CS372H Spring 2010 Homework 2

Problem 1

Given the following program that uses three memory segments in an address space as described in class (code segment, data segment ,and stack segment):

char a[100];
main(int argc, char ** argv)
{
    int d;
    staticdouble b;
    char *s = "boo", * p;

p = malloc(300);
return 0;
}

Identify the segment in which each variable resides and indicate if the variable is private to the thread or is shared among threads.
Be careful.

Problem 2

True or false. A virtual memory system that uses paging is vulnerable to external fragmentation.

Problem 3 (based on reading; not covered in lecture)

Segmented memory schemes (as well as user-level memory allocators like malloc() and, later in class, some disk placement schemes) use various policies for fitting variable sized allocation units into variable-sized spaces. Concoct a scenario in which Best-fit allocation outperforms First-fit, Worst-fit, and Buddy allocation (see the book for details on these algorithms). Repeat for First-fit v. the others, Worst-fit v. the others, and Buddy allocation v. the others.

Problem 4 (based on reading; not covered in lecture)

Describe the data structures required to implement best-fit memory allocation.

Problem 5

This question refers to an architecture using segmentation with paging (you may need to consult the text for details). In this architecture, the 32-bit virtual address is divided into fields as follows:

4 bit segment number

12 bit page number

16 bit offset

Here are the relevant tables (all values in hexadecimal):

Segment Table		Page Table A		Page Table B
0	Page Table A	0	CAFE	0	F000
1	Page Table B	1	DEAD	1	D8BF
x	(rest invalid)	2	BEEF	x	(rest invalid)
		3	BA11
		x	(rest invalid)

Find the physical address corresponding to each of the following virtual addresses (answer "bad virtual address" if the virtual address is invalid):

00000000
20022002
10015555

Problem 6

In a 32-bit machine we subdivide the virtual address into 4 segments as follows:

10-bit

8-bit

6-bit

8 bit

We use a 3-level page table, such that the first 10-bit are for the first level and so on.

What is the page size in such a system?
What is the size of a page table for a process that has 256K of memory starting at address 0?
What is the size of a page table for a process that has a code segment of 48K starting at address 0x1000000, a data segment of 600K starting at address 0x80000000 and a stack segment of 64K starting at address 0xf0000000 and growing upward (like in the PA-RISC of HP)?

Problem 7

A computer system has a 36-bit virtual address space with a page size of 8K, and 4 bytes per page table entry.

How many pages are in the virtual address space?
What is the maximum size of addressable physical memory in this system?
If the average process size is 8GB, would you use a one-level, two-level, or three-level page table? Why?
Compute the average size of a page table in question 3 above.

Problem 8

In a 32-bit machine we subdivide the virtual address into 4 pieces as follows:

8-bit 4-bit 8-bit 12-bit

We use a 3-level page table, such that the first 8 bits are for the first level and so on. Physical addresses are 44 bits and there are 4 protection bits per page.

What is the page size in such a system?
How much memory is consumed by the page table and wasted by internal fragmentation for a process that has 64K of memory starting at address 0?
How much memory is consumed by the page table and wasted by internal fragmentation for a process that has a code segment of 48K starting at address 0x1000000, a data segment of 600K starting at address 0x80000000 and a stack segment of 64K starting at address 0xf0000000 and growing upward (towards higher addresses)?

Problem 9

In keeping with the RISC processor design philosophy of moving hardware functionality to software, you see a proposal that processor designers remove the MMU (memory management unit) from the hardware. To replace the MMU, the proposal has compilers generate what is known as position independent code (PIC). PIC can be loaded and run at any adress without any relocation being performed. Assuming that PIC code runs just as fast as the non-PIC code, what would be the disadvantaqge of this scheme compared to the page MMU used on modern microprocessors?

Problem 10

Describe the advantages of using a MMU that incorporates segmentation and paging over ones that are either pure paging or pure segmentation. Present your answer as separate lists of advantages over each of the pure schemes.