SUPER OPERATING SYSTEM FOR A HETEROGENEOUS COMPUTER SYSTEM

• US 20120317571A1
• Filed: 11/21/2011
• Published: 12/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Institute For Information Industry
• Original Assignee: Institute For Information Industry
• Inventors: CHANG, Teng-Chang
• Granted Patent: US 9,098,287 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3293 by switching to a less power-consuming processor, e.g. sub-CPU
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45533 Hypervisors; Virtual machine monitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A super operating system for a heterogeneous computer system for executing tasks of software that has at least one performance processor, a processor supporting logic, and a hypervisor processor. The super operating system has a performance operating system for the performance processor; a hypervisor operating system for the hypervisor processor and a heterogeneous hypervisor software layer on top of the performance and hypervisor processors and below the performance and hypervisor operating systems. Under the super operating system, the hypervisor processor executes tasks that the hypervisor processor has sufficient processing power to handle and puts the performance processor to a power-conserving state. The hypervisor processor brings the performance processor out of power-conserving state to execute tasks that the hypervisor processor has insufficient processing power to handle. The performance and hypervisor processors simultaneously execute tasks that require combined processing power of all processors.

Claims

1. In a heterogeneous computer system for executing software having at least one performance processor;

a processor supporting logic supporting said at least one performance processor for executing tasks of said software and a hypervisor processor consuming less power than said at least one performance processor, a super operating system comprising;

a performance operating system for said at least one performance processor;

a hypervisor operating system for said hypervisor processor; and

a heterogeneous hypervisor software layer on top of both the hardware subsystems for said performance and said hypervisor processors and below both said performance and hypervisor operating systems;

wherein

said hypervisor processor, supported by said processor supporting logic, executing tasks of said software that said hypervisor processor has sufficient processing power to handle and putting said at least one performance processor to a power-conserving state;

said hypervisor processor bringing said at least one performance processor out of said power-conserving state to execute tasks of said software that said hypervisor processor has insufficient processing power to handle;

or

said at least one performance and hypervisor processors simultaneously executing tasks of said software that require combined processing power of all processors.

2. The super operating system of claim 1 wherein said performance operating system is an x86 operating system.

3. The super operating system of claim 1 wherein said hypervisor operating system is an ARM operating system.

4. The super operating system of claim 1 wherein said both said performance and hypervisor operating systems are x86 operating systems.

5. The super operating system of claim 1 wherein each of said at least one performance processor and said hypervisor processor are x86 processors and are on the same semiconductor chip.

6. The super operating system of claim 1 wherein each of said at least one performance processor is an x86 processor, said hypervisor processor is an ARM processor and all are on the same semiconductor chip.

7. In a heterogeneous computer system for executing software having at least one performance processor with a local processor bus;

a processor supporting logic supporting said at least one performance processor for executing tasks of said software;

a bridge logic connecting said hypervisor processor to said processor supporting logic via said local processor bus and a hypervisor processor consuming less power than said at least one performance processor, a super operating system comprising;

a performance operating system for said at least one performance processor;

a hypervisor operating system for said hypervisor processor; and

a heterogeneous hypervisor software layer on top of both the hardware subsystems for said performance and said hypervisor processors and below both said performance and hypervisor operating systems;

wherein

said hypervisor processor, supported by said processor supporting logic, executing tasks of said software that said hypervisor processor has sufficient processing power to handle and putting said at least one performance processor to a power-conserving state;

said hypervisor processor bringing said at least one performance processor out of said power-conserving state to execute tasks of said software that said hypervisor processor has insufficient processing power to handle;

or

said at least one performance and hypervisor processors simultaneously executing tasks of said software that require combined processing power of all processors.

8. The super operating system of claim 7 wherein said performance operating system is an x86 operating system.

9. The super operating system of claim 7 wherein said hypervisor operating system is an ARM operating system.

10. The super operating system of claim 7 wherein said both said performance and hypervisor operating systems are x86 operating systems.

11. The super operating system of claim 7 wherein said bridge logic is on an independent semiconductor chip.

12. The super operating system of claim 7 wherein said bridge logic is on the same semiconductor chip as that of said hypervisor processor.

13. The super operating system of claim 7 wherein said bridge logic, said hypervisor processor and said at least one performance processor are on the same semiconductor chip.

14. The super operating system of claim 11 wherein each of said at least one performance processor is an x86 processor.

15. The super operating system of claim 12 wherein each of said at least one performance processor is an x86 processor.

16. The super operating system of claim 13 wherein each of said at least one performance processor is an x86 processor.

17. The super operating system of claim 11 wherein said hypervisor processor is an ARM processor.

18. The super operating system of claim 12 wherein said hypervisor processor is an ARM processor.

19. The super operating system of claim 13 wherein said hypervisor processor is an ARM processor.

20. In a heterogeneous computer system for executing software having one or more first processors;

a processor supporting logic supporting said at least one first processor for executing tasks of said software and a second processor consuming less power than said one or more first processors, a super operating system comprising;

a performance operating system for said at least one performance processor;

a hypervisor operating system for said hypervisor processor; and

a heterogeneous hypervisor software layer on top of both the hardware subsystems for said performance and said hypervisor processors and below both said performance and hypervisor operating systems;

wherein

said second processor, supported by said processor supporting logic, executing tasks of said software that said second processor has sufficient processing power to handle and putting said one or more first processors to a power-conserving state.

21. The super operating system of claim 20 wherein said second processor is at a location different from that of said one or more first processors.

22. The super operating system of claim 20 wherein one or more of said first processors is at a location different from the rest of said first and second processors.