SlotId

SlotId is an identifier used to refer to a specific "slot" within a container, device, or data structure. The exact meaning and representation of slotId depend on the domain in which it is used, but it generally serves as a handle to a position that can hold a value, device, or resource.

In hardware, a slot is a physical interface on a motherboard or backplane (such as PCIe, memory, or I/O slots). A slotId denotes a particular slot position and is used by firmware, the BIOS, and the operating system to help map devices to their physical location. Slot numbering schemes vary by system and may be exposed to users as slot numbers for maintenance or configuration purposes.

In software, a slot often represents a named or indexed position that can store a value or component. SlotId acts as a handle to access that slot. Some data structures that use slot-based addressing, such as slot maps, define SlotId with a combination of an index and a version or generation, which helps prevent access to a stale or freed slot. In other contexts, slotId may simply be a numeric or string key used to retrieve a slot from a collection or registry.

In virtualization and cloud environments, slot IDs can identify virtual devices or resource slots allocated to a virtual machine, aiding in tracking, hot-plug operations, and resource management.

Common characteristics include being an abstract reference to a position rather than the content itself, and the need for validation to avoid invalid or stale references, especially when slots can be freed and reused. Understanding slotId requires attention to the specific system’s documentation for its lifetime, validity, and access rules.