Translating memory modules for main memory
View Patent ↗A translating memory module is disclosed including a printed circuit board, at least one memory integrated circuit coupled to the printed board, and at least one support chip coupled to the printed circuit board and coupled between the edge connector and the at least one memory integrated circuit. The at least one support chip includes a bi-directional translator to translate between a first memory communication protocol for the at least one memory integrated circuit and a second memory communication protocol for a memory channel differing from the first memory communication protocol. The second memory communication protocol to communicate data, address, and control signals over the memory channel bus to read and write data into the memory of the translating memory module.
1. A translating memory module comprising:
a printed circuit board having a memory module form factor and an edge connector to couple to a socket of a pre-existing memory channel bus of a main memory;
at least one memory integrated circuit coupled to the printed circuit board, the at least one memory integrated circuit having memory to store and recall data and a first memory communication protocol to communicate data, address, and control signals to read and write data into the at least one memory integrated circuit; and
at least one support chip coupled to the printed circuit board and coupled to and between the edge connector and the at least one memory integrated circuit, the at least one support chip including
a bi-directional translator to translate between the first memory communication protocol for the at least one memory integrated circuit and a second memory communication protocol for the memory channel bus differing from the first memory communication protocol, the second memory communication protocol to communicate data, address, and control signals over the memory channel bus to read and write data into the memory of the translating memory module.
2. The translating memory module of claim 1 , wherein
the at least one support chip further includes
a data transceiver coupled between the bi-directional translator and the edge connector, the data transceiver to bi-directionally interface the memory module to the memory channel bus and receive and transmit data on the memory channel bus using the second memory communication protocol, and
an address and control receiver coupled between the bi-directional translator and the edge connector, the address and control receiver to interface the memory module to the memory channel bus and receive address and controls on the memory channel bus using the second memory communication protocol.
3. The translating memory module of claim 2 , wherein
the at least one memory integrated circuit is a non-double data rate two (non-DDR2) memory integrated circuit and the first memory communication protocol is a non-DDR2 memory communication protocol,
the second memory communication protocol is a DDR2 memory communication protocol with DDR2 address, control, and data signaling,
the data transceiver bi-directionally interfaces the memory module to the memory channel bus using DDR2 data signaling, and
the address/control receiver receives DDR2 address signaling and DDR2 control signaling to interface the memory module to the memory channel bus.
4. The translating memory module of claim 1 , wherein
the at least one memory integrated circuit is an unconventional memory integrated circuit, and
the at least one support chip includes the bi-directional translator to translate between the first memory communication protocol and the second memory communication protocol such that unconventional memory integrated circuit in the memory module may communicate to a pre-existing memory controller using the pre-existing memory channel bus.
5. The translating memory module of claim 4 , wherein
the unconventional memory integrated circuit is a non-volatile memory integrated circuit.
6. The translating memory module of claim 1 , wherein
the at least one support chip further including
a memory module identification (MMID) to provide an identification of the type of memory module and the at least one memory integrated circuit to a memory controller over the memory channel bus.
7. The translating memory module of claim 6 , wherein
the memory module identification (MMID) to identify the memory module as a non-volatile memory module and the at least one memory integrated circuit as at least one non-volatile memory integrated circuit.
8. The translating memory module of claim 6 , wherein
the at least one support chip further including
an input/output port coupled to the edge connector to form a communication port to communicate the memory module identification (MMID) to the memory controller over the memory channel bus.
9. The translating memory module of claim 8 , wherein
the input/output port is a serial input/output port and the communication port is a serial communication port to serially communicate the memory module identification (MMID) to the memory controller.
10. The translating memory module of claim 6 , wherein
the at least one support chip further including
a register to store status information regarding the at least one memory integrated circuit, the register to communicate the status information to the memory controller over the memory channel bus in response to a request.
11. The translating memory module of claim 6 , wherein
the at least one support chip to receive status information from the at least one memory integrated circuit and generate a status flag for communication to the memory controller over the memory channel bus.