Pipelined processor architecture with configurable grouping of processor elements

Abstract

The present disclosure describes apparatuses and methods for implementing a pipelined processor with configurable grouping of processor elements. In aspects, an apparatus comprises a host interface configured for communication with a host system, a media interface configured to enable access to storage media, and a plurality of processor elements operably coupled to at least one of the host interface and the media interface. The plurality of processor elements is organized into multiple stages of a pipelined processor for processing data access commands associated with the host system. In various implementations, the plurality of processor elements can be selectively grouped to form the multiple stages of the pipelined processor and loaded with microcode to implement respective functions of each stage of the pipelined processor. By so doing, the pipelined processor may be configured based on various parameters to improve processing performance when processing the data access commands of the host system.