Methods for upgrading, diagnosing, and maintaining replaceable non-volatile memory

[0032]In the following detailed description of the embodiments of the invention, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the invention. However, it will be obvious to one skilled in the art that the embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances well known methods, procedures, components, and circuits have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the embodiments of the invention.

[0033]The technologies used by non-volatile memory integrated circuits differ from dynamic random access memory (DRAM) integrated circuits (ICs) in the structure of their memory cell and in how they store information within the cell. These differences may help a computer system achieve relatively low power consumption characteristics. For example, non-volatile memory integrated circuits typically do not require refresh cycles and thus conserve power. Non-volat...