Patent ID: 7219333

Claim:
A method of transmitting trace data comprising a timing data stream, a program counter data stream, a data ID timing stream and a data stream comprising the steps of: receiving a timing data stream from a data processor; buffering the timing data stream in a timing data stream first-in-first-out buffer; receiving a program counter data stream from the data processor; receiving a data ID timing stream from the data processor; receiving a data stream from the data processor; buffering at least one of the program counter data stream, the data ID timing stream and the data stream in a corresponding data stream first-in-first-out buffer; forming a combined trace data stream from the buffered timing data stream, the program counter data stream, the data ID timing stream and the data stream in a trace data merge unit including the buffered at least one of the program counter data stream, the data ID timing stream and the data stream; detecting if the timing data stream first-in-first-out buffer overflows; if said timing data stream first-in-first-out buffer overflows setting a timing corruption flag, a program counter corruption flag and a data corruption flag, and transmitting an indication of the timing corruption flag, the program counter corruption flag and the data corruption flag in the combined trace data stream.