Data Storewidth Accelerator

• US 20120239921A1
• Filed: 05/29/2012
• Published: 09/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Realtime Data LLC (Realtime Data Compression Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Realtime Data LLC (Realtime Data Compression Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: FALLON, James J.
• Application Number:
  US13/482,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20120239921A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/24 Resetting means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0613 in relation to throughput
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0638 Organizing or formatting or addressing of data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0658 Controller construction arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0676 Magnetic disk device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4401 Bootstrapping security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4406 Loading of operating system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4408 Boot device selection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H03M 7/30 Compression speech analysis-synthesis for redundancy reduction G10L19/00; for image communication H04N; Expansion; Suppression of unnecessary data, e.g. redundancy reduction

Abstract

Data storage controllers and data storage devices employing lossless or lossy data compression and decompression to provide accelerated data storage and retrieval bandwidth. In one embodiment of the invention, a composite disk controller provides data storage and retrieval acceleration using multiple caches for data pipelining and increased throughput. In another embodiment of the invention, the disk controller with acceleration is embedded in the storage device and utilized for data storage and retrieval acceleration.

Claims

1. A method for providing accelerated loading of a computer operating system comprising:

maintaining a boot data list, wherein boot data is associated with the boot data list;

preloading the boot data into a memory upon initialization of the operating system;

accessing the boot data in a compressed form from the memory where the effective access rate of the memory is greater than accessing the boot data in non-compressed form; and

utilizing at least a portion of the boot data in loading the operating system.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising random access encoding additional boot data by a data compression engine to compress the additional boot data.

3. A method for providing accelerated loading of a computer operating system, comprising:

maintaining a boot data list, wherein boot data is associated with the boot data list;

preloading the portion of boot data into a memory upon initialization of the operating system;

accessing the portion of boot data in a compressed form from the memory;

decompressing as needed the boot data in compressed form accessed from the memory at a rate that increases the effective access rate of the memory; and

utilizing the decompressed boot data in loading the operating system.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising a random access encoder configured to compress additional boot data.

5. A system for booting a computer operating system, comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

a non-volatile memory device configured to store logic code associated with the processor, wherein the logic code comprises instructions executable by the processor for maintaining a list of boot data for booting the host system, wherein the boot data is stored in compressed form in the non-volatile memory device, the boot data in compressed form is preloaded into the memory, and the preloaded boot data in compressed form is accessed and utilized to boot the operating system; and

a data compression engine configured to compress the boot data and to access the boot data in compressed form to provide at least a portion of boot data.

6. The system of claim 5, further comprising a random access encoder configured to compress additional boot data.

7. A method of preloading an operating system for booting a computer system comprising:

storing substantially all of the operating system in compressed form on a boot device;

preloading a first portion of the operating system from the boot device to a memory;

accessing the first portion from the memory in compressed form;

utilizing the first portion to partially boot the computer system;

responsive to a request, locating a second portion of the operating system using a boot data list and preloading the second portion from the boot device to the memory;

accessing the second portion from the memory in compressed form; and

utilizing the second portion to further partially boot the computer system.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising random access encoding additional boot data by a data compression engine to compress the additional boot data.

9. A method for providing accelerated loading of an operating system, comprising:

maintaining a list of boot data used for booting a computer system;

initializing a processing unit of the computer system;

preloading the boot data into a cache memory prior to completion of initialization of the processing unit of the computer system, wherein preloading the boot data comprises accessing compressed boot data from a boot device; and

servicing requests for boot data from the computer system using the preloaded boot data after completion of initialization of the processing unit of the computer system, wherein servicing requests comprises accessing compressed boot data from the cache memory at a rate that increases the effective access rate of the cache memory.

10. A method, comprising:

maintaining a list of boot data used for booting a computer system;

initializing a processing unit of the computer system;

preloading boot data in compressed form, based on the list of boot data, from a boot device into a cache memory prior to completion of initialization of the processing unit; and

servicing requests for boot data from the computer system using the preloaded compressed boot data after completion of initialization of the processing unit, wherein servicing requests comprises accessing the compressed boot data from the cache memory being operable to compress additional boot data and store the additional compressed boot data to the boot device.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising random access encoding the additional boot data by a data compression engine to compress the additional boot data.

12. A system comprising:

a boot device;

a processor;

cache memory; and

non-volatile memory configured to store logic code for use by the processor to;

maintain a list associated with boot data, wherein the boot data is used in booting the system,

preload compressed boot data associated to the list into the cache memory prior to completion of initialization of a central processing unit of the system,

service requests for the compressed boot data from the system after completion of initialization of the central processing unit, and

access the compressed boot data accessed from the cache memory for use in responding to the servicing requests and for compressing additional boot data and storing the additional compressed boot data to the boot device.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising a random access encoder configured to compress the additional boot data.