International Business Machines Corporation

Robert Allen Drehmel

James Anthony Marcella

Kent Harold Haselhorst

Herman Lee Blackmon

Wayne Melvin Barrett

Michael Steven Siegel

Florian Alexander Auernhammer

Jamie Randall Kuesel

Clarence Rosser Ogilvie

Russell Dean Hoover

Charles S Woodruff

Gerald Keith Bartley

Eric Oliver Mejdrich

John Michael Borkenhagen

Giora Biran

William Eric Hall

Ming-i Mark Lin

Mark E Kautzman

Guy L Guthrie

William John Starke

Robert Allen Shearer

Richard Loise Arndt

Bruce Leroy Beukema

David John Krolak

Robert Spencer Horton

Lyle Edwin Grosbach

Peder James Paulson

Gilad Pivonia

Adam James Muff

David Arnold Luick

William Paul Hovis

Mark Owen Maxson

Paul Eric Dahlen

Richard Bealkowski

Brian Thomas Vanderpool

Scott Douglas Clark

George Wayne Nation

Sudhir Dhawan

Douglas A Baska

Robert Earl Kruse

Scott A Hilker

Kenneth Claude Hinz

Russel Dean Hoover

Matthew Adam Cushing

Allen James Gavin

A snooper of a processing unit connected to processing units via a system fabric receives a first single bus command in a bus protocol that allows sampling over the system fabric of the capability of snoopers to handle an interrupt and returns a first response indicating the capability of the snooper to handle the interrupt. The snooper, in response to receiving a second single bus command in the bus protocol to poll a first selection of snoopers for an availability status to service a criteria specified in the second single bus command, returns a second response indicating the availability of the snooper to service the criteria. The snooper, in response to receiving a third single bus command in the bus protocol to direct the snooper to handle the interrupt, assigns the interrupt to a particular processor thread of a respective selection of the one or more separate selections of processors threads distributed in the processing unit.

Managing efficient selection of a particular processor thread for handling an interrupt

A technique for handling interrupts in a data processing system includes receiving, by an interrupt routing controller (IRC), an event routing message (ERM) that includes an event source number for a notification source with an unserviced interrupt. In response to receiving the ERM, the IRC builds an event notification message (ENM) based on the event source number. The IRC determines a scope for the ENM based on an event target group (ETG) associated with the event source number. The IRC issues the ENM to an interrupt presentation controller (IPC) at the scope associated with the ETG.

Techniques for issuing interrupts in a data processing system with multiple scopes

A processing unit connected via a system fabric to multiple processing units calls a first single command in a bus protocol that allows sampling over the system fabric of the capability of snoopers distributed across the processing units to handle an interrupt. The processing unit, in response to detecting at least one first selection of snoopers with capability to handle the interrupt, calling a second single command in the bus protocol to poll the first selection of snoopers over the system fabric for an availability status. The processing unit, in response to detecting at least one second selection of snoopers respond with the available status indicating an availability to handle the interrupt, assigning a single snooper from among the second selection of snoopers to handle the interrupt by calling a third single command in the bus protocol.

A processor-memory bus comprises a command portion for transmitting addresses and commands, having a unidirectional input portion for transmitting commands to a central repeater unit, and a unidirectional broadcast portion for broadcasting commands from the repeater. The input portion comprises a plurality of links running from different devices, wherein each link is less than the full width of the broadcast bus portion. A command is transmitted over the input portion in a plurality of bus cycles, and broadcast over the broadcast portion in a single bus cycle. Since multiple input links connect to the central command repeater, it is possible to keep the broadcast bus full notwithstanding the fact that multiple bus cycles are required to transmit an individual command on the input portion. Preferably, the links are arranged hierarchically, from processors to local repeaters, from local repeaters to the central repeater, and back again. Preferably, the central repeater globally arbitrates the bus, and once the bus is granted, the command propagates along each link at pre-defined clock cycles from bus grant. In the preferred embodiment, addresses/commands and data are transmitted on essentially separate paths having different topologies, and at different times, and are arbitrated separately.

Bus architecture employing varying width uni-directional command bus

Methods and apparatus for reducing the impact of latency associated with decrypting encrypted data are provided. Rather than wait until an entire packet of encrypted data is validated (e.g., by checking for data transfer errors), the encrypted data may be pipelined to a decryption engine as it is received, thus allowing decryption to begin prior to validation. In some cases, the decryption engine may be notified of data transfer errors detected during the validation process, in order to prevent reporting false security violations.

Low-latency data decryption interface

A circuit arrangement, method and apparatus utilize communication links that are selectively configurable to operate in both unidirectional and bidirectional modes to communicate data between multiple nodes that are interconnected to one another in a daisy chain configuration. As a result, in many instances communications may be maintained with nodes located both before and after a discontinuity in a daisy chain configuration.

Multi-node architecture with daisy chain communication link configurable to operate in unidirectional and bidirectional modes

A bus bridge between a high speed computer processor bus and a high speed output bus. The preferred embodiment is a bus bridge between a GPUL bus for a GPUL PowerPC microprocessor from International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) and an output high speed interface (MPI). Another preferred embodiment is a bus bridge in a bus transceiver on a multi-chip module.

Computer system bus bridge

A method for bridging between a high speed computer processor bus and a high speed output bus. The preferred embodiment is a method for bridging between a GPUL bus for a GPUL PowerPC microprocessor from International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) and an output high speed interface (MPI).

Methods and devices that may be utilized in systems to dynamically update a security version parameter used to encrypt secure data are provided. The version may be maintained in persistent storage located on a device implementing the encryption, such as a system on a chip (SOC). The persistent storage does not require battery backing and, thus, the cost and complexity associated with conventional systems utilizing battery backed storage may be reduced.

E-fuses for storing security version data

A circuit and method to provide pipeline bit handling across a bus bridge between two different buses. In a preferred embodiment, the pipeline bit handling circuit provides rule enforcement for a P-bit address modifier across a bus bridge between two different buses with different rules for the P-bit address modifier. In a bus domain where pipeline transactions are allowed if the P-Bit is asserted and are not allowed if the P-Bit is not asserted, embodiments herein allow a master bus device to ensure that all bus devices will see a P=0 command with a defined minimum spacing to any other P=0 command. The required separation for P=0 commands is maintained within the bus bridge. In the preferred embodiments, the separation between P=0 commands is maintained by immediately retrying P=0 commands rather than spacing snoop requests.

Pipeline bit handling circuit and method for a bus bridge

A high speed computer processor system has a high speed interface for a graphics processor. A preferred embodiment combines a PowerPC microprocessor called the Giga-Processor Ultralite (GPUL) 110 from International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) with a high speed interface on a multi-chip module.

Computer system architecture for a processor connected to a high speed bus transceiver

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Goodhue, MN, United States of America

Robert Allen Drehmel