Use of video DRAM for memory storage in a local area network port of a switching hub

摘要

A plurality of video dynamic random access memory devices (VRAMs) distributed among low speed local area network ports of a distributed memory switching hub interconnecting heterogeneous local area networks operating at different transmission speeds for receiving, storing and forwarding frames of data. The distributed memory switching hub employs a distributed memory architecture in which VRAM devices located at each low speed LAN port of the distributed memory switching hub store frames of data received or to be forwarded. The VRAM device is comprised of serial access memory (SAM) coupled to and transmitting frames of data with a high speed internal data bus at the same speed of the data bus and dynamic random access memory (RAM) coupled to and transmitting frames of data with a low speed local area network at the same speed of the low speed local area network. The SAM and RAM operate asynchronously with respect to each other to provide simultaneous bidirectional transfer of frames of data between them.