公开(公告)号：US10083126B2

公开(公告)日：2018-09-25

申请号：US15370570

申请日：2016-12-06

Applicant: ARM Limited

Inventor： Richard F Bryant ,  Max John Batley ,  Lilian Atieno Hutchins ,  Sujat Jamil

IPC: G06F12/12 ,  G06F12/10 ,  G06F12/1036

CPC classification number: G06F12/12 ,  G06F12/1027 ,  G06F12/1036 ,  G06F2212/1024 ,  G06F2212/1044 ,  G06F2212/652 ,  G06F2212/681 ,  G06F2212/683 ,  G06F2212/684

Abstract: An apparatus and method are provided for avoiding conflicting entries in a storage structure. The apparatus comprises a storage structure having a plurality of entries for storing data, and allocation circuitry, responsive to a trigger event for allocating new data into the storage structure, to determine a victim entry into which the new data is to be stored, and to allocate the new data into the victim entry upon determining that the new data is available. Conflict detection circuitry is used to detect when the new data will conflict with data stored in one or more entries of the storage structure, and to cause the data in said one or more entries to be invalidated. The conflict detection circuitry is arranged to perform, prior to a portion of the new data required for conflict detection being available, at least one initial stage detection operation to determine, based on an available portion of the new data, candidate entries whose data may conflict with the new data. A record of the candidate entries in then maintained, and, once the portion of the new data required for conflict detection is available, the conflict detection circuitry then performs a final stage detection operation to determine whether any of the candidate entries do contain data that conflicts with the new data. Any entries identified by the final stage detection operation as containing data that conflicts with the new data are then invalidated. This provides a particularly efficient mechanism for avoiding conflicting entries in a storage structure.