Toshiba Memory Corporation

Kioxia Corporation

Julien Margetts

Shigehiro Asano

Takehiko Amaki

Neil Buxton

Shunichi Igahara

Philip Rose

Paul Edward Hanham

Nigel David Horspool

Gary James Calder

Jonghyeon Kim

Matthew Stephens

Hyoun Kwon Jeong

Jeremy Omar Moore

Example implementations include a non-transitory processor-readable media comprising processor-readable instructions that when executed by at least one processor of a controller, causes the processor to generate at least one memory address corresponding respectively to at least one command block, the command block being associated with a command to a memory device, allocate the memory address to a buffer addressing unit associated with a host interface, the memory address including a buffer memory identifier associated with a buffer memory block and a buffer memory address associated with the buffer memory block, and update a request count associated with the buffer memory block by incrementing a reference counter associated with the buffer memory block.

Method and system for buffer allocation management for a memory device

Example implementations include a method of receiving a host command identifier associated with a host command, determining a device command associated with the host command and a memory controller device, receiving a device command timestamp corresponding to a time of the determining the device command, and determining a debug record contemporaneously with the determining the device command, the debug record including the host command identifier, a device command identifier associated with the device command, and the device command timestamp. Example implementations also include a device operably coupled to a memory array, and with a memory controller device configured to receive a host command identifier associated with a host command, and configured to determine a device command associated with the host command and a memory controller device, and a debug record generator device operatively coupled to the memory controller device and configured to receive a device command timestamp corresponding to a time of the determined device command, and configured to determine a debug record contemporaneously with the determining the device command, the debug record including the host command identifier, a device command identifier associated with the device command, and the device command timestamp.

Device and method for high performance memory debug record generation and management

A solid-state drive having an integrated circuit comprising a controller that is configured to determine, for data transferred between a host interface of the integrated circuit and nonvolatile semiconductor storage device interface of the integrated circuit, the availability of an internal buffer of the integrated circuit to transparently accumulate the transferred data, and (i) if the internal buffer is available, accumulate the data from target nonvolatile semiconductor storage devices or the host in the internal buffer, or (ii) if the internal buffer is not available, accumulate the data unit from the target nonvolatile semiconductor storage devices or the host in an external buffer communicatively coupled to the controller, wherein the external buffer is external to the integrated circuit. The controller then provides the accumulated data to the respective interfaces to furnish a read or write request from the host.

Buffer optimization for solid-state drives

A memory system comprises a nonvolatile memory having a plurality of memory cells and a memory controller for controlling the nonvolatile memory. The plurality of memory cells is divided into different groups, and each group is assigned a threshold read count value from a predetermined range of read count values. The memory controller includes a counter which tracks a read count for each group, a determination circuit configured to compare the read count for each group tracked by the counter to the assigned threshold read count value for the group, and a nonvolatile memory read/write circuit configured to read data from the group when the determination circuit indicates the read count for the group has reached the assigned threshold read count value.

Memory system and memory control method

A method for scheduling tasks on a processor includes detecting, in a task selection device communicatively coupled to the processor, a condition of each of a plurality of components of a computer system comprising the processor, determining a plurality of tasks that can be next executed on the processor based on the condition of each of the plurality of components, transmitting a signal to an arbiter of the task selection device that the plurality of tasks can be executed, determining, at the arbiter, a next task to be executed on the processor, storing, by the task selection device, the entry point address of the next task to be executed on the processor, and transferring, by the processor, execution to the stored entry point address of the next task to be executed.

Processor zero overhead task scheduling

A data storage device capable of namespace re-sizing comprises a nonvolatile semiconductor storage device containing data accessed via a logical address that includes a namespace identifier and a logical block address, and a controller. The storage device can convert the namespace identifier to a base address using a first look up table. The storage device can further convert the logical block address to namespace allocation units of storage. The storage device can also determine a pointer using the base address, the namespace allocation units, and a second look up table. Further, the storage device can determine a full logical cluster address using the pointer.

Namespace re-sizing

A memory system includes a memory controller having a bank command scheduler implemented in a hardware logic block and a power budget controller including a power budget register and a credit register. The hardware logic block is able to determine a command in a queue to be transmitted to a memory bank over a channel, estimate a power consumption value for the command, and query the power budget controller to determine if the power consumption value is within a threshold. If the power consumption value is within the threshold, the hardware logic block receives a grant response from the power budget controller, adds the power consumption value to the credit register value, transmits the command over the channel, and transmits a signal to the power budget controller indicating that the command has been executed and that the power consumption value should be subtracted from the credit register value.

Credit based command scheduling

A data storage device comprises a storage array containing first data, a buffer containing RAID units, and a controller in communication with the storage array and the buffer. The controller is configured to receive a read request from a host device for a second data stored in the storage array, and determine an identifier associated with the requested second data. The controller is also configured to determine if the requested second data contains an unrecoverable error. The controller then accumulates first data, including a parity value, contained in the storage array associated with the same identifier as the requested second data in a reconstruction buffer, if the requested second data contains an unrecoverable error.

On the fly raid parity calculation

A data storage device comprises a nonvolatile semiconductor storage array containing data, a controller in communication with the nonvolatile semiconductor storage array, and a buffer containing RAID units, the RAID units being in communication with the nonvolatile semiconductor storage array via the controller. The controller is configured to receive write requests from a host device, and accumulate first data relating to the write requests in the RAID units. The controller is also configured to, concurrently, transfer the first data contained in the RAID units to the nonvolatile semiconductor storage array, calculate parity values of the first data contained in the RAID units, each parity value relating to each write request, and accumulate the parity values in a context identifier buffer. The controller is further configured to associate context identifiers with the parity values, and store the parity values and the context identifiers in the nonvolatile semiconductor storage array.

A solid state drive (SSD) and a method for managing data stored in the SSD is disclosed. In one embodiment, the SSD includes a memory controller and a controller memory buffer within the memory controller. The SSD further includes a host interface communicatively coupled to the memory controller and configured to receive a set of host commands from a host device. A first local processor of the SSD is configured to generate a set of local commands, and a second local processor of the SSD is configured to execute the set of local commands and the set of host commands. The memory controller is configured to store the set of local commands in a first area of the controller memory buffer reserved for the first local processor and to store the set of host commands in a second area of the controller memory buffer reserved for the host device.

Internal system namespace exposed through use of two local processors and controller memory buffer with two reserved areas

The current consumed by flash memory devices on the channels of a solid-state drive (SSD) device will be in the form of a time varying waveform, characterized mainly by the types of commands being processed, and are often in the form of periods of constant levels interspersed with very short high current peaks or spikes. When multiple commands are being processed, significant high current peak demands and current surges can occur. The invention described herein is a device and method for scheduling commands to be processed in order to reduce the size of peak current demands and current surges. According to one embodiment of the invention, the device and method for scheduling a command uses look-up tables to determine the time to initiate the processing of the command by the flash memory devices.

Growing community of inventors

Thame, United Kingdom

Julien Margetts