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An Instruction Stream Compression Technique (1996)
| Venue: | Proc of Micro -30 |
| Citations: | 6 - 0 self |
BibTeX
@TECHREPORT{Bird96aninstruction,
author = {Peter L. Bird and Trevor N. Mudge},
title = {An Instruction Stream Compression Technique},
institution = {Proc of Micro -30},
year = {1996}
}
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Abstract
The performance of instruction memory is a critical factor for both large, high performance applications and for embedded systems. With high performance systems, the bandwidth to the instruction cache can be the limiting factor for execution speed. Code density is often the critical factor for embedded systems. In this report we demonstrate a straightforward technique for compressing the instruction stream for programs. After code generation, the instruction stream is analysed for often reused sequences of instructions from within the program's basic blocks. These patterns of multiple instructions are then mapped into single byte opcodes. This constitutes a compression of multiple, multi-byte operations onto a single byte. When compressed opcodes are detected during the instruction fetch cycle of program execution, they are expanded within the CPU into the original (multi-cycle) set of instructions. Because we only operate within a program's basic block, branch instructions and their t...
Keyphrases
instruction stream compression technique instruction stream basic block critical factor embedded system compressed opcodes instruction memory instruction fetch cycle code density high performance system code generation instruction cache single byte branch instruction single byte opcodes multiple instruction high performance application multi-byte operation straightforward technique execution speed reused sequence limiting factor program execution
