Symbolic buffer allocation in local cache at a network processing element
View Patent ↗According to some embodiments, a portion of local memory allocated to a thread by a programming statement includes an indication of a read/write status of the portion and symbolically references a buffer name wherein the symbolically referenced buffer name includes both letters and numbers.
1. A method, comprising:
retrieving a set of allocate buffer instructions from a storage device associated with a multithreaded network processing element, the network processing element having a local memory;
arranging for a first portion of the local memory to be allocated to a first thread context in accordance with an allocate buffer instruction that is associated with a first thread and symbolically references a buffer name, the allocate buffer instruction includes an indication of a read/write status of the first portion; and
arranging for a second portion of the local memory to be allocated to a second thread context in accordance with an allocate buffer instruction that is associated with a second thread and symbolically references the buffer name, the allocate buffer instruction includes an indication of a read/write status of the second portion; and
wherein the symbolically referenced buffer name includes both letters and numbers.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
including a base, size, and offset with the allocate buffer instruction associated with the first thread.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said arranging comprises translating the allocate buffer instructions into code.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
arranging for information associated with the first thread context to be stored in the first portion of the local memory; and
arranging for information associated with the second thread context to be stored in the second portion of the local memory.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
freeing the second portion of the local memory in accordance with another allocate buffer instruction that symbolically references the buffer name.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the symbolic reference to the buffer name may be passed in at least one of: (i) a function, and (ii) a macro.
7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
translating the set of allocate buffer instructions into code; and providing the code.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the provided code is associated with at least one of: (i) assembly language, and (ii) microcode.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the local memory comprises at least one of: (i) memory at the network processing element, (ii) hardware registers at the network processing element, and (iii) a local cache.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the network processing element is a reduced instruction set computer microengine in a network device.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the network device is associated with at least one of: (i) information packet header parsing, (ii) exception packet identification, (iii) information packet receipt, (iv) information packet transformation, and (v) information packet transmission.
12. The method of claim 10 , wherein the network device is associated with at least one of: (i) Internet protocol information packets, (ii) Ethernet information packets, (iii) asynchronous transfer mode protocol, (iv) a local area network, (v) a wide area network, (vi) a network processor, (vii) a switch, and (viii) a router.
13. An article, comprising:
a storage medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by a machine result in the following:
retrieving a set of allocate buffer instructions from a storage device associated with a multithreaded network processing element, the network processing element having a local memory;
arranging for a first portion of the local memory to be allocated to a first thread context in accordance with a allocate buffer instruction that is associated with a first thread and symbolically references a buffer name, the allocate buffer instruction includes an indication of a read/write status of the first portion; and
arranging for a second portion of the local memory to be allocated to a second thread context in accordance with an allocate buffer instruction that is associated with a second thread and symbolically references the buffer name, the allocate buffer instruction includes an indication of a read/write status of the second portion; and
wherein the symbolically referenced buffer name includes both letters and numbers.
14. The article of claim 13 , wherein execution of the instructions further results in:
translating the set of allocate buffer instructions into code.
15. The article of claim 14 , wherein execution of the instructions further results in:
providing the code.
16. An article, comprising:
a processor; and
a medium storing a set of allocate buffer instructions , said allocate buffer instructions including:
an allocate buffer instruction associated with a first thread that includes an indication of a read/write status and uses a buffer name to symbolically reference information that a first thread context will store in local memory at a multithreaded network processing element; and
an allocate buffer instruction associated with a second thread that includes an indication of a read/write status and uses the buffer name to symbolically reference information that a second thread context will store in the local memory at the network processing element,
wherein the symbolically referenced buffer name includes both letters and numbers.
17. A method, comprising:
defining an allocate buffer instruction associated with a first thread that includes an indication of a read/write status and uses a buffer name to symbolically reference information that a first thread context will store in local memory at a multithreaded network processing element; and
defining allocate buffer instruction associated with a second thread that includes an indication of a read/write status and uses the buffer name to symbolically reference information that a second thread context will store in the local memory at the network processing element;
wherein the symbolically referenced buffer name includes both letters and numbers.
18. The method of claim 17 , further comprising:
arranging for the allocate buffer instruction to be translated into code.
19. A system, comprising:
a processor; and
a hard disk drive having stored therein instructions that when executed by a machine result in the following:
translating C programming language instructions into code, and
translating an additional allocate buffer instruction into code, the additional allocate buffer instruction including an indication of a read/write status and using a buffer name to symbolically reference information that a thread context will store in local memory at a multithreaded network processing element,
wherein the symbolically referenced buffer name includes both letters and numbers.
20. The system of claim 19 , further comprising:
an interface to facilitate a transfer of the code from the system to the network processing element.