Patent ID: 7418575

Claim:
A system comprising: a processor operable to execute computing instructions comprising a computational instruction and a first part of a long instruction word instruction, a second part of the long instruction word instruction comprising an instruction extension, the long instruction word instruction including control bits to indicate a size of the long instruction word instruction; programmable logic operable to receive configuration data for defining the instruction extension and to execute the instruction extension; an extension adapter coupled to the processor and including logic operable to detect the long instruction word instruction and to determine whether an operation of the long instruction word instruction should be executed alternatively using the processor or using the programmable logic, the detected long instruction word instruction received by the extension adapter in response to an instruction fetch from the processor, the extension adapter operable to extend a set of native instructions defined by the processor and determine that a first operation of the long instruction word instruction is to be executed using the processor and a second operation of the long instruction word instruction is to be executed using the programmable logic; a first register file in the processor operable to store first data; a second register file coupled to the programmable logic and the extension adapter and operable to store second data; and a load store module operable to transfer the first data using the first register file, transfer the second data using the second register file, and transfer the second data directly between the second register file and a system memory.