Computer system for accessing initialization data and method therefor

• US 6,691,224 B1
• Filed: 01/12/2000
• Issued: 02/10/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: VIA Technologies Incorporated (VIA Technologies)
• Original Assignee: VIA Technologies Incorporated (VIA Technologies)
• Inventors: Yeh, Bi-Yun, Wang, Shu-Tzu, Ho, Heng-Chen
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): CONNOLLY, MARK A
• Application Number:
  US09/481,714
• Time in Patent Office: 1,490 Days
• Field of Search: 711/156, 711/5, 713/112
• US Class Current: 713/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4401 Bootstrapping security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

A method and computer system for accessing initialization data stored in a boot ROM'"'"'s memory space which is not used by a BIOS contained in the boot ROM. After the power supply starts up, the south bridge starts up and sends an initiating signal to the north bridge for starting up the north bridge. Once the north bridge has started up, it sends the south bridge a transaction which requests that the south bridge reads the initialization data from the boot ROM and sends the initialization data to the south bridge. Then, the CPU starts up and operates normally after the CPU receives an initiating signal and the initialization data sent by the north bridge.

Claims

1. A method for accessing initialization data in a computer system, comprising the steps of:

starting up a north bridge chipset;

sending a first signal from the north bridge chipset, wherein the first signal requests a south bridge chipset to read said initialization data from a boot Read-Only Memory (ROM) and then to send said initialization data to the north bridge chipset; and

sending a second signal from the north bridge chipset to a processor for starting up the processor followed by sending said initialization data to the processor from the north bridge chipset.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said initialization data are about 34 bytes.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein said boot ROM is a non-volatile memory.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein said boot ROM comprises a BIOS, which is the system of initialization code and interrupt service routines for the computer system'"'"'s associated devices.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein said boot ROM comprises a memory space not used by said BIOS and said initialization data are stored in said memory space not used by said BIOS.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said initialization data include one of an initialization ID and “

SIP”

data.

7. A method of accessing initialization data of a computer system, comprising the steps of:

starting up a south bridge chipset;

generating a first signal by said south bridge chipset in order to start up a north bridge chipset;

generating a second signal by said north bridge chipset in order to request said south bridge chipset to read said initialization data from a boot ROM and to send said initialization data to said north bridge chipset; and

generating a third signal from said north bridge chipset in order to start up a processor followed by sending said initialization data to said processor.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein said boot ROM is a non-volatile memory.

9. A method according to claim 7, wherein said boot ROM comprises a BIOS, which is the system of initialization code and interrupt service routines for the computer system'"'"'s associated devices.

10. A method according to claim 9, wherein said boot ROM comprises a memory space not used by said BIOS and said initialization data are stored in said memory space not used by said BIOS.

11. A method according to claim 7, wherein said south bridge chipset is started up by a power supply controller.

12. A method according to claim 7, wherein said initialization data are about 34 bytes.

13. The method according to claim 7, wherein said initialization data include one of an initialization ID and “

SIP”

data.

14. A computer system for accessing initialization data, which comprises:

a south bridge chipset which generates a first signal after the south bridge chipset is started up;

a boot ROM which stores said initialization data;

a north bridge chipset which receives the first signal, starts up and then generates a second signal in order to request said south bridge chipset to read said initialization data; and

a central processing unit (CPU) which receives a third signal generated by said north bridge chipset and then starts up;

wherein said north bridge chipset requests said south bridge chipset to read said initialization data and to send said initialization data to said north bridge chipset;

when said CPU has started up, said north bridge chipset sends said initialization data to said CPU;

wherein said initialization data depend on the processor.

15. A computer system according to claim 14, wherein said boot ROM is a non-volatile memory.

16. A computer system according to claim 14, wherein said boot ROM comprises a BIOS, which is the system of initialization code and interrupt service routines for the computer system'"'"'s associated devices.

17. A computer system according to claim 16, wherein said boot ROM comprises a memory space not used by said BIOS and said initialization data are stored in said memory space not used by said BIOS.

18. A computer system according to claim 14, wherein said initialization data takes up about 34 bytes of the memory space.

19. A computer system according to claim 14, wherein said initialization data are SIP data used by processors produced by Advanced Micro Devices incorporation.

20. The computer system according to claim 14, wherein said initialization data include one of an initialization ID and “

SIP”

data.

21. A method for accessing initialization data in a computer system, comprising the steps of:

starting up a first agent;

loading said initialization data from a boot Read-Only-Memory (ROM) to said first agent; and

sending said initialization data to a second agent for starting up.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein said first agent comprises a north bridge chipset in said computer system.

23. The method according to claim 21, wherein said first agent comprises a north bridge chipset and a south bridge chipset in said computer system.

24. The method according to claim 21, wherein said second agent comprises a processor in said computer system.

25. The method according to claim 21, wherein said second agent comprises a processor and a north bridge chipset in said computer system;

said first agent comprises a south bridge chipset in said computer systems.

26. The method according to claim 21, wherein said first agent sends said first signal to a third agent to read said initialization data from a boot Read-Only-Memory (ROM).

27. The method according to claim 26, wherein said first agent comprises a north bridge chipset.

28. The method according to claim 26, wherein said third agent comprises a south bridge chipset.

29. The method according to claim 21, wherein said initialization data are about 34 bytes.

30. The method according to claim 21, wherein said boot ROM is a non-volatile memory.

31. The method according to claim 30, wherein said boot ROM comprises a BIOS, which is the system of initialization code and interrupt service routines for the computer system'"'"'s associated devices.

32. The method according to claim 31, wherein said boot ROM comprises a memory space not used by said BIOS and said initialization data are stored in said memory space not used by said BIOS.

33. The method according to claim 21, wherein said initialization data include one of an initialization ID and “

SIP”

data.