Virtual-address caches. Part 1: problems and solutions in uniprocessors

This survey exposes the problems related to virtual caches in the context of uniprocessor (Part 1) and multiprocessor (Part 2) systems. We review proposed solutions that have been implemented or proposed in different contexts. The idea is to catalog all solutions, past and present, and to identify technology trends and attractive future approaches. We first overview the relevant properties of virtual memory and of physical caches. To solve the virtual-to-physical address bottle-neck, processors may access caches directly with virtual addresses. This survey introduces the problems and discusses solutions in the context of single-processor systems.