20090063810 | Computing Device with Automated Page Based RAM Shadowing, and Method of Operation - Where a computing device is provided with executable programs in relatively slow non-volatile memory, such as ROM, the device performance can be improved by shadowing, a process by which those programs are copied into relatively fast volatile memory, such as RAM. Shadowing is often inefficient because code is copied that is too infrequently used to benefit from the procedure, wasting processing time and memory. The present invention determines which parts of the slow memory are most frequently accessed, either by profiling or by intimate knowledge of the working of the device, and then shadows only those pages of executable programs whose frequent use warrants it. In a preferred embodiment the most frequently used code areas are clustered together onto certain pages of the non-volatile memory and the least frequently used code areas are clustered onto other pages of non-volatile memory. | 03-05-2009 |
20110138206 | Power Management Method and Apparatus - Embodiments of the invention provide a power management subsystem which provides an interface which allows baseport subsystems such as device drivers and the like to register operational constraints on system resources such as power supplies, clocks, and the like, as well as to specify a maximum allowable wake-up time to ensure correct operation. Once registered, such operational constraints are then typically sorted to determine the strictest constraints, and the strictest constraints are then mapped to the characteristics of the various low-power modes offered by a particular device platform, to determine the most appropriate low power mode which can be entered whilst still allowing the registered constraints to be met. In this way, when required a device having the power management subsystem can still make use of low power modes when appropriate, without compromising the operation of base port sub systems such as device drivers, controllers, or the like. Additionally, the power management subsystem insulated the base port subsystems from the low power modes provided by the device, such that existing base port subsystem components can be used with the device, without requiring any bespoke tailoring thereto. | 06-09-2011 |