Image loads, stores and atomic operations

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention sets forth a method for accessing texture objects stored within a texture memory. The method comprises the steps of receiving a texture bind request from an application program, wherein the texture bind request includes an object identifier that identifies a first texture object stored in the texture memory and an image identifier that identifies a first image unit, binding the first texture object to the first image unit based on the texture bind request, receiving, within a shader engine, a first shading program command from the application program for performing a first memory access operation on the first texture object, wherein the memory access operation is a store operation or atomic operation to an arbitrary location in the image, and performing, within the shader engine, the first memory access operation on the first texture object via the first image unit.