Efficient integration of bimodal branch prediction and pipeline analysis

Advanced micro-architectural features such as caches and branch prediction mechanisms supporting speculative execution are becoming commonplace within modern microprocessors. For developers of real-time systems, these mechanisms present predictability problems. Previous work has demonstrated accurate analysis for instruction caches, data caches, and branch prediction mechanisms are possible. However, the integration of these individual analysis methods is difficult to do without large increases in computational complexity or the introduction of pessimism regarding the worst-case execution time (WCET) estimate. In this paper, we discuss how a previously published analysis method for branch predictors can be integrated with instruction pipeline analysis.