Advanced Micro Devices Corporation

Ati Technologies Ulc

Alexander Fuad Ashkar

Harry J Wise

Rex Eldon McCrary

Michael Mantor

Anirudh Rajendra Acharya

Angel E Socarras

Manu Rastogi

Mangesh P Nijasure

Randy Wayne Ramsey

Rakan Z Khraisha

Brian D Emberling

Ruijin Wu

Kostantinos Danny Christidis

Ashkan Hosseinzadeh Namin

Hans Fernlund

Yi Luo

Curtis Alan Gilgan

James R Klobcar

Methods and systems are disclosed for inline suspension of an accelerated processing unit (APU). Techniques include receiving a packet, including a mode of operation and commands to be executed by the APU; suspending execution of commands received in previous packets when the mode of operation is a suspension initiation mode; and executing, by the APU, the commands in the received packet. The execution of the suspended commands is restored when the mode of operation in a subsequently received packet is a suspension conclusion mode.

Inline suspension of an accelerated processing unit

A technique for executing commands for an accelerated processing device is provided. The technique includes obtaining an iteration number and predication data from metadata for an iterative indirect command buffer; for each iteration indicated by the iteration number, performing commands of the iterative indirect command buffer as specified by the predication data; and ending processing of the iterative indirect command buffer in response to processing a number of iterations equal to the iteration number.

Iterative indirect command buffers

A system includes a processing unit such as a GPU that itself includes a command processor configured to receive instructions for execution from a software application. A processor pipeline coupled to the processing unit includes a set of parallel processing units for executing the instructions in sets. A set manager is coupled to one or more of the processor pipeline and the command processor. The set manager includes at least one table for storing a set start time, a set end time, and a set execution time. The set manager determines an execution time for one or more sets of instructions of a first window of sets of instructions submitted to the processor pipeline. Based on the execution time of the one or more sets of instructions, a set limit is determined and applied to one or more sets of instructions of a second window subsequent to the first window.

Marker-based processor instruction grouping

A method of packet attribute confirmation includes receiving, at a command processor of a parallel processor, a command packet including a received packet attribute, such as a packet size, of the command packet. The command processor compares the received packet attribute of the command packet relative to an expected packet attribute of the command packet. The command processor passes one or more commands to a prefetch parser such that a summed total size of the one or more commands is equal to the received packet size of the command packet. The command processor passes, based at least on determining a match between the received packet size and the expected packet size, the received command packet to the prefetch parser. Otherwise, the command processor passes, based at least on determining a mismatch between the received packet size and the expected packet size, one or more no-operation instructions to the prefetch parser.

Hardware security hardening for processor devices

Techniques for prefetching are provided. The techniques include receiving a first prefetch command; in response to determining that a history buffer indicates that first information associated with the first prefetch command has not already been prefetched, prefetching the first information into a memory; receiving a second prefetch command; and in response to determining that the history buffer indicates that second information associated with the second prefetch command has already been prefetched, avoiding prefetching the second information into the memory.

Command processor prefetch techniques

A method of save-restore operations includes monitoring, by a power controller of a parallel processor (such as a graphics processing unit), of a register bus for one or more register write signals. The power controller determines that a register write signal is addressed to a state register that is designated to be saved prior to changing a power state of the parallel processor from a first state to a second state having a lower level of energy usage. The power controller instructs a copy of data corresponding to the state register to be written to a local memory module of the parallel processor. Subsequently, the parallel processor receives a power state change signal and writes state register data saved at the local memory module to an off-chip memory prior to changing the power state of the parallel processor.

Reducing save restore latency for power control based on write signals

A processing system includes a content addressable memory (CAM) in an input/output path to selectively modify register writes on a per-pipeline basis. The CAM compares an address of a register write to an address field of each entry of the CAM. If a match is found, the CAM modifies the register write data as defined by a function for the matching entry of the CAM. In some embodiments, each entry of the CAM includes a data mask defining subfields of the register write data, wherein each subfield includes subfield data including one or more bits.

Content addressable memory with sub-field minimum and maximum clamping

The address of the draw or dispatch packet responsible for creating an exception is tied to a shader/wavefront back to the draw command from which it originated. In various embodiments, a method of operating a graphics pipeline and exception handling includes receiving, at a command processor of a graphics processing unit (GPU), an exception signal indicating an occurrence of a pipeline exception at a shader stage of a graphics pipeline. The shader stage generates an exception signal in response to a pipeline exception and transmits the exception signal to the command processor. The command processor determines, based on the exception signal, an address of a command packet responsible for the occurrence of the pipeline exception.

Exception handler for sampling draw dispatch identifiers

An apparatus includes a plurality of virtual machines, a hypervisor coupled to the plurality of virtual machines, and a graphical processing unit (GPU) coupled to the hypervisor. The plurality of virtual machines are allocated a plurality of time slices. The hypervisor initiates a world switch to a first virtual machine of the plurality of virtual machines. The GPU makes a determination as to whether to adjust the time slice associated with the first virtual machine based on an assessment of time slice adjustment parameters related to an execution time of at least one of the plurality of virtual machines.

Adaptive world switching

A method of context bouncing includes receiving, at a command processor of a graphics processing unit (GPU), a conditional execute packet providing a hash identifier corresponding to an encapsulated state. The encapsulated state includes one or more context state packets following the conditional execute packet. A command packet following the encapsulated state is executed based at least in part on determining whether the hash identifier of the encapsulated state matches one of a plurality of hash identifiers of active context states currently stored at the GPU.

Graphics context bouncing

A processing unit employs microcode wherein the jump table associated with the microcode is embedded in the microcode itself. When the microcode is compiled based on a set of programmer instructions, the compiler prepares the jump table for the microcode and stores the jump table in the same file or other storage unit as the microcode. When the processing unit is initialized to execute a program, such as an operating system, the processing unit retrieves the microcode corresponding to the program from memory, stores the microcode in a cache or other memory module for execution, and automatically loads the embedded jump table from the microcode to a specified set of jump table registers, thereby preparing the processing unit to process received packets.

Processor microcode with embedded jump table

Systems, apparatuses, and methods for dynamically adjusting the power consumption of prefetch engines are disclosed. In one embodiment, a processor includes one or more prefetch engines, a draw completion engine, and a queue in between the one or more prefetch engines and the draw completion engine. If the number of packets stored in the queue is greater than a high watermark, then the processor reduces the power state of the prefetch engine(s). By decreasing the power state of the prefetch engine(s), power consumption is reduced. Additionally, this power consumption reduction is achieved without affecting performance, since the queue has a high occupancy and the draw completion engine can continue to read packets out of the queue. If the number of packets stored in the queue is less than a low watermark, then the processor increases the power state of the prefetch engine(s).

Saving power in the command processor using queue based watermarks

Systems, apparatuses, and methods for suspending and restoring operations on a processor are disclosed. In one embodiment, a processor includes at least a control unit, multiple execution units, and multiple work creation units. In response to detecting a request to suspend a software application executing on the processor, the control unit sends requests to the plurality of work creation units to stop creating new work. The control unit waits until receiving acknowledgements from the work creation units prior to initiating a suspend operation. Once all work creation units have acknowledged that they have stopped creating new work, the control unit initiates the suspend operation. Also, when a restore operation is initiated, the control unit prevents any work creation units from launching new work-items until all previously in-flight work-items have been restored to the same work creation units and execution units to which they were previously allocated.

Suspend and restore processor operations

Systems, apparatuses, and methods for preloading caches using a direct memory access (DMA) engine with a fast discard mode are disclosed. In one embodiment, a processor includes one or more compute units, a DMA engine, and one or more caches. When a shader program is detected in a sequence of instructions, the DMA engine is programmed to utilize a fast discard mode to prefetch the shader program from memory. By prefetching the shader program from memory, the one or more caches are populated with address translations and the shader program. Then, the DMA engine discards the shader program rather than writing the shader program to another location. Accordingly, when the shader program is invoked on the compute unit(s), the shader program and its translations are already preloaded in the cache(s).

Preloading translation and data caches using on-chip DMA engine with fast data discard

Apparatuses, computer readable mediums, and methods of processor unit testing using cache resident testing are disclosed. The method may include loading a test program in a cache on a chip comprising one or more processor units. The method may include the one or more processor units executing the test program to generate one or more results. The method may include redirecting a first memory reference to the cache, wherein the first memory reference is generated during the execution of the test program. The method may include determining whether the one or more generated results match one or more test results. The method may include redirecting a memory request to a memory location resident in the cache if the memory request includes a memory location not resident in the cache. The method may include redirecting a memory request to the cache if the memory request is not directed to the cache.

Growing community of inventors

Orlando, FL, United States of America

Alexander Fuad Ashkar