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3466 Performance evaluation by tracing or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/86 Event-based monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/88 Monitoring involving counting
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0693 Calibration of display systems
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/06 Use of more than one graphics processor to process data before displaying to one or more screens
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/08 Power processing, i.e. workload management for processors involved in display operations, such as CPUs or GPUs
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/363 Graphics controllers

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus profile the processing of a graphics application. Performance data of a processing graphics application is monitored and dynamically presented on a display of a viewer at defined intervals. The performance data includes hardware and driver performance data for the processing graphics application at the defined intervals. The viewer can inspect the performance data for purposes of customizing the graphics application for a targeted hardware and software platform.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

detecting the processing of a graphics application;

inspecting selective contents of a processor at intervals during the processing;

dynamically presenting the selective contents to a display at the defined intervals.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

inspecting additional selective contents of a graphics driver at the intervals during the processing; and

dynamically presenting the additional selective contents at the defined intervals.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein inspecting further includes examining hardware performance counters of the processor.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein inspecting further includes acquiring zone rendering information as the selective contents.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein presenting further includes presenting portions of the selective contents as a graphical bar which grows larger as more activity is detected within the processor during the processing and which grows smaller as less activity is detected with the processor during the processing.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein presenting further includes associating and presenting labels with portions of the selective contents within a display window.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein associating and presenting further includes presenting the labels as at least one of a total pixels rendered label, a polynomial entering rendering label, and a polynomial entering a hard ware binner label.

8. A method, comprising:

retrieving performance data associated with a processing graphics application;

dynamically updating a presentation of the retrieved performance data as the graphics application processes.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein retrieving further includes determining a period for retrieving the performance data based on a predefined period.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein periodically retrieving further includes determining a period for retrieving the performance data based on at least one of a randomly generated period and detection of an event.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein periodically retrieving further includes inspecting memory associated with a processor and a graphics driver to retrieve the performance data.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein periodically retrieving further includes retrieving zone rendering information from the memory related to rendering a three-dimensional image.

13. The method of claim 8 further comprising linking portions of the graphics application to the processing of the method.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising dynamically presenting the presentation within a portion of a display that presents the graphics data of the graphics application.

15. A system, comprising:

a graphics monitor; and

a graphics display interface, wherein the graphics monitor processes while a graphics application processes and inspects selective contents of a processor at intervals, and wherein the selective contents are communicated to the graphics display interface to be dynamically presented at the intervals on a display.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the graphics monitor also inspects additional selective contents associated with a graphics driver and communicates the additional selective contents to the graphics display interface where they are dynamically and concurrently presented at the intervals on the display with the selective contents.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein the selective contents are related to at least one of zone-rendering information and double-data-rate synchronous dynamic random access memory speed information.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein the graphics display interface presents the selective contents within a graphic window of the display.

19. The system of claim 18 where the graphic window is overlaid on one or more additional windows which are presented as a result of the processing graphics application within the display.

20. A machine accessible medium having associated instructions, which when accessed, results in a machine performing:

monitoring performance data associated with a processing graphics application; and

dynamically updating a presentation of the performance data on a display at periodic intervals.

21. The medium of claim 20 wherein the graphics application is an application related to an electronic game.

22. The medium of claim 20 further including instructions for acquiring the performance data from a processor that is processing the graphics application and from a graphics driver associated with the processing of the graphics application.

23. The medium of claim 20 wherein the performance data is related to zone rendering associated with graphics data that the graphics application is processing.

24. The medium of claim 23 wherein the graphics data is related to one or more three-dimensional objects.

25. An apparatus, comprising:

monitor logic linked to selective portions of a graphics application; and

monitor interface logic interfaced to the monitor logic and to a display associated with the graphics application, wherein during execution of the graphics application the monitor logic is invoked and dynamically inspects selective memory contents associated with a processor and graphics driver and communicates the contents to the monitor interface logic, the monitor interface logic presents the contents within a graphical window of the display.

26. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein the graphic window is concurrently updated and displayed as an overlay to one or more additional graphical windows within the display which present graphical data associated with the processing graphics application.

27. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein the monitor interface logic can suspend or restart the processing of the monitor logic.

28. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein the monitor logic is configured to inspect the selective memory contents during at least one of pre-defined intervals and randomly generated intervals.