Protection and recovery of non-redundant information stored in a memory
The present invention is a method, computer-readable medium and an apparatus for protection and recovery of non-redundant computer-readable information stored in a memory having multiple segments that features replacing computer-readable information stored in one of the multiple segments based upon a determination that computer-readable information stored in one of the remaining segments of the multiples segments is in a desired state. To that end, the memory device operates synergistically with a shelf manager, which maintains a state of computer-readable information in the differing address ranges of the memory device, so that any computer-readable information replaced in memory device may be achieved by executing uncorrupted computer-readable information stored in the memory device.
1. A method for protection of non-redundant information stored in a memory having multiple segments, said method comprising:
replacing computer-readable information stored in one of said multiple segments based upon a determination that computer-readable information stored in one of the remaining segments of said multiple segments is in a desired state; and
providing said one of the remaining segments with a plurality of sectors, including a primary sector and a final sector and an intermediary sector and further including determining a checksum value for each of said plurality of sectors, excepting said intermediary sector, forming a plurality of checksum values and summing said plurality of checksum values, defining a summed checksum, and storing in said intermediary sector a stored value equal to an opposite of said summed checksum.
2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein replacing further includes determining whether said computer-readable information stored in said one of the remaining segments is in a state selected from a set of states consisting essentially of a corrupted state and an uncorrupted state, with said desired state being said uncorrupted state.
3. The method as recited in claim 1 further including initiating a boot operation and determining whether computer-readable information stored in any of said multiple segments has been placed in an undesired state, with said replacing computer-readable information including identifying said one of said multiple segments being in said undesired state.
4. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of sectors has a range of addresses associated therewith and identifying a subgroup of said plurality of sectors in which computer-readable information has been corrupted, defining corrupted information with said replacing computer-readable information further including replacing said corrupted information.
5. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said information stored in said primary sector and said final sector consists essentially of a data concerning a year, a month, a day, an hour and a second upon which information stored in said one of the remaining segments occurred.
6. A method for protection of non-redundant information stored in a memory having multiple segments, said method comprising:
replacing computer-readable information stored in one of said multiple segments based upon a determination that computer-readable information stored in one of the remaining segments of said multiple segments is in a desired state;
providing said memory with three segments of memory addresses, defining a reset segment, a boot segment, and a main segment with said reset segment storing hardware specific information and diagnostic code to determine whether computer-readable information in said boot segment and said main segment is in a corrupted state, said boot segment storing computer-readable information to perform power-on tests and self-test and said main segment storing computer-readable information for application specific software.
7. The method as recited in claim 6 wherein determining further includes determining whether said computer-readable information stored in said boot segment and said main segment are corrupted without determining whether said computer-readable information stored in said reset segment is in a corrupted state.
8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium for protection of non-redundant information stored in a memory having multiple segments, said computer-readable medium comprising:
code to replace computer-readable information stored in one of said multiple segments based upon a determination that computer-readable information stored in one of the remaining segments of said multiple segments is in a desired state;
code to provide said memory with three segments of memory addresses, defining a reset segment, a boot segment, and a main segment with said reset segment storing hardware specific information and diagnostic code to determine whether computer-readable information in said boot segment and said main segment is in a corrupted state, said boot segment storing computer-readable information to perform power-on tests and self-test and said main segment storing computer-readable information for application specific software.
9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as recited in claim 8 wherein said code to replace further includes code to determine whether said computer-readable information stored in said one of the remaining segments is in a state selected from a set of states consisting essentially of a corrupted state and an uncorrupted state, with said desired state being said uncorrupted state.
10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as recited in claim 8 further including code to identify valid update program information to be written into addresses of said one of said multiple segments.
11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as recited in claim 8 further including code to initiate a boot operation and determining whether computer-readable information stored in any of said multiple segments has been placed in an undesired state, with said code to replace computer-readable information including code to identify said one of said multiple segments being in said undesired state.
12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as recited in claim 8 further including code to provide said one of said multiple segments with a plurality of sectors, each of which has a range of addresses associated therewith and code to identify a subgroup of said plurality of sectors in which computer-readable information have been corrupted, defining corrupted information with said code to replace further including code to replace said corrupted information.
13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium as recited in claim 8 wherein said diagnostic code to determine includes diagnostic code to determine whether said computer-readable information stored in said boot segment and said main segment are corrupted without determining whether said computer-readable information stored in said reset segment is in a corrupted state.