Programming Idiom Accelerator for Remote Update

• US 20100268791A1
• Filed: 04/16/2009
• Published: 10/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Arimilli, Ravi K., Sharma, Satya P.
• Granted Patent: US 8,082,315 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/542 Event management; Broadcasting; Multicasting; Notifications

Abstract

A programming idiom accelerator identifies a remote update programming idiom. The programming idiom accelerator sends the remote update to a remote node to perform an operation on data at the remote node. A programming idiom accelerator at the remote node receives the remote update and performs the update as a local operation. The programming idiom accelerator at the remote node may request processing resources from a virtualization layer to perform the update. The programming idiom accelerator may determine a remote update threshold that limits the instruction size of remote updates that may be sent to a remote node. The programming idiom accelerator may also determine a dedicated threshold that limits the instruction size of remote updates that may be performed by the programming idiom accelerator.

Claims

1. A method, in a data processing system, for performing a remote update, the method comprising:

detecting, by a remote update programming idiom accelerator of the data processing system, a remote update programming idiom in an instruction sequence of a thread running on a processing unit of the data processing system, wherein the remote update programming idiom includes a read operation for reading data from a storage location at a remote node, at least one update operation for performing an update operation on the data to form result data, and a write operation for writing the result data to the storage location at the remote node; and

transmitting the remote update programming idiom from the remote update programming idiom accelerator to the remote node to perform the at least one update operation on the data at the remote node.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the remote update programming idiom comprises the at least one update operation from a set of known update operations.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the set of known update operations comprises at least one of an AND operation, an OR operation, an XOR operation, an add operation, an add/multiply operation, an atomic increment operation, or a mask/compare operation.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote node receives the remote update programming idiom, reads the data from the storage location, performs the at least one operation on the data, and writes the result data to the storage location locally to the remote node.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the remote node returns a completion notification to the remote update programming idiom accelerator informing the remote update programming idiom accelerator that processing of the remote update programming idiom has been completed.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

responsive to receiving the completion notification at the remote update programming idiom accelerator, notifying the thread that processing of the remote update programming idiom at the remote node has been completed.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote node is a first remote node, the method further comprising:

receiving, at the remote update programming idiom accelerator, a second remote update programming idiom from a second remote node, wherein the second remote update includes a second read operation for reading second data from a storage location local to the data processing system, at least one second update operation for performing a second update operation on the second data to form second result data, and a second write operation for writing the second result data to the storage location local to the data processing system;

reading, by the remote update programming idiom accelerator, the second data locally within the data processing system;

performing, by the remote update programming idiom accelerator, the at least one second operation on the second data to form the second result data;

writing, by the remote update programming idiom accelerator, the second result data to the storage location local to the data processing system; and

returning a completion notification from the remote update programming idiom accelerator to the second remote node informing the second remote node that processing of the second remote update programming idiom has been completed.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator comprises a dedicated processor associated with a bus within the data processing system.

9. A method, in a data processing system, for performing a remote update, the method comprising:

receiving, at a remote update programming idiom accelerator within the data processing system, a remote update programming idiom from a remote node, wherein the remote update programming idiom includes a read operation for reading data from a storage location local to the data processing system, at least one update operation for performing an update operation on the data to form result data, and a write operation for writing the result data to the storage location local to the data processing system;

reading, by the remote update programming idiom accelerator, the data locally within the data processing system;

performing, by the remote update programming idiom accelerator, the at least one operation on the data to for the result data;

writing, by the remote update programming idiom accelerator, the result data locally within the data processing system; and

returning a completion notification from the remote update programming idiom accelerator to the remote node informing the remote node that processing of the remote update programming idiom has been completed.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein detecting the remote update programming idiom comprises the at least one update operation from a set of known update operations.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the set of known update operations comprises at least one of an AND operation, an OR operation, an XOR operation, an add operation, an add/multiply operation, an atomic increment operation, or a mask/compare operation.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator comprises a dedicated processor associated with a bus within the data processing system.

13. A data processing system, comprising:

at least one processing unit executing a thread; and

a remote update programming idiom accelerator, wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator is configured to detect a remote update programming idiom in an instruction sequence of the thread, wherein the remote update programming idiom includes a read operation for reading data from a storage location at a remote node, at least one update operation for performing an update operation on the data to form result data, and a write operation for writing the result data to the storage location at the remote node; and

wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator is configured to transmit the remote update programming idiom to the remote node to perform the at least one update operation on the data at the remote node.

14. The data processing system of claim 13, wherein detecting the remote update programming idiom comprises the at least one update operation from a set of known update operations.

15. The data processing system of claim 14, wherein the set of known update operations comprises at least one of an AND operation, an OR operation, an XOR operation, an add operation, an add/multiply operation, an atomic increment operation, or a mask/compare operation.

16. The data processing system of claim 13, wherein the remote node receives the remote update programming idiom, reads the data from the storage location, performs the at least one operation on the data, and writes the result data to the storage location locally to the remote node.

17. The data processing system of claim 16, wherein the remote node returns a completion notification to the remote update programming idiom accelerator informing the remote update programming idiom accelerator that processing of the remote update programming idiom has been completed.

18. The data processing system of claim 17, wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator is further configured to, responsive to receiving the completion notification at the remote update programming idiom accelerator, notify the thread that processing of the remote update programming idiom at the remote node has been completed.

19. The data processing system of claim 13, wherein the remote node is a first remote node and wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator is further configured to:

receive a second remote update programming idiom from a second remote node, wherein the second remote update includes a second read operation for reading second data from a storage location local to the data processing system, at least one second update operation for performing a second update operation on the second data to form second result data, and a second write operation for writing the second result data to the storage location local to the data processing system;

read the second data from the storage location local to the data processing system;

perform the at least one second update operation on the second data;

write the second result data to the storage location local to the data processing system; and

return a completion notification to the second remote node informing the second remote node that processing of the second remote update programming idiom has been completed.

20. The data processing system of claim 13, wherein the remote update programming idiom accelerator comprises a dedicated processor associated with a bus within the data processing system.