State DIRSENDCOHE attempts to send out COHE messages needed by a new or partially-completed REQUEST being processed. If there is no space available on the output port for COHEs, the REQUEST is placed in the req_partial field to indicate that it is a partially-completed transaction. The directory is then sent back to state DIRSTARTOVER so that it may be able to process incoming COHE_REPLYs in the meanwhile.
If there is space available on the output COHE port, a COHE for this transaction is sent out. If the transaction requires more coherence messages to be sent out, the request is placed in the req_partial field and the directory must delay for the additional packet creation time (a configurable parameter). After delaying, the directory will remain in state DIRSENDCOHE, which will then attempt to send the next coherence message out. These steps repeat until all COHEs for this transaction have been sent out.