Data processing apparatus and method for performing hazard detection

• US 20100250802A1
• Filed: 03/26/2009
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arm Ltd. (United Kingdom) (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Arm Ltd. (United Kingdom) (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Rose, Andrew Christopher, Waugh, Alex James
• Granted Patent: US 7,941,584 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4022 using switching circuits, e.g. switching matrix, connection or expansion network G06F13/4009 takes precedence

Abstract

A data processing apparatus and method are provided for performing hazard detection in respect of a series of access requests issued by processing circuitry for handling by one or more slave devices. The series of access requests include one or more write access requests, each write access request specifying a write operation to be performed by an addressed slave device, and each issued write access request being a pending write access request until the write operation has been completed by the addressed slave device. Hazard detection circuitry comprises a pending write access history storage having at least one buffer and at least one counter for keeping a record of each pending write access request. Update circuitry is responsive to receipt of a write access request to be issued by the processing circuitry, to perform an update process to identify that write access request as a pending write access request in one of the buffers, and if the identity of another pending write access request is overwritten by that update process, to increment a count value in one of the counters. On completion of each write access request by the addressed slave device, the update circuitry performs a further update process to remove the record of that completed write access request from the pending write access history storage. Hazard checking circuitry is then responsive to at least a subset of the access requests to be issued by the processing circuitry, to reference the pending write access history storage in order to determine whether a hazard condition occurs. The manner in which the update circuitry uses a combination of buffers and counters to keep a record of each pending write access request provides improved performance with respect to known prior art techniques, without the hardware cost that would be associated with increasing the number of buffers.

Claims

1. A data processing apparatus for coupling to one or more slave devices, the data processing apparatus comprising:

processing circuitry for issuing a series of access requests for handling by said one or more slave devices, said series of access requests including one or more write access requests, each write access request specifying a write operation to be performed by an addressed slave device from said one or more slave devices, and each issued write access request being a pending write access request until the write operation has been completed by the addressed slave device; and

hazard detection circuitry for detecting occurrence of at least one hazard condition in respect of the series of access requests issued by the processing circuitry;

said hazard detection circuitry comprising;

a pending write access history storage comprising at least one buffer and at least one counter for keeping a record of each pending write access request;

update circuitry, responsive to receipt of a write access request to be issued by the processing circuitry, to perform an update process to identify that write access request as a pending write access request in one of said at least one buffers and, if the identity of another pending write access request is overwritten by that update process, to increment a count value in said at least one counter;

on completion of each write access request by the addressed slave device, the update circuitry being arranged to perform a further update process to remove the record of that completed write access request from the pending write access history storage; and

hazard checking circuitry, responsive to at least a subset of the access requests to be issued by the processing circuitry, to reference the pending write access history storage in order to determine whether said at least one hazard condition occurs.

2. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said at least one buffer comprises a plurality of buffers, and said at least one counter comprises a plurality of counters.

3. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein each write access request specifies a write address at which the write operation is to be performed by the addressed slave device, and the performance of said update process to identify a write access request as a pending write access request in one of said at least one buffers comprises storing at least the write address of that write access request in said one of said at least one buffers.

4. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

each counter in the pending write access history storage is associated with a group of access requests and is arranged to maintain a count value indicative of the number of pending write access requests in said group which are not identified in said at least one buffer; and

the update circuitry is arranged when performing said update process;

(i) to identify a free buffer from said at least one buffer and to store within said free buffer information identifying said write access request to be issued by the processing circuitry; and

(ii) if all of said at least one buffers store information identifying a pending write access request at the time a free buffer is to be identified, to select one of said at least one buffers to be said free buffer, to identify the group of access requests to which the current information stored in that selected free buffer belongs, and to increment the count value of the counter associated with that identified group.

5. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein if at said step (ii) it is determined that the count value of the counter associated with the identified group is such as to prevent the incrementing of that count value, the processing circuitry is stalled from issuing said write access request.

6. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein:

the update circuitry is arranged when performing said further update process on completion of each write access request by the addressed slave device;

(i) to identify the group of access requests to which the completed write access request belongs and to decrement the count value of the counter associated with that group if that count value is non-zero;

or

(ii) if the count value of the associated counter is zero, to invalidate the buffer storing the information identifying that completed write access request.

7. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein:

said at least one counter comprises a plurality of counters;

each access request issued by the processing circuitry has an ID value associated therewith; and

each group of access requests comprises those access requests having a particular ID value, such that said plurality of counters comprise a counter for each ID value.

8. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the information identifying a write access request as stored in each buffer comprises an indication of the ID value of that write access request.

9. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein the information identifying a write access request as stored in each buffer further comprises an indication of a write address specified by said write access request and a valid field, the valid field being set when the information identifying said write access request is stored in the buffer during said update process, and being cleared to invalidate the buffer during said further update process performed on completion of said write access request.

10. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said hazard checking circuitry is responsive to a read access request to be issued by the processing circuitry, to reference the pending write access history storage in order to determine whether issuance of the read access request would cause a read after write (RAW) hazard condition to occur.

11. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the hazard checking circuitry is arranged to cause the processing circuitry to stall issuance of the read access request if said RAW hazard condition is determined to occur.

12. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the hazard checking circuitry is arranged to determine occurrence of the RAW hazard if either of the following conditions is determined:

(a) a read address specified by the read access request matches a write address of a pending write access request identified in the at least one write access buffer;

(b) the count value in said at least one counter indicates the presence of a pending write access request that is capable of specifying a write address matching said read address.

13. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said hazard checking circuitry is responsive to a write access request to be issued by the processing circuitry, to reference the pending write access history storage in order to determine whether issuance of the write access request would cause a write after write (WAW) hazard condition to occur, the update circuitry being arranged to perform the update process in respect of that write access request only if said WAW hazard is determined not to occur by the hazard checking circuitry.

14. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the hazard checking circuitry is arranged to cause the processing circuitry to stall issuance of the write access request if said WAW hazard condition is determined to occur.

15. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the hazard checking circuitry is arranged to determine occurrence of the WAW hazard if either of the following conditions is determined:

(a) a write address specified by the write access request matches a write address of a pending write access request identified in the at least one write access buffer;

(b) the count value in said at least one counter indicates the presence of a pending write access request that is capable of specifying a write address matching the write address specified by the write access request.

16. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 15, wherein each access request issued by the processing circuitry has an ID value associated therewith, and at said steps (a) and (b) the hazard checking circuitry determines that the WAW hazard does not occur if the pending write access request giving rise to the match has the same ID value as the write access request to be issued by the processing circuitry.

17. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry has a storage structure associated therewith, the processing circuitry being arranged to perform an eviction process with respect to the storage structure as a result of which evicted content of the storage structure needs to be written to one of said at least one slave devices, the processing circuitry being arranged to issue a write access request for said evicted content to cause a record of that write access request to be maintained by the pending write access history storage of the hazard detection circuitry.

18. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein prior to performing said eviction process the pending write access history storage is referenced to ensure there is space to accommodate a record of the write access request to be issued for the evicted content.

19. A data processing apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein the storage structure is a cache.

20. A method of detecting occurrence of at least one hazard condition in respect of a series of access requests issued by processing circuitry for handling by one or more slave devices, said series of access requests including one or more write access requests, each write access request specifying a write operation to be performed by an addressed slave device from said one or more slave devices, and each issued write access request being a pending write access request until the write operation has been completed by the addressed slave device, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a pending write access history storage comprising at least one buffer and at least one counter for keeping a record of each pending write access request;

responsive to receipt of a write access request to be issued by the processing circuitry, performing an update process to identify that write access request as a pending write access request in one of said at least one buffers and, if the identity of another pending write access request is overwritten by that update process, to increment a count value in said at least one counter;

on completion of each write access request by the addressed slave device, performing a further update process to remove the record of that completed write access request from the pending write access history storage; and

responsive to at least a subset of the access requests to be issued by the processing circuitry, referencing the pending write access history storage in order to determine whether said at least one hazard condition occurs.

21. A data processing apparatus for coupling to one or more slave device means, the data processing apparatus comprising:

processing means for issuing a series of access requests for handling by said one or more slave device means, said series of access requests including one or more write access requests, each write access request specifying a write operation to be performed by an addressed slave device means from said one or more slave device means, and each issued write access request being a pending write access request until the write operation has been completed by the addressed slave device means; and

hazard detection means for detecting occurrence of at least one hazard condition in respect of the series of access requests issued by the processing means;

said hazard detection means comprising;

a pending write access history storage means comprising at least one buffer means and at least one counter means for keeping a record of each pending write access request;

update means, responsive to receipt of a write access request to be issued by the processing means, for performing an update process to identify that write access request as a pending write access request in one of said at least one buffer means and, if the identity of another pending write access request is overwritten by that update process, for incrementing a count value in said at least one counter means;

on completion of each write access request by the addressed slave device means, the update means for performing a further update process to remove the record of that completed write access request from the pending write access history storage means; and

hazard checking means, responsive to at least a subset of the access requests to be issued by the processing means, for referencing the pending write access history storage means in order to determine whether said at least one hazard condition occurs.