Re: [PATCH v2] mtd: cfi_cmdset_0002: cap the write-buffer chunk at 256 bytes on an x8 device

From: Miquel Raynal

Date: Wed Sep 16 2026 - 11:17:47 EST


On 15/09/2026 at 07:50:03 GMT, Orgad Shaneh <orgads@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> The word count of the Write to Buffer command is a single bus word per
> device, so an x8 device can be told to program at most 256 bytes
> regardless of the buffer size it advertises.
>
> A Micron M29EW (an x16 part wired in x8 mode) advertises a 512-byte
> write buffer. cfi_amdstd_write_buffers() used the full 512, CMD(511)
> truncated the count to 0xff on the way out, and the chip aborted the
> program on the 257th data byte.

This sentence does not mean anything, I'm sorry.

> Every full-size chunk failed while the

failed? do you have hardware that actually triggered that issue?

> partial ones at the start of a write went through:
>
> MTD do_write_buffer_wait(): software timeout, address:0x03278bff.
> jffs2: Write of 4164 bytes at 0x02c789b4 failed. returned -5, retlen 68
> jffs2: No space for garbage collection. Aborting GC thread
>
> Clamp MaxBufWriteSize in the write-buffer fixup for x8 devices, and keep
> mtd->writebufsize (computed before the fixups run) consistent with it.
>
> The bug predates the git history, so there is no Fixes: tag.

That's incorrect. It indicates until when we need to backport it. So if
it's the first Git commit, it's the first Git commit.

> Cc: stable@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Assisted-by: Claude:claude-opus-5
> Signed-off-by: Orgad Shaneh <orgads@xxxxxxxxx>
> ---
>
> v2: test the device width (cfi->device_type) instead of the aggregate bus
> width. map_bankwidth_is_1() is false for x8 devices interleaved on a
> wider bus, which have the same 256-byte ceiling: do_write_buffer()
> sends CMD(words - 1), and CMD() replicates that count into each
> device's lane, where it is truncated to 8 bits - so two x8 chips with
> a 512-byte buffer are told 255 words and are still sent 512 bytes
> each. device_type is also immune to map_bankwidth_is_1() compiling to
> a constant 0 when CONFIG_MTD_MAP_BANK_WIDTH_1 is off. Caught by the
> Sashiko review bot.
>
> diff --git a/drivers/mtd/chips/cfi_cmdset_0002.c b/drivers/mtd/chips/cfi_cmdset_0002.c
> --- a/drivers/mtd/chips/cfi_cmdset_0002.c
> +++ b/drivers/mtd/chips/cfi_cmdset_0002.c
> @@ -283,6 +283,21 @@ static void fixup_use_write_buffers(struct mtd_info *mtd)
> pr_debug("Using buffer write method\n");
> mtd->_write = cfi_amdstd_write_buffers;
> }
> +
> + /*
> + * The word count of the Write to Buffer command is a single bus
> + * word per device, so an x8 device can be told to program at most
> + * 256 bytes however large a buffer it advertises - including when
> + * several of them are interleaved on a wider bus, where CMD()
> + * replicates the count into each device's lane and it is truncated
> + * there.
> + */
> + if (cfi->device_type == CFI_DEVICETYPE_X8 &&
> + cfi->cfiq->MaxBufWriteSize > 8) {
> + cfi->cfiq->MaxBufWriteSize = 8;
> + mtd->writebufsize = cfi_interleave(cfi) <<
> + cfi->cfiq->MaxBufWriteSize;

Ideally, I'd like feedback from Vignesh on this.

Thanks,
Miquèl