APPROXIMATION A LARGER NUMBER OF BRANCH PREDICTIONS USING A SMALLER NUMBER OF BRANCH PREDICTIONS AND AN ALTERNATIVE TARGET

摘要

A branch prediction unit cache includes a branch prediction storage device based on the line, the cache branch prediction storage device based on the line is allocated to each cache line of the instruction cache in the microprocessor to apply the branch prediction unit the branch prediction is equipped with a memory location. Even in the even that each branch prediction storage locations allocated to the particular cache line, the branch prediction storage locations and stores the replacement target instruction, the replacement target instruction is a branch prediction or other cache line in the cache line in the memory location It indicates whether a corresponding branch instruction, the cache line to which the memory location is assigned. The other cache line has a predetermined relationship with the cache line to which the memory location assigned. In various embodiments, the other cache line or one less than the index as an index of the memory location is in a different way the same index. It said branch prediction unit described above, although even when only one branch prediction storage locations allocated to the cache line will have a plurality of branch prediction per cache line. Branch prediction is sufficiently prediction in the cache line if you can not be used due to the lack of a taken branch instruction, the unused branch prediction will be used by another cache line, the another cache line is to have a large number of branch instructions in.