Block-SSD: A New Block-Based Blocking SSD Architecture

TL;DR

Block-SSD proposes a block-based blocking SSD architecture that builds door-sized blocks from page-level basic blocks, aligning with a hierarchical structure reminiscent of NAND flash organization. The paper adopts humor, cost, and visibility as design metrics and deliberately minimizes simulation in favor of a tactile, office-door fabrication approach; the door block measures 88 cm by 211 cm and uses $280 \pm 20$ pages of plain paper folded into basic blocks, with a $20 by 27$ cm space reserved for a door handle. Through demonstrations of 5×5 and 9×9 non-blocking towers, the work discusses blocking versus non-blocking behavior, noting that perceived non-blocking structures may still be blocking from a visibility perspective. Overall, the work reads as a playful, educational demonstration intended to provoke discussion on block terminology and cross-domain design, rather than a practical SSD proposal.

Abstract

Computer science and related fields (e.g., computer engineering, computer hardware engineering, electrical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, computer systems engineering) often draw inspiration from other fields, areas, and the real world in order to describe topics in their area. One cross-domain example is the idea of a block. The idea of blocks comes in many flavors, including software (e.g., process control blocks, file system blocks, data blocks, basic blocks, blocking statements, blocking processes, blocker bugs) and hardware (e.g., NAND flash blocks, cache blocks, logic blocks); however, this makes it difficult to precisely discern what a "block" is. In this work, we make little (negative) effort to disambiguate these terms and propose our own set of overloaded terms to increase the complexity of this paper. To inspire new students to join their research groups, professors often hang posters or other publications along the walls adjacent to their offices. Regrettably, Saugata does not have any posters directly covering his door, leaving prime real estate. Therefore, this underutilized space in the Siebel Center for Computer Science offers substantial opportunities for renovations. To alleviate this concern, we propose Block-SSD. Block-SSD takes a basic block, formed out of a page, and physically combines these blocks into larger blocks. Those blocks are then formed into a larger door block, which cover most of the professor's door. To our knowledge, we are the first to design a block-based blocking Sabotaging Saugata's Door (SSD) architecture.

Figures (1)

• Figure 1: Work-in-progress non-blocking towers