REGISTER TRANSFER UNIT FOR ELECTRONIC PROCESSOR

A processing system has an instruction processor (IP), register files for storing data to be processed by the IP, such as a thread context, and a register transfer unit (RTU) connected to the register files and to the IP. Register files may assume different states, readable and settable by both the RTU and the IP. The IP and the RTU assume control of register files and perform their functions partially in response to states for the register files, and in releasing register files after processing, set the states. The invention is particularly applicable to multistreamed processors, wherein more register files than streams may be implemented, allowing for at least one idle register file in which to accomplish background loading and unloading of data. The invention is also particularly applicable to processing systems dealing with real-time phenomena, such as data packet processing in network routers.