Chinese company Loongson has confirmed the completion of its own LoongArch processor architecture. The new instruction set and processors will be publicly presented later this year at the annual Information Technology Innovation Forum. Chips on LoongArch are already being produced and are working successfully, demonstrating the ability of Chinese engineers not only to copy other people’s designs, but also to create their own solutions at the highest level.

Loongson General Designer Weiwu Hu. Image source: Loongson

According to Loongson representatives, “It is impossible to build a reliable house on someone else’s foundation, even if it looks beautiful outwardly”… The company has been building a “house” for 20 years – Godson microprocessors – on a licensed MIPS 32/64 instruction set, so they know what they are talking about. The experience gained in the design of the first four generations of Godson processors allowed Loongson to develop its own unique instruction set and microprocessor architecture based on them.

All Loongson processors in development since 2020 are based on the LoongArch architecture. In ten years, Loongson project manager and de facto father of Chinese processors, Weiwu Hu, promises that the ecosystem of processors based on LoongArch architecture will reach such maturity and support that it will be possible to talk about the independent development of the Chinese computer industry in all areas of its application.

LoongArch architecture and instruction set includes basic architecture and extensions such as vector instructions, virtualization and binary translation with almost 2000 instructions. There is not a single command from the MIPS architecture in it. The LoongArch architecture is created independently of the top level of the entire architecture down to the definition of the function of each part, code, name and meaning of each instruction in detail.

Moreover, LoongArch has thrown away some of the legacy content of the traditional command system that does not fit the current trend in software and hardware design technologies, and has incorporated many of the leading technological advances in control system design in recent years.

Compared to the original compatible instruction set, LoongArch-based processors are not only easier to design for high performance and low power consumption in terms of hardware, but it is also easier to compile and optimize software, as well as develop operating systems and virtual machines in terms of software. provision. This is the groundwork that, at a minimum, will help Chinese computing systems compete on an equal footing with veterans such as Intel and AMD. The latter have to use “crutches” over and over again for end-to-end compatibility of commands and architectures, and the Chinese got rid of all the “crutches” at once. This definitely has a deep meaning.

At the same time, importantly, Loongson provided the ability to support the new instruction set by all previous processors at the expense of “Binary non-destructive migration” and declare “An efficient binary translation to run many international major command systems on LoongArch.”

“Currently, the Loongson 3A5000 (12nm) processor chip supporting the LoongArch architecture is being successfully produced, and the operating system based on the new architecture runs stably on the 3A5000-based computer. The binary translation system from other major instruction systems in LoongArch can already demonstrate and run complex applications based on other major instruction systems on the 3A5000. All newly developed Loongson processors from 2020 support the LoongArch architecture. “ – the press release of the company says.

Latest Loongson MIPS processor. Image source: Loongson

Since the second quarter of 2020, Loongson and partners have invested hundreds of man-months to conduct an in-depth comparison and analysis between LoongArch and ALPHA, ARM, MIPS, POWER, RISC-V, X86 and other major international control systems, with tens of thousands of patents valued. In January 2021, the valuation agency reported that for the version of the infrastructure submitted for analysis, LoongArch can be considered a self-developed design of the instruction system, instruction format, instruction coding, addressing modes, and so on. The LoongArch Instructional System Manual differs from the aforementioned major international teaching systems in terms of chapter structure, structure for describing instructions and expressions, and instruction content. No risk of infringement by the LoongArch infrastructure of the Chinese patents of the aforementioned major international control systems was found.

Loongson and experts claim the new architecture and command system is licensed. Now in this area, no one can dictate anything to the Chinese.