Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!seismo!uwvax!cottage!lm From: lm@cottage.WISC.EDU (Larry McVoy) Newsgroups: comp.arch Subject: Phys vs Virtual Addr Caches Message-ID: <3904@spool.WISC.EDU> Date: Thu, 16-Jul-87 00:10:49 EDT Article-I.D.: spool.3904 Posted: Thu Jul 16 00:10:49 1987 Date-Received: Sat, 18-Jul-87 03:28:59 EDT Sender: news@spool.WISC.EDU Reply-To: lm@cottage.WISC.EDU (Larry McVoy) Organization: U of Wisconsin CS Dept Lines: 15 Here's a question. Why do people build their caches to respond to physical addresses instead of virtual addresses? Another way to state the question is: why not put the VM -> PM translation logic next to (in parallel with) the data cache, rather than before it? If you cache virtual addresses you can present the address to the cache as soon as it is generated, no delay do translation. At the same time you are doing the cache lookup you can be doing the translation in case there is a miss. Am I missing something or is this the wave of the future? Thank you fer yer support, Larry McVoy lm@cottage.wisc.edu or uwvax!mcvoy