Expose MessageBuffers from SLICC controllers as SimObjects that can be
manipulated in Python. This patch has numerous benefits:
1) First and foremost, it exposes MessageBuffers as SimObjects that can be
manipulated in Python code. This allows parameters to be set and checked in
Python code to avoid obfuscating parameters within protocol files. Further, now
as SimObjects, MessageBuffer parameters are printed to config output files as a
way to track parameters across simulations (e.g. buffer sizes)
2) Cleans up special-case code for responseFromMemory buffers, and aligns their
instantiation and use with mandatoryQueue buffers. These two special buffers
are the only MessageBuffers that are exposed to components outside of SLICC
controllers, and they're both slave ends of these buffers. They should be
exposed outside of SLICC in the same way, and this patch does it.
3) Distinguishes buffer-specific parameters from buffer-to-network parameters.
Specifically, buffer size, randomization, ordering, recycle latency, and ports
are all specific to a MessageBuffer, while the virtual network ID and type are
intrinsics of how the buffer is connected to network ports. The former are
specified in the Python object, while the latter are specified in the
controller *.sm files. Unlike buffer-specific parameters, which may need to
change depending on the simulated system structure, buffer-to-network
parameters can be specified statically for most or all different simulated
systems.
The RubyCache (CacheMemory) latency parameter is only used for top-level caches
instantiated for Ruby coherence protocols. However, the top-level cache hit
latency is assessed by the Sequencer as accesses flow through to the cache
hierarchy. Further, protocol state machines should be enforcing these cache hit
latencies, but RubyCaches do not expose their latency to any existng state
machines through the SLICC/C++ interface. Thus, the RubyCache latency parameter
is superfluous for all caches. This is confusing for users.
As a step toward pushing L0/L1 cache hit latency into the top-level cache
controllers, move their latencies out of the RubyCache declarations and over to
their Sequencers. Eventually, these Sequencer parameters should be exposed as
parameters to the top-level cache controllers, which should assess the latency.
NOTE: Assessing these latencies in the cache controllers will require modifying
each to eliminate instantaneous Ruby hit callbacks in transitions that finish
accesses, which is likely a large undertaking.
This patch introduces a few subclasses to the CoherentXBar and
NoncoherentXBar to distinguish the different uses in the system. We
use the crossbar in a wide range of places: interfacing cores to the
L2, as a system interconnect, connecting I/O and peripherals,
etc. Needless to say, these crossbars have very different performance,
and the clock frequency alone is not enough to distinguish these
scenarios.
Instead of trying to capture every possible case, this patch
introduces dedicated subclasses for the three primary use-cases:
L2XBar, SystemXBar and IOXbar. More can be added if needed, and the
defaults can be overridden.
Previously, the user would have to manually set access_backing_store=True
on all RubyPorts (Sequencers) in the config files.
Now, instead there is one global option that each RubyPort checks on
initialization.
Committed by: Nilay Vaish <nilay@cs.wisc.edu>
DMA Controller was not being connected to the network for the MESI_Three_Level
protocol as was being done in the other protocol config files. Without this
patch, this protocol segfaults during startup.
Committed by: Nilay Vaish <nilay@cs.wisc.edu>
Mwait works as follows:
1. A cpu monitors an address of interest (monitor instruction)
2. A cpu calls mwait - this loads the cache line into that cpu's cache.
3. The cpu goes to sleep.
4. When another processor requests write permission for the line, it is
evicted from the sleeping cpu's cache. This eviction is forwarded to the
sleeping cpu, which then wakes up.
Committed by: Nilay Vaish <nilay@cs.wisc.edu>
Ruby's functional accesses are not guaranteed to succeed as of now. While
this is not a problem for the protocols that are currently in the mainline
repo, it seems that coherence protocols for gpus rely on a backing store to
supply the correct data. The aim of this patch is to make this backing store
configurable i.e. it comes into play only when a particular option:
--access-backing-store is invoked.
The backing store has been there since M5 and GEMS were integrated. The only
difference is that earlier the system used to maintain the backing store and
ruby's copy was write-only. Sometime last year, we moved to data being
supplied supplied by ruby in SE mode simulations. And now we have patches on
the reviewboard, which remove ruby's copy of memory altogether and rely
completely on the system's memory to supply data. This patch adds back a
SimpleMemory member to RubySystem. This member is used only if the option:
access-backing-store is set to true. By default, the memory would not be
accessed.
This patch is the final in the series. The whole series and this patch in
particular were written with the aim of interfacing ruby's directory controller
with the memory controller in the classic memory system. This is being done
since ruby's memory controller has not being kept up to date with the changes
going on in DRAMs. Classic's memory controller is more up to date and
supports multiple different types of DRAM. This also brings classic and
ruby ever more close. The patch also changes ruby's memory controller to
expose the same interface.
Both ruby and the system used to maintain memory copies. With the changes
carried for programmed io accesses, only one single memory is required for
fs simulations. This patch sets the copy of memory that used to reside
with the system to null, so that no space is allocated, but address checks
can still be carried out. All the memory accesses now source and sink values
to the memory maintained by ruby.
This patch is the final patch in a series of patches. The aim of the series
is to make ruby more configurable than it was. More specifically, the
connections between controllers are not at all possible (unless one is ready
to make significant changes to the coherence protocol). Moreover the buffers
themselves are magically connected to the network inside the slicc code.
These connections are not part of the configuration file.
This patch makes changes so that these connections will now be made in the
python configuration files associated with the protocols. This requires
each state machine to expose the message buffers it uses for input and output.
So, the patch makes these buffers configurable members of the machines.
The patch drops the slicc code that usd to connect these buffers to the
network. Now these buffers are exposed to the python configuration system
as Master and Slave ports. In the configuration files, any master port
can be connected any slave port. The file pyobject.cc has been modified to
take care of allocating the actual message buffer. This is inline with how
other port connections work.
This patch fixes scripts related to ruby by adding the ruby clock domain.
Now the L1 controllers and the Sequencer shares the cpu clock domain,
while the rest of the components use the ruby clock domain.
Before this patch, running simulations with the cpu clock set at 2GHz or
1GHz will output the same time results and could distort power measurements.
Committed by: Nilay Vaish <nilay@cs.wisc.edu>
This helps in configuring the network interfaces from the python script and
these objects no longer rely on the network object for the timing information.
The patch removes the ruby_fs.py file. The functionality is being moved to
fs.py. This would being ruby fs simulations in line with how ruby se
simulations are started (using --ruby option). The alpha fs config functions
are being combined for classing and ruby memory systems. This required
renaming the piobus in ruby to iobus. So, we will have stats being renamed
in the stats file for ruby fs regression.
Couple of errors were discovered in 4eec7bdde5b0 which necessitated this patch.
Firstly, we create interrupt controllers in the se mode, but no piobus was
being created. RubyPort, which earlier used to ignore range changes now
forwards those to the piobus. The lack of piobus resulted in segmentation
fault. This patch creates a piobus even in se mode. It is not created only
when some tester is running. Secondly, I had missed out on modifying port
connections for other coherence protocols.
Currently, the interrupt controller in x86 is connected to the io bus
directly. Therefore the packets between the io devices and the interrupt
controller do not go through ruby. This patch changes ruby port so that
these packets arrive at the ruby port first, which then routes them to their
destination. Note that the patch does not make these packets go through the
ruby network. That would happen in a subsequent patch.
The first two levels (L0, L1) are private to the core, the third level (L2)is
possibly shared. The protocol supports clustered designs. For example, one
can have two sets of two cores. Each core has an L0 and L1 cache. There are
two L2 controllers where each set accesses only one of the L2 controllers.
The directory controller should not have the sharer field since there is
only one level 2 cache. Anyway the field was not in use. The owner field
was being used to track the l2 cache version (in case of distributed l2) that
has the cache block under consideration. The information is not required
since the version of the level 2 cache can be obtained from a subset of the
address bits.
The routers are created before the network class. This results in the routers
becoming children of the first link they are connected to and they get generic
names like int_node and node_b. This patch creates the network object first
and passes it to the topology creation function. Now the routers are children
of the network object and names are much more sensible.
The number of transitions per cycle that a controller can carry out is
a proxy for the number of ports that a controller has. This value is
currently 32 which is way too high. The patch introduces an option
for the number of ports and uses this option in the protocol files
to set the number of transitions. The default value is being set to
4. None of the se regressions change. Ruby stats for the fs regression
change and are being updated.
This patch moves the instantiation of the memory controller outside
FSConfig and instead relies on the mem_ranges to pass the information
to the caller (e.g. fs.py or one of the regression scripts). The main
motivation for this change is to expose the structural composition of
the memory system and allow more tuning and configuration without
adding a large number of options to the makeSystem functions.
The patch updates the relevant example scripts to maintain the current
functionality. As the order that ports are connected to the memory bus
changes (in certain regresisons), some bus stats are shuffled
around. For example, what used to be layer 0 is now layer 1.
Going forward, options will be added to support the addition of
multi-channel memory controllers.
The configuration scripts provided for ruby assume that the available
physical memory is equally distributed amongst the directory controllers.
But there is no check to ensure this assumption has been adhered to. This
patch adds the required check.
This patch adds the notion of source- and derived-clock domains to the
ClockedObjects. As such, all clock information is moved to the clock
domain, and the ClockedObjects are grouped into domains.
The clock domains are either source domains, with a specific clock
period, or derived domains that have a parent domain and a divider
(potentially chained). For piece of logic that runs at a derived clock
(a ratio of the clock its parent is running at) the necessary derived
clock domain is created from its corresponding parent clock
domain. For now, the derived clock domain only supports a divider,
thus ensuring a lower speed compared to its parent. Multiplier
functionality implies a PLL logic that has not been modelled yet
(create a separate clock instead).
The clock domains should be used as a mechanism to provide a
controllable clock source that affects clock for every clocked object
lying beneath it. The clock of the domain can (in a future patch) be
controlled by a handler responsible for dynamic frequency scaling of
the respective clock domains.
All the config scripts have been retro-fitted with clock domains. For
the System a default SrcClockDomain is created. For CPUs that run at a
different speed than the system, there is a seperate clock domain
created. This domain incorporates the CPU and the associated
caches. As before, Ruby runs under its own clock domain.
The clock period of all domains are pre-computed, such that no virtual
functions or multiplications are needed when calling
clockPeriod. Instead, the clock period is pre-computed when any
changes occur. For this to be possible, each clock domain tracks its
children.
The option was not being passed to directory controllers for the protocols
MOESI_CMP_token and MOESI_CMP_directory. This was resulting in an error
while instantiating the directory controller as it tries to access the
wrong type of memory.
The Topology class in Ruby does not need to inherit from SimObject class.
This patch turns it into a regular class. The topology object is now created
in the constructor of the Network class. All the parameters for the topology
class have been moved to the network class.
This patch moves the contollers to be children of the ruby_system instead of
'system' under the python object hierarchy. This is so that these objects
can inherit some of the ruby_system's parameter values without resorting to
calling a global system pointer during run-time.
Committed by: Nilay Vaish <nilay@cs.wisc.edu>
