cache coherence

(cash cōhēr´&ns) (n.) A protocol for managing the caches of a multiprocessor system so that no data is lost or overwritten before the data is transferred from a cache to the target memory. When two or more computer processors work together on a single program, known as multiprocessing, each processor may have its own memory cache that is separate from the larger RAM that the individual processors will access. A memory cache, sometimes called a cache store or RAM cache, is a portion of memory made of high-speed static RAM (SRAM) instead of the slower and cheaper dynamic RAM (DRAM) used for main memory. Memory caching is effective because most programs access the same data or instructions over and over. By keeping as much of this information as possible in SRAM, the computer avoids accessing the slower DRAM.

When multiple processors with separate caches share a common memory, it is necessary to keep the caches in a state of coherence by ensuring that any shared operand that is changed in any cache is changed throughout the entire system. This is done in either of two ways: through a directory-based or a snooping system. In a directory-based system, the data being shared is placed in a common directory that maintains the coherence between caches. The directory acts as a filter through which the processor must ask permission to load an entry from the primary memory to its cache. When an entry is changed the directory either updates or invalidates the other caches with that entry. In a snooping system, all caches on the bus monitor (or snoop) the bus to determine if they have a copy of the block of data that is requested on the bus. Every cache has a copy of the sharing status of every block of physical memory it has.

Cache misses and memory traffic due to shared data blocks limit the performance of parallel computing in multiprocessor computers or systems. Cache coherence aims to solve the problems associated with sharing data.