Memory device error check and scrub mode and error transparency

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10127101-B2
Application number	US-201514998184-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 26, 2015
Priority date	Aug 28, 2015
Publication date	Nov 13, 2018
Grant date	Nov 13, 2018

Abstract

An error check and scrub (ECS) mode enables a memory device to perform error checking and correction (ECC) and count errors. An associated memory controller triggers the ECS mode with a trigger sent to the memory device. The memory device includes multiple addressable memory locations, which can be organized in segments such as wordlines. The memory locations store data and have associated ECC information. In the ECS mode, the memory device reads one or more memory locations and performs ECC for the one or more memory locations based on the ECC information. The memory device counts error information including a segment count indicating a number of segments having at least a threshold number of errors, and a maximum count indicating a maximum number of errors in any segment.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A dynamic random access memory device (DRAM), comprising:
a storage array including multiple memory segments, the memory segments including multiple memory locations to store data and error checking and correction (ECC) information associated with the data;
I/O (input/output) circuitry to couple to an associated memory controller, the I/O circuitry to receive a trigger for an error check and scrub (ECS) mode when coupled to the associated memory controller; and
an internal controller on the DRAM, responsive to the trigger for the ECS mode, to ignore data and address inputs on the I/O circuitry for a delay period following entry into the ECS mode after the trigger, and to read one or more memory locations of the multiple memory locations, perform ECC for the one or more memory locations based on the ECC information associated with the data of the one or more memory locations, and record error information for the multiple memory segments, including a segment count and a maximum count, wherein the segment count is to indicate a number of memory segments having N or more errors, wherein N is an integer equal to or greater than 1, and wherein the maximum count is to indicate a number of errors in a memory segment of the multiple memory segments with a highest number of errors.

2. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein the DRAM includes a synchronous dynamic random access memory device (SDRAM) compatible with a double data rate version 4 (DDR4) standard.

3. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein the memory segments comprise DRAM rows.

4. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein the trigger comprises an ECS command generated by the memory controller.

5. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein the trigger comprises a mode register setting set by the memory controller.

6. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein the internal controller is further to generate address information for the memory locations responsive to the trigger for the ECS mode.

7. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein memory controller is to identify a bank group associated with the trigger for the ECS mode, and wherein the internal controller is further to generate address information for specific rows within the bank group.

8. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein the internal controller is to perform single bit error (SBE) ECC for the one or more memory locations in response to the trigger for ECS mode.

9. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein N equals 1.

10. The DRAM of claim 1 , wherein N equals 2.

11. The DRAM of claim 1 , further comprising the internal controller to store the segment count in a multipurpose register (MPR) of a mode register of the DRAM.

12. The DRAM of claim 1 , further comprising the internal controller to store an address of a segment having the maximum count, wherein the internal controller is to store the address in a multipurpose register (MPR) of a mode register of the DRAM.

13. A method for error correction management in a memory subsystem, comprising:
receiving a trigger for an error check and scrub (ECS) mode at a memory device having a storage array including multiple memory segments, the memory segments including multiple memory locations to store data and error checking and correction (ECC) information associated with the data;
ignoring data and address inputs for a delay period following entry into the ECS mode after the trigger;
reading one or more of the memory locations of the multiple memory locations responsive to receiving the trigger for the ECS mode;
performing ECC for the one or more memory locations based on the ECC information associated with the data of the one or more memory locations; and
recording error information for the multiple memory segments, including a segment count and a maximum count, wherein the segment count indicates indicating a number of memory segments having N or more errors, wherein N is an integer equal to or greater than 1, and wherein the maximum count indicates a number of errors in a memory segment of the multiple memory segments with a highest number of errors.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the memory device includes a synchronous dynamic random access memory device (SDRAM) compatible with a double data rate version 4 (DDR4) standard.

15. The method of claim 13 , wherein receiving the trigger comprises receiving an ECS command generated by an associated memory controller or receiving a mode register setting set by the memory controller.

16. The method of claim 13 , wherein N equals 1 or 2.

17. The method of claim 13 , further comprising
storing the segment count in a multipurpose register (MPR) of a mode register of the memory device; and
storing an address of a segment having the maximum count.

18. A system with a memory subsystem, comprising:
a memory controller; and
multiple double data rate version 4 (DDR4) synchronous dynamic random access memory devices (SDRAMs) including
a storage array including multiple memory segments, the memory segments including multiple memory locations to store data and error checking and correction (ECC) information associated with the data;
I/O (input/output) circuitry coupled to the memory controller, the I/O circuitry to receive a trigger for an error check and scrub (ECS) mode from the memory controller; and
an internal controller, responsive to the trigger for the ECS mode, to ignore data and address inputs on the I/O circuitry for a delay period following entry into the ECS mode after the trigger, and to read one or more memory locations of the multiple memory locations, perform ECC for the one or more memory locations based on the ECC information associated with the data of the one or more memory locations, and record error information for the multiple memory segments, including a segment count and a maximum count, wherein the segment count is to indicate a number of memory segments having N or more errors, wherein N is an integer equal to or greater than 1, and wherein the maximum count is to indicate a number of errors in a memory segment of the multiple memory segments with a highest number of errors.

19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the trigger comprises an ECS command generated by the memory controller, or a mode register setting set by the memory controller.

20. The system of claim 18 , wherein the internal controller is further to generate address information for the memory locations responsive to the trigger for the ECS mode.

21. The system of claim 18 , wherein N equals 1 or 2.

22. The system of claim 18 , further comprising the internal controller to store the segment count in a multipurpose register (MPR) of a mode register of the SDRAM, and to store an address of a segment having the maximum count.

23. The system of claim 18 , further comprising one or more of:
at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory controller;
a display communicatively coupled to at least one processor; or
a network interface communicatively coupled to at least one processor.

Assignees

• Intel Corp

Inventors

• Halbert John B
• Bains Kuljit S

Classifications

• G06F3/064

  Management of blocks · CPC title

• G06F3/0679

  Non-volatile semiconductor memory device, e.g. flash memory, one time programmable memory [OTP] · CPC title

• H03M13/6566

  Implementations concerning memory access contentions · CPC title

• G11C29/42 Primary

  using error correcting codes [ECC] or parity check · CPC title

• G11C29/52

  Protection of memory contents; Detection of errors in memory contents · CPC title