Patent ID: 6047307
Filing Date: 2000-04-04
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
In a computer system comprising a processor, a peripheral device, and a device control mechanism for controlling operations of the peripheral device responsively to commands issued by the processor, a method comprising the steps of:executing an application program with the processor as a task of a multitasking operating system, the operating system comprising software executable by the processor, the software having a first component for issuing commands to the device control mechanism, the application program having a second component for issuing commands to the device control mechanism, the application program comprising one of a multitask program and a single-task program;while executing the application program,using the second component of the application program to issue a command directly to the device control mechanism;generating an exception with the processor;transferring control to an exception handling routine in the operation system;determining a status of a lock with the operating system;responsively to the directly issued command, temporarily bypassing the first component; andcontrolling an operation of the peripheral device with the device control mechanism.