Patent ID: 7383416

Claim:
A method for setting an address of a rank in a memory module, the memory module being controlled by a memory controller, or a chip set, the memory module including a number of memory chips, the method comprising: setting a first one of the memory chips to have a first rank address; generating a second rank address from the first rank address in the first memory chip; driving the second rank address to a second one of the memory chips; and setting the second memory chip to have the second rank address in response to driving the second rank address due to the first memory chip, wherein a power-up sequence of the memory module and each of the memory chips is performed after a system start or restart, the first memory chip being arranged: (a) to set the initial first rank address; (b) to generate the second rank address therefrom; and (c) to drive the second rank address to the second memory chip in response to the power-up sequence, wherein steps (a)-(c) are based on a protocol based algorithm stored in the first memory chip.