In an embodiment, a processor comprises Return Oriented Programming (ROP) logic to: detect a first branch event at a first point in time; determine whether the first branch event is indirect; in response to a determination that the first branch event is an indirect branch event, determine whether a memory location referenced by the indirect branch event is specified as read-only; and in response to a determination that the memory location referenced by the indirect branch event is specified as read-only, convert the first branch event to a direct branch event. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

In one example, a system for generating vector based selection control statements can include a processor to determine a vector cost of the selection control statement is below a scalar cost and determine the selection control statement is to be executed in a sorted order based on dependencies between branch instructions of the selection control statement. The processor can also determine a program ordering of labels of the selection control statement does not match a mathematical ordering of the labels and execute the selection control statement with a vector of values, wherein the selection control statement is to be executed based on a jump table and a sorted unique value technique, wherein the sorted unique value technique comprises selecting at least one of the plurality of branch instructions from the jump table.

A processor may include a decoder to decode a first instance of a branch instruction for which the resolved branch direction is data dependent and add results of the decoding to a stream of decoded instructions for execution. The processor may include a code generator to inject, into the stream of decoded instructions, branch resolution code to resolve the branch condition for a second instance of the branch instruction following the first instance at a predetermined look-ahead distance. The processor may include an execution unit to execute the branch resolution code, storing an indication of the resolved branch direction for the second instance in an entry of a prediction queue for the branch instruction. The processor may include a branch predictor to receive the second instance of the branch instruction, and output the resolved branch direction as the predicted branch direction for the second instance of the branch instruction.

A vector processor is disclosed including a variety of variable-length instructions. Computer-implemented methods are disclosed for efficiently carrying out a variety of operations in a time-conscious, memory-efficient, and power-efficient manner. Methods for more efficiently managing a buffer by controlling the threshold based on the length of delay line instructions are disclosed. Methods for disposing multi-type and multi-size operations in hardware are disclosed. Methods for condensing look-up tables are disclosed. Methods for in-line alteration of variables are disclosed.

Embodiments are generally directed to a multithreaded processor for executing a plurality of threads, as well as an associated method and system. The multithreaded processor comprises a first control register configured to store a stack limit value, and instruction decode logic configured to, upon receiving a procedure entry instruction for a stack associated with a first thread, determine whether to throw a stack limit exception based on the stack limit value and a first predefined stack region size associated with the stack.

In an embodiment, a method is provided. The method includes managing user-level threads on a first instruction sequencer in response to executing user-level instructions on a second instruction sequencer that is under control of an application level program. A first user-level thread is run on the second instruction sequencer and contains one or more user level instructions. A first user level instruction has at least 1) a field that makes reference to one or more instruction sequencers or 2) implicitly references with a pointer to code that specifically addresses one or more instruction sequencers when the code is executed.

A method for forwarding data from the store instructions to a corresponding load instruction in an out of order processor. The method includes accessing an incoming sequence of instructions, and of said sequence of instructions, splitting store instructions into a store address instruction and a store data instruction, wherein the store address performs address calculation and fetch, and wherein the store data performs a load of register contents to a memory address. The method further includes, of said sequence of instructions, splitting load instructions into a load address instruction and a load data instruction, wherein the load address performs address calculation and fetch, and wherein the load data performs a load of memory address contents into a register, and reordering the store address and load address instructions earlier and further away from LD/SD the instruction sequence to enable earlier dispatch and execution of the loads and the stores.

Mechanisms are provided for arranging binary code to reduce instruction cache conflict misses. These mechanisms generate a call graph of a portion of code. Nodes and edges in the call graph are weighted to generate a weighted call graph. The weighted call graph is then partitioned according to the weights, affinities between nodes of the call graph, and the size of cache lines in an instruction cache of the data processing system, so that binary code associated with one or more subsets of nodes in the call graph are combined into individual cache lines based on the partitioning. The binary code corresponding to the partitioned call graph is then output for execution in a computing device.

A data processing system includes a control register, a program counter and a controller. The control register is used to store a level status of an execution flow and at least one return address. When the controller reads a block call instruction while a level status of the execution flow has an initial value, the controller stores a return address of the block call instruction in the control register, increments a value of the level status, and redirects the execution flow to a target address indicated by the block call instruction. When the controller reads a block return instruction and the value of the level status is not equal to the initial value, the controller decrements the value of the level status. If the value of the level status becomes equal to the initial value, the controller redirects the execution flow to the return address.

Embodiments include computing devices, apparatus, and methods implemented by the apparatus for implementing profile guided indirect jump checking on a computing device, including encountering an indirect jump location of implementing an indirect jump during execution of a program, identifying an indirect jump target of the indirect jump, determining whether the indirect jump location and the indirect jump target are associated in a profile guided indirect jump table, and determining whether the indirect jump location and the indirect jump target are associated in a compiler guided indirect jump table in response to determining that the indirect jump location and the indirect jump target are not associated in the profile guided indirect jump table.