Re: [PATCH] srcu: Implement more-efficient reader counts

From: Paul E. McKenney
Date: Mon Jan 23 2017 - 19:43:16 EST


On Mon, Jan 23, 2017 at 01:35:18PM -0800, Lance Roy wrote:
> SRCU uses two per-cpu counters: a nesting counter to count the number of
> active critical sections, and a sequence counter to ensure that the nesting
> counters don't change while they are being added together in
> srcu_readers_active_idx_check().
>
> This patch instead uses per-cpu lock and unlock counters. Because both
> counters only increase and srcu_readers_active_idx_check() reads the unlock
> counter before the lock counter, this achieves the same end without having
> to increment two different counters in srcu_read_lock(). This also saves a
> smp_mb() in srcu_readers_active_idx_check().
>
> Possible bug: There is no guarantee that the lock counter won't overflow
> during srcu_readers_active_idx_check(), as there are no memory barriers
> around srcu_flip() (see comment in srcu_readers_active_idx_check() for
> details). However, this problem was already present before this patch.
>
> Suggested-by: Mathieu Desnoyers <mathieu.desnoyers@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Signed-off-by: Lance Roy <ldr709@xxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: Paul E. McKenney <paulmck@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: Lai Jiangshan <jiangshanlai@xxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: Peter Zijlstra <peterz@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

OK, this only has differences only in the comments, so I can reasonably
substitute it, even this near the next merge window.

But let's talk about the potential overflow. If I understand correctly,
for this to happen, there needs to be ULONG_MAX/2 or thereabouts
srcu_read_lock() calls without matching srcu_read_unlock() calls.
Let's focus on 32-bit systems for the moment.

Lockdep allows at most 48 locks held at a given time by any single task,
and RCU does not pass in a non-NULL nest_lock -- if you acquire more than
that, a lockdep kernel will splat. Each task has at least one 4K page of
kernel stack, so there can be at most 1,048,576 tasks (actually quite a
bit fewer due to the size of the task_struct and so on). This allows
at most 50,331,648 unmatched srcu_read_lock() calls in the system,
which is not sufficient to cause overflow.

Or am I missing something here?

Thanx, Paul

> ---
> include/linux/srcu.h | 10 ++--
> kernel/rcu/rcutorture.c | 19 +++++++-
> kernel/rcu/srcu.c | 122 +++++++++++++++++-------------------------------
> 3 files changed, 66 insertions(+), 85 deletions(-)
>
> diff --git a/include/linux/srcu.h b/include/linux/srcu.h
> index dc8eb63..a598cf3 100644
> --- a/include/linux/srcu.h
> +++ b/include/linux/srcu.h
> @@ -33,9 +33,9 @@
> #include <linux/rcupdate.h>
> #include <linux/workqueue.h>
>
> -struct srcu_struct_array {
> - unsigned long c[2];
> - unsigned long seq[2];
> +struct srcu_array {
> + unsigned long lock_count[2];
> + unsigned long unlock_count[2];
> };
>
> struct rcu_batch {
> @@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ struct rcu_batch {
>
> struct srcu_struct {
> unsigned long completed;
> - struct srcu_struct_array __percpu *per_cpu_ref;
> + struct srcu_array __percpu *per_cpu_ref;
> spinlock_t queue_lock; /* protect ->batch_queue, ->running */
> bool running;
> /* callbacks just queued */
> @@ -118,7 +118,7 @@ void process_srcu(struct work_struct *work);
> * See include/linux/percpu-defs.h for the rules on per-CPU variables.
> */
> #define __DEFINE_SRCU(name, is_static) \
> - static DEFINE_PER_CPU(struct srcu_struct_array, name##_srcu_array);\
> + static DEFINE_PER_CPU(struct srcu_array, name##_srcu_array);\
> is_static struct srcu_struct name = __SRCU_STRUCT_INIT(name)
> #define DEFINE_SRCU(name) __DEFINE_SRCU(name, /* not static */)
> #define DEFINE_STATIC_SRCU(name) __DEFINE_SRCU(name, static)
> diff --git a/kernel/rcu/rcutorture.c b/kernel/rcu/rcutorture.c
> index 87c5122..d81345b 100644
> --- a/kernel/rcu/rcutorture.c
> +++ b/kernel/rcu/rcutorture.c
> @@ -564,10 +564,25 @@ static void srcu_torture_stats(void)
> pr_alert("%s%s per-CPU(idx=%d):",
> torture_type, TORTURE_FLAG, idx);
> for_each_possible_cpu(cpu) {
> + unsigned long l0, l1;
> + unsigned long u0, u1;
> long c0, c1;
> + struct srcu_array *counts = per_cpu_ptr(srcu_ctlp->per_cpu_ref, cpu);
>
> - c0 = (long)per_cpu_ptr(srcu_ctlp->per_cpu_ref, cpu)->c[!idx];
> - c1 = (long)per_cpu_ptr(srcu_ctlp->per_cpu_ref, cpu)->c[idx];
> + u0 = counts->unlock_count[!idx];
> + u1 = counts->unlock_count[idx];
> +
> + /*
> + * Make sure that a lock is always counted if the corresponding
> + * unlock is counted.
> + */
> + smp_rmb();
> +
> + l0 = counts->lock_count[!idx];
> + l1 = counts->lock_count[idx];
> +
> + c0 = l0 - u0;
> + c1 = l1 - u1;
> pr_cont(" %d(%ld,%ld)", cpu, c0, c1);
> }
> pr_cont("\n");
> diff --git a/kernel/rcu/srcu.c b/kernel/rcu/srcu.c
> index 9b9cdd5..c9a0015 100644
> --- a/kernel/rcu/srcu.c
> +++ b/kernel/rcu/srcu.c
> @@ -106,7 +106,7 @@ static int init_srcu_struct_fields(struct srcu_struct *sp)
> rcu_batch_init(&sp->batch_check1);
> rcu_batch_init(&sp->batch_done);
> INIT_DELAYED_WORK(&sp->work, process_srcu);
> - sp->per_cpu_ref = alloc_percpu(struct srcu_struct_array);
> + sp->per_cpu_ref = alloc_percpu(struct srcu_array);
> return sp->per_cpu_ref ? 0 : -ENOMEM;
> }
>
> @@ -141,114 +141,77 @@ EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(init_srcu_struct);
> #endif /* #else #ifdef CONFIG_DEBUG_LOCK_ALLOC */
>
> /*
> - * Returns approximate total of the readers' ->seq[] values for the
> + * Returns approximate total of the readers' ->lock_count[] values for the
> * rank of per-CPU counters specified by idx.
> */
> -static unsigned long srcu_readers_seq_idx(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx)
> +static unsigned long srcu_readers_lock_idx(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx)
> {
> int cpu;
> unsigned long sum = 0;
> - unsigned long t;
>
> for_each_possible_cpu(cpu) {
> - t = READ_ONCE(per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu)->seq[idx]);
> - sum += t;
> + struct srcu_array *cpuc = per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu);
> +
> + sum += READ_ONCE(cpuc->lock_count[idx]);
> }
> return sum;
> }
>
> /*
> - * Returns approximate number of readers active on the specified rank
> - * of the per-CPU ->c[] counters.
> + * Returns approximate total of the readers' ->unlock_count[] values for the
> + * rank of per-CPU counters specified by idx.
> */
> -static unsigned long srcu_readers_active_idx(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx)
> +static unsigned long srcu_readers_unlock_idx(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx)
> {
> int cpu;
> unsigned long sum = 0;
> - unsigned long t;
>
> for_each_possible_cpu(cpu) {
> - t = READ_ONCE(per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu)->c[idx]);
> - sum += t;
> + struct srcu_array *cpuc = per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu);
> +
> + sum += READ_ONCE(cpuc->unlock_count[idx]);
> }
> return sum;
> }
>
> /*
> * Return true if the number of pre-existing readers is determined to
> - * be stably zero. An example unstable zero can occur if the call
> - * to srcu_readers_active_idx() misses an __srcu_read_lock() increment,
> - * but due to task migration, sees the corresponding __srcu_read_unlock()
> - * decrement. This can happen because srcu_readers_active_idx() takes
> - * time to sum the array, and might in fact be interrupted or preempted
> - * partway through the summation.
> + * be zero.
> */
> static bool srcu_readers_active_idx_check(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx)
> {
> - unsigned long seq;
> + unsigned long unlocks;
>
> - seq = srcu_readers_seq_idx(sp, idx);
> + unlocks = srcu_readers_unlock_idx(sp, idx);
>
> /*
> - * The following smp_mb() A pairs with the smp_mb() B located in
> - * __srcu_read_lock(). This pairing ensures that if an
> - * __srcu_read_lock() increments its counter after the summation
> - * in srcu_readers_active_idx(), then the corresponding SRCU read-side
> - * critical section will see any changes made prior to the start
> - * of the current SRCU grace period.
> + * Make sure that a lock is always counted if the corresponding unlock
> + * is counted. Needs to be a smp_mb() as the read side may contain a
> + * read from a variable that is written to before the synchronize_srcu()
> + * in the write side. In this case smp_mb()s A and B act like the store
> + * buffering pattern.
> *
> - * Also, if the above call to srcu_readers_seq_idx() saw the
> - * increment of ->seq[], then the call to srcu_readers_active_idx()
> - * must see the increment of ->c[].
> + * This smp_mb() also pairs with smp_mb() C to prevent accesses after the
> + * synchronize_srcu() from being executed before the grace period ends.
> */
> smp_mb(); /* A */
>
> /*
> - * Note that srcu_readers_active_idx() can incorrectly return
> - * zero even though there is a pre-existing reader throughout.
> - * To see this, suppose that task A is in a very long SRCU
> - * read-side critical section that started on CPU 0, and that
> - * no other reader exists, so that the sum of the counters
> - * is equal to one. Then suppose that task B starts executing
> - * srcu_readers_active_idx(), summing up to CPU 1, and then that
> - * task C starts reading on CPU 0, so that its increment is not
> - * summed, but finishes reading on CPU 2, so that its decrement
> - * -is- summed. Then when task B completes its sum, it will
> - * incorrectly get zero, despite the fact that task A has been
> - * in its SRCU read-side critical section the whole time.
> + * If the locks are the same as the unlocks, then there must have
> + * been no readers on this index at some time in between. This does not
> + * mean that there are no more readers, as one could have read the
> + * current index but not have incremented the lock counter yet.
> *
> - * We therefore do a validation step should srcu_readers_active_idx()
> - * return zero.
> + * Possible bug: There is no guarantee that there haven't been ULONG_MAX
> + * increments of ->lock_count[] since the unlocks were counted, meaning
> + * that this could return true even if there are still active readers.
> + * Since there are no memory barriers around srcu_flip(), the CPU is not
> + * required to increment ->completed before running
> + * srcu_readers_unlock_idx(), which means that there could be an
> + * arbitrarily large number of critical sections that execute after
> + * srcu_readers_unlock_idx() but use the old value of ->completed.
> */
> - if (srcu_readers_active_idx(sp, idx) != 0)
> - return false;
> -
> - /*
> - * The remainder of this function is the validation step.
> - * The following smp_mb() D pairs with the smp_mb() C in
> - * __srcu_read_unlock(). If the __srcu_read_unlock() was seen
> - * by srcu_readers_active_idx() above, then any destructive
> - * operation performed after the grace period will happen after
> - * the corresponding SRCU read-side critical section.
> - *
> - * Note that there can be at most NR_CPUS worth of readers using
> - * the old index, which is not enough to overflow even a 32-bit
> - * integer. (Yes, this does mean that systems having more than
> - * a billion or so CPUs need to be 64-bit systems.) Therefore,
> - * the sum of the ->seq[] counters cannot possibly overflow.
> - * Therefore, the only way that the return values of the two
> - * calls to srcu_readers_seq_idx() can be equal is if there were
> - * no increments of the corresponding rank of ->seq[] counts
> - * in the interim. But the missed-increment scenario laid out
> - * above includes an increment of the ->seq[] counter by
> - * the corresponding __srcu_read_lock(). Therefore, if this
> - * scenario occurs, the return values from the two calls to
> - * srcu_readers_seq_idx() will differ, and thus the validation
> - * step below suffices.
> - */
> - smp_mb(); /* D */
> -
> - return srcu_readers_seq_idx(sp, idx) == seq;
> + return srcu_readers_lock_idx(sp, idx) == unlocks;
> }
>
> /**
> @@ -266,8 +229,12 @@ static bool srcu_readers_active(struct srcu_struct *sp)
> unsigned long sum = 0;
>
> for_each_possible_cpu(cpu) {
> - sum += READ_ONCE(per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu)->c[0]);
> - sum += READ_ONCE(per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu)->c[1]);
> + struct srcu_array *cpuc = per_cpu_ptr(sp->per_cpu_ref, cpu);
> +
> + sum += READ_ONCE(cpuc->lock_count[0]);
> + sum += READ_ONCE(cpuc->lock_count[1]);
> + sum -= READ_ONCE(cpuc->unlock_count[0]);
> + sum -= READ_ONCE(cpuc->unlock_count[1]);
> }
> return sum;
> }
> @@ -298,9 +265,8 @@ int __srcu_read_lock(struct srcu_struct *sp)
> int idx;
>
> idx = READ_ONCE(sp->completed) & 0x1;
> - __this_cpu_inc(sp->per_cpu_ref->c[idx]);
> + __this_cpu_inc(sp->per_cpu_ref->lock_count[idx]);
> smp_mb(); /* B */ /* Avoid leaking the critical section. */
> - __this_cpu_inc(sp->per_cpu_ref->seq[idx]);
> return idx;
> }
> EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(__srcu_read_lock);
> @@ -314,7 +280,7 @@ EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(__srcu_read_lock);
> void __srcu_read_unlock(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx)
> {
> smp_mb(); /* C */ /* Avoid leaking the critical section. */
> - this_cpu_dec(sp->per_cpu_ref->c[idx]);
> + this_cpu_inc(sp->per_cpu_ref->unlock_count[idx]);
> }
> EXPORT_SYMBOL_GPL(__srcu_read_unlock);
>
> @@ -349,7 +315,7 @@ static bool try_check_zero(struct srcu_struct *sp, int idx, int trycount)
>
> /*
> * Increment the ->completed counter so that future SRCU readers will
> - * use the other rank of the ->c[] and ->seq[] arrays. This allows
> + * use the other rank of the ->(un)lock_count[] arrays. This allows
> * us to wait for pre-existing readers in a starvation-free manner.
> */
> static void srcu_flip(struct srcu_struct *sp)
> --
> 2.9.0
>