Report on workshop on operating systems support for next generation large scale NVRAM (NVRAMOS 2009)

Abstract

NAND Flash memory solid state disk (hereafter SSD) technology is advancing rapidly in capacity and speed. Also, we envision that byte-addressable NVRAM devices, which is being thought as the future replacement of Flash memory technology will be commercially viable for storage within the next 3–7 years. Modern computer system takes hierarchical organization. It consists of CPU, Main Memory and Storage. This hierarchical organization is natural outcome of economic concern. Modern Operating System is designed to effectively exploit the physical characteristics of the device in each system hierarchy. Process management, memory management, and storage management subsystems are all designed to fill the gaps (speed and space) among the layers in different hierarchies while maximizing cost performance ratio. Current operating system paradigm draws clear line between memory and storage and handles them in very different way. Large scale byte-addressable NVRAM combines the physical characteristics of main memory with the nonvolatility of storage, presenting new challenges for system designers. From the DBMS and Operating System’s point of view, the advancement of this device calls for a reconsideration of legacy operating system architectures that have been designed based upon the notion of system hierarchy: CPU, memory and storage.