Techniques to truncate data files in nonvolatile memory

• US 8,566,514 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2011
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel NDTM US LLC (Intel Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Gera, Swati, Hart, Karey, Gabriel, Neil, Chang, Lawrence, McGinty, Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): Bragdon, Reginald
• Assistant Examiner(s): Namazi, Mehdi
• Application Number:
  US13/177,995
• Publication Number:
  US 20120179857A1
• Time in Patent Office: 838 Days
• Field of Search: 711/103, 711/171, 711/172, 343/700.R, 340/5.61, 340/5.64, 370/913
• US Class Current: 711/103
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/162 Delete operations erasing in storage systems G06F3/0652
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1847 specifically adapted to static storage, e.g. adapted to flash memory or SSD
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 370/913 Wireless or radio

Abstract

Various embodiments for performing truncate operations in nonvolatile memory are described. In one embodiment, an apparatus may include a nonvolatile memory to perform one or more truncate operations on a data file written to the nonvolatile memory and a volatile memory to track a truncate operation performed in the nonvolatile memory. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

performing one or more truncate operations to invalidate a first portion of a data file written to a nonvolatile memory, the nonvolatile memory configured to enforce a sequential addressing requirement during the one or more truncate operations;

storing information associated with the one or more truncate operations in a data structure maintained in a volatile memory, the data structure arranged to store information from only a most recent truncate operation for the data file from among the one or more truncate operations; and

tracking valid data of the data file written to the nonvolatile memory using only the information for the most recent truncate operation stored in the data structure.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising performing the one or more truncate operations by causing a first truncate object to be written to the nonvolatile memory after a first truncate operation, the first truncate object including a file identification for the data file, an object type for the data file, a first operation number for the data file or a truncate length to indicate a length of the data file after the first truncate operation.

3. The method of claim 2, the first truncate operation comprising the most recent truncate operation, the data structure maintained in the volatile memory arranged to store information from the first truncate operation to include a first truncate link that identifies an address in the nonvolatile memory where the first truncate object was written to, the first operation number for the data file or the length of the data file after the first truncate operation.

4. The method of claim 3, comprising using only the information from the first truncate operation to track valid data of the data file following the first truncate operation, the data structure maintained in the volatile memory arranged to store information from the first truncate operation to include a first data link that identifies one or more addresses in the nonvolatile memory for a second portion of the data file having valid data after the first truncate operation, a second operation number for the data file or a size of the valid data included in the second portion of the data file.

5. The method of claim 4, comprising the data structure also arranged to maintain an invalid byte count indicating an amount of data included in the first portion of the data file that was invalidated by the one or more truncate operations.

6. The method of claim 5, comprising reclaiming one or more portions of the nonvolatile memory storing the invalidated data included in the first portion of the data file and updating the invalid byte count maintained in the data structure responsive to the reclaiming of the one or more portions of the nonvolatile memory.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising:

reclaiming the portions of the nonvolatile memory storing the invalidated data included in the first portion of the data file;

updating the invalid byte count to indicate zero bytes of invalid data; and

reclaiming the portion of the nonvolatile memory storing the first truncate object responsive to the indication of zero bytes of invalid data.

8. The method of claim 1, the nonvolatile memory comprising at least one of a NAND flash memory, NOR flash memory, polymer memory, ferroelectric memory or magnetic memory.

9. An apparatus comprising:

non-volatile memory;

a controller for the non-volatile memory; and

a truncate module, executed by the controller, to perform one or more truncate operations to invalidate a first portion of a data file written to the nonvolatile memory, the nonvolatile memory configured to enforce a sequential addressing requirement during the one or more truncate operations, the truncate module to also cause information associated with the one or more truncate operations to be stored in a data structure maintained in a volatile memory, the data structure arranged to store information from only a most recent truncate operation for the data file from among the one or more truncate operations, the truncate module to use only the information for the most recent truncate operation to track valid data of the data file written to the nonvolatile memory.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, the truncate module to perform one or more truncate operations comprising the truncate module to cause a first truncate object to be written to the nonvolatile memory after a first truncate operation, the first truncate object to include a file identification for the data file, an object type for the data file, a first operation number for the data file or a truncate length to indicate a length of the data file after the first truncate operation.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, the first truncate operation comprising the most recent truncate operation, the data structure maintained in the volatile memory arranged to store information from the first truncate operation to include a first truncate link that identifies an address in the nonvolatile memory where the first truncate object was written to, the first operation number for the data file or the length of the data file after the first truncate operation.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, comprising the truncate module to use only information from the first truncate operation to track valid data of the data file following the first truncate operation, the data structure maintained in the volatile memory arranged to store information from the first truncate operation to include a first data link that identifies one or more addresses in the nonvolatile memory for a second portion of the data file having valid data after the first truncate operation, a second operation number for the data file or a size of the valid data included in the second portion of the data file.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, comprising the data structure also arranged to maintain an invalid byte count indicating an amount of data included in the first portion of the data file that was invalidated by the one or more truncate operations.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, comprising a reclaim module, executed by the controller, to reclaim one or more portions of the nonvolatile memory storing the invalidated data included in the first portion of the data file, the truncate module to update the invalid byte count maintained in the data structure responsive to the reclaiming of the one or more portions of the nonvolatile memory by the reclaim module.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, comprising the reclaim module to reclaim the portions of the nonvolatile memory storing the invalidated data included in the first portion of the data file, the truncate module to update the invalid byte count to indicate zero bytes of invalid data, the reclaim module to reclaim the portion of the nonvolatile memory storing the first truncate object responsive to the indication of zero bytes of invalid data.

16. The apparatus of claim 9, the nonvolatile memory comprising at least one of a NAND flash memory, NOR flash memory, polymer memory, ferroelectric memory or magnetic memory.

17. A system comprising:

a wireless interface having an antenna;

a volatile memory;

a nonvolatile memory having a controller coupled to the wireless interface and a nonvolatile memory array configured to enforce a sequential addressing requirement, the controller to execute a truncate module arranged to perform one or more truncate operations to invalidate a first portion of a data file written to the nonvolatile memory array, the truncate module also arranged to cause information associated with the one or more truncate operations to be stored in a data structure maintained in the volatile memory, the data structure arranged to store information from only a most recent truncate operation for the data file from among the one or more truncate operations, the truncate module to use only information for the most recent truncate operation to track valid data of the data file written to the nonvolatile memory array.

18. The system of claim 17, the truncate module to perform one or more truncate operations comprising the truncate module to cause a first truncate object to be written to the nonvolatile memory array after a first truncate operation, the first truncate object to include a file identification for the data file, an object type for the data file, a first operation number for the data file or a truncate length to indicate a length of the data file after the first truncate operation.

19. The system of claim 18, the first truncate operation comprising the most recent truncate operation, the data structure maintained in the volatile memory arranged to store information from the first truncate operation to include a first truncate link that identifies an address in the nonvolatile memory array where the first truncate object was written to, the first operation number for the data file or the length of the data file after the first truncate operation, the truncate module to use only information from the first truncate operation to track valid data of the data file following the first truncate operation, the data structure maintained in the volatile memory arranged to store information from the first truncate operation to include a first data link that identifies one or more addresses in the nonvolatile memory for a second portion of the data file having valid data after the first truncate operation, a second operation number for the data file or a size of the valid data included in the second portion of the data file.

20. The system of claim 17, the nonvolatile memory array comprising at least one of a NAND flash memory array, a NOR flash memory array, a polymer memory array, a ferroelectric memory array or magnetic memory array.