System and method for tracing

摘要

The present invention discloses a system and method for implementing instruction tracing in a computer system and in particular a computer system with a tightly coupled shared processor central processor unit (CPU). Each of the processors are generally purpose processors that have been modified by design to allow an instruction to execute and simultaneously to be stored and forwarded to shared memory operable as a trace buffer. Since each processor is general purpose, the trace routine necessary for tracing, can by one of the routines or programs that can be written and executed on either of the processors. One of the processors can run, collect and analyze the executed and store instructions of the other processor. Since the processors can be on a single chip the shared memory bus that writes and reads the executed instructions can operate at high speed. Also since the trace function is part of the multiprocessor architecture its speed of operation will scale with the speed of the processors without modification.