Processing device with self-scrubbing logic

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9792184-B2
Application number	US-201614997969-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 18, 2016
Priority date	Feb 22, 2013
Publication date	Oct 17, 2017
Grant date	Oct 17, 2017

Abstract

An apparatus includes a processing unit including a configuration memory and self-scrubber logic coupled to read the configuration memory to detect compromised data stored in the configuration memory. The apparatus also includes a watchdog unit external to the processing unit and coupled to the self-scrubber logic to detect a failure in the self-scrubber logic. The watchdog unit is coupled to the processing unit to selectively reset the processing unit in response to detecting the failure in the self-scrubber logic. The apparatus also includes an external memory external to the processing unit and coupled to send configuration data to the configuration memory in response to a data feed signal outputted by the self-scrubber logic.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A processing device including:
self-scrubber logic coupled to send a heartbeat signal to a watchdog unit that is external to the processing device, the processing device coupled to be selectively reset by the watchdog unit that is external to the processing device; and
configuration memory coupled to be loaded with configuration data from an external memory that is external to the processing device, wherein the self-scrubber logic is coupled to read the configuration memory to detect compromised data stored in the configuration memory and correct the compromised data, and wherein the self-scrubber logic is also coupled to output a data feed signal to the external memory in response to the compromised data including a threshold level of flipped bits, the data feed signal outputted by the self-scrubber logic to facilitate loading the configuration data into the configuration memory.

2. The processing device of claim 1 , wherein, in response to detecting compromised data in the configuration memory, the self-scrubber logic is coupled to facilitate rewriting substantially all of the configuration memory with the configuration data when the compromised data includes the threshold level of flipped bits and coupled to correct a targeted portion of the configuration memory when the compromised data includes less than the threshold level of flipped bits.

3. The processing device of claim 2 , wherein the targeted portion of the configuration memory is a frame, and wherein the self-scrubber logic is coupled to correct the flipped bits based on a golden frame when the frame includes less than the threshold level of flipped bits.

4. The processing device of claim 3 , wherein the golden frame is stored in the external memory.

5. A method comprising:
detecting an inconsistency between a frame of configuration data and a golden frame, wherein a processing device includes a configuration memory including the configuration data; and
correcting the inconsistency between the frame and the golden frame based on a threshold level of flipped bits in the frame, wherein said correcting the inconsistency includes loading a bitfile from an external memory into the configuration memory when the inconsistency between the frame and the golden frame reaches the threshold level of flipped bits, and wherein said correcting the inconsistency includes correcting the frame of configuration data when the inconsistency between the frame and the golden frame is below the threshold level of flipped bits, said detecting the inconsistency and said correcting the inconsistency initiated by self-scrubber logic disposed within the processing device.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising;
monitoring the self-scrubber logic to detect a failure in the self-scrubber logic; and
resetting the processing device in response to detecting the failure of the self-scrubber logic.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein said monitoring the self-scrubber logic and said resetting the processing device is performed with a watchdog unit external to the processing device.

8. The method of claim 5 , wherein detecting the inconsistency includes utilizing a cyclical redundancy check (“CRC”) that checks substantially all of the configuration memory for CRC errors.

9. The method of claim 5 further comprising:
storing an address of the frame within the processing device before said correcting the inconsistency; and
storing data content of the frame within the processing device before said correcting the inconsistency.

10. The method of claim 5 , wherein said correcting the frame of the configuration data includes correcting the flipped bits based on a golden frame.

11. A non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium that provides instructions that, when executed by a processing device, will cause the processing device to perform operations comprising:
detecting an inconsistency between a frame of configuration data and a golden frame, wherein the processing device includes the configuration data; and
correcting the inconsistency between the frame and the golden frame based on a threshold level of flipped bits in the frame, wherein correcting the inconsistency includes loading a bitfile from an external memory into the configuration memory when the inconsistency between the frame and the golden frame reaches the threshold level of flipped bits, and wherein correcting the inconsistency includes correcting the frame of configuration data when the inconsistency between the frame and the golden frame is below the threshold level of flipped bits, said detecting the inconsistency and said correcting the inconsistency performed by self-scrubber logic disposed within the processing device.

12. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 11 , further providing instructions that, when executed by the processing device, will cause the processing device to perform further operations, comprising:
monitoring the self-scrubber logic to detect a failure in the self-scrubber logic; and
resetting the processing device in response to detecting the failure of the self-scrubber logic.

13. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 11 , wherein said monitoring the self-scrubber logic and said resetting the processing device is performed with a watchdog unit external to the processing device.

14. The non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium of claim 11 , wherein detecting the inconsistency includes utilizing a cyclical redundancy check (“CRC”) that checks substantially all of the configuration memory for CRC errors.

Assignees

• Sandia Corp
• Sandia Llc Nat Tech & Eng Solutions

Inventors

• Wojahn Christopher K

Classifications

• G06F11/073

  in a memory management context, e.g. virtual memory or cache management (memory management G06F12/00; testing of static memory units G11C29/00) · CPC title

• G06F11/079

  Root cause analysis, i.e. error or fault diagnosis (in a hardware test environment G06F11/22; in a software test environment G06F11/36) · CPC title

• G06F11/076

  by exceeding a count or rate limit, e.g. word- or bit count limit · CPC title

• G06F11/0727

  in a storage system, e.g. in a DASD or network based storage system (drivers for digital recording or reproducing units G06F3/06; circuits for error detection or correction within digital recording or reproducing units G11B20/18; for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS], H04L67/1097) · CPC title

• G06F11/0793

  Remedial or corrective actions (recovery from an exception in an instruction pipeline G06F9/3861; by retry G06F11/1402; for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40) · CPC title