Patent ID: 7533198

Claim:
A method for a memory controller to perform a direct memory access (DMA) operation during copying of a first page to a second page by the memory controller, the method comprising the steps of: (A) determining whether the DMA operation is to the first page; (B) when the DMA operation is not to the first page, performing the DMA operation; (C) when the DMA operation is to the first page, performing the steps of: (C1) comparing a page index of the DMA operation to a copy address pointer that points to a location in the first page and indicates a portion of the first page currently being copied; (C2) when the page index of the DMA operation is less than the copy address pointer, causing the DMA operation to be performed to the second page during the copying of the first page to the second page; and (C3) when the page index of the DMA operation is greater than the copy address pointer, causing the DMA operation to be performed to the first page during the copying of the first page to the second page.