System and method for interrupt handling

• US 20060117325A1
• Filed: 11/10/2004
• Published: 06/01/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Oney, Adrian J., Wieland, Peter W.
• Granted Patent: US 7,149,832 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/321
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/24 using interrupt G06F13/32 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/468 Specific access rights for resources, e.g. using capability register
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4812 by interrupt, e.g. masked

Abstract

A system, methodology and/or computer architecture that facilitates processing device interrupts (including level-triggered interrupts) in a user-mode process is provided. The kernel interrupt handler can cause a dedicated thread in the process to wake and invoke the driver interrupt service routine. This thread can then return control to the kernel interrupt handler. In addition to processing interrupts in an isolated mode, the context switching technique could be used in any isolated environment to process interrupts via dedicated execution context methods.

Claims

1. A system that facilitates delivering an interrupt to a driver in an isolated environment, the isolated environment is separate from a real kernel environment, the system comprising:

a component that, upon receipt of the interrupt in the real kernel environment, invokes a proxy interrupt service routine (ISR) associated with a proxy driver, the proxy ISR associates the interrupt to a dedicated execution context;

a component that directs a kernel to context switch to the dedicated execution context;

a component that transitions to the isolated environment and invokes an ISR associated with the isolated driver;

a component that returns to the real kernel environment and switches back to the interrupt; and

a component that determines if the interrupt was handled.

2. The system of claim 1, the execution context is a thread.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a component that simulates an interface associated to the isolated driver.

4. The system of claim 3, further comprising an AI component having an inference component that facilitates automatically determining the priority level based upon the interrupt.

5. The system of claim 4, the inference component employs a utility-based analyses in determining the priority level.

6. The system of claim 4, the inference component employs a statistical-based analysis in determining the priority level.

7. The system of claim 1, the isolated driver registers the ISR associated to the isolated driver.

8. The system of claim 1, the proxy driver registers the proxy ISR associated to the interrupt.

9. A computer architecture that employs the system of claim 1.

10. A desktop computing system that employs the system of claim 1.

11. A computer readable medium having stored thereon the components of claim 1.

12. A method for transmitting an interrupt message in an isolated environment to a driver, the method comprising:

invoking a proxy ISR within a real kernel environment distinct from the isolated environment;

determining a dedicated execution context associated to the interrupt message;

context switching to the dedicated execution context;

transitioning to a user mode within the isolated environment;

invoking a driver ISR;

returning to the real kernel environment and switching back to the interrupt message; and

determining if the interrupt message was handled.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising simulating an interface associated to the driver in the isolated environment.

14. The method of claim 13, the execution context is a thread.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising automatically determining a priority level as based upon the interrupt message.

16. The method of claim 12, further comprising registering the isolated driver ISR.

17. The method of claim 12, further comprising registering the proxy ISR associated to the interrupt message.

18. A computer readable medium having stored thereon computer executable instructions for carrying out the method of claim 12.

19. A system that facilitates processing an interrupt in a protected environment, the system comprising:

means for determining a dedicated execution context associated to the interrupt;

means for context switching to the dedicated execution context;

means for transitioning from a kernel mode to an isolation mode within the protected environment, the isolation mode is separate from an environment in which the real kernel runs;

means for invoking a driver ISR; and

means for returning to the environment in which the real kernel runs and switching back to the interrupt.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising means for determining if the interrupt was handled.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising means for simulating an interface associated to the driver in the protected environment.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising means for automatically determining a priority level for associated to the interrupt.

23. A computer readable medium having stored thereon computer executable instructions for carrying out the system of claim 21.

24. A threaded interrupt system that facilitates delivering an interrupt message from a real kernel environment to an isolated driver in a isolated mode, the system comprising:

a component that simulates an interface associated to the isolated driver;

a proxy interrupt service routine (ISR) associated with a proxy driver, the proxy ISR associates the interrupt message in the real kernel environment to a dedicated thread;

a kernel that context switches to the dedicated thread;

a component that transitions to the isolated mode and invokes an ISR associated with the isolated driver;

a component that returns to the real kernel environment and switches back to the interrupt message; and

a component that determines if the interrupt message was handled.

25. The system of claim 24, further comprising an Al component having an inference component that facilitates automatically determining a priority level of the interrupt message.

26. The system of claim 25, the proxy driver registers the proxy ISR associated to the interrupt message.

27. A computer architecture that employs the system of claim 26.

28. A data packet that employs the system of claim 24.

29. A computer readable medium having stored thereon the components of claim 24.