Re: [PATCH] sched: Consolidated and improved smpnice patch

From: Peter Williams
Date: Tue Feb 21 2006 - 01:20:24 EST


Con Kolivas wrote:
On Tuesday 21 February 2006 09:35, Peter Williams wrote:

Con Kolivas wrote:

On Monday 20 February 2006 16:02, Peter Williams wrote:
[snip description]

Hi peter, I've had a good look and have just a couple of comments:

---
#endif
int prio, static_prio;
+#ifdef CONFIG_SMP
+ int load_weight; /* for load balancing purposes */
+#endif
---

Can this be moved up to be part of the other ifdef CONFIG_SMP? Not highly
significant since it's in a .h file but looks a tiny bit nicer.

I originally put it where it is to be near prio and static_prio which
are referenced at the same time as it BUT that doesn't happen often
enough to justify it anymore so I guess it can be moved.


Well it is just before prio instead of just after it now and I understand the legacy of the position.


---
+/*
+ * Priority weight for load balancing ranges from 1/20 (nice==19) to
459/20 (RT
+ * priority of 100).
+ */
+#define NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(nice) \
+ ((nice >= 0) ? (20 - (nice)) : (20 + (nice) * (nice)))
+#define LOAD_WEIGHT(lp) \
+ (((lp) * SCHED_LOAD_SCALE) / NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(0))
+#define NICE_TO_LOAD_WEIGHT(nice) LOAD_WEIGHT(NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(nice)) +#define PRIO_TO_LOAD_WEIGHT(prio)
NICE_TO_LOAD_WEIGHT(PRIO_TO_NICE(prio))
+#define RTPRIO_TO_LOAD_WEIGHT(rp) \
+ LOAD_WEIGHT(NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(-20) + (rp))
---

The weighting seems not related to anything in particular apart from
saying that -nice values are more heavily weighted.

The idea (for the change from the earlier model) was to actually give
equal weight to negative and positive nices. Under the old (purely
linear) model a nice=19 task has 1/20th the weight of a nice==0 task but
a nice==-20 task only has twice the weight of a nice==0 so that system
is heavily weighted against negative nices. With this new mapping a
nice=19 has 1/20th and a nice==-19 has 20 times the weight of a nice==0
task and to me that is symmetric. Does that make sense to you?


Yes but what I meant is it's still an arbitrary algorithm which is why I suggested proportional to tasks' timeslice because then it should scale with the theoretically allocated cpu resource.


Should I add a comment to explain the mapping?


Since you only do this when
setting the priority of tasks can you link it to the scale of
(SCHED_NORMAL) tasks' timeslice instead even though that will take a
fraction more calculation? RTPRIO_TO_LOAD_WEIGHT is fine since there
isn't any obvious cpu proportion relationship to rt_prio level.

Interesting idea. I'll look at this more closely.


Would be just a matter of using task_timeslice(p) and making it proportional to some baseline ensuring the baseline works at any HZ.

How does the attached patch grab you? It's independent of HZ.

Peter
--
Peter Williams pwil3058@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Learning, n. The kind of ignorance distinguishing the studious."
-- Ambrose Bierce
Index: MM-2.6.X/kernel/sched.c
===================================================================
--- MM-2.6.X.orig/kernel/sched.c 2006-02-21 16:27:32.000000000 +1100
+++ MM-2.6.X/kernel/sched.c 2006-02-21 17:01:12.000000000 +1100
@@ -169,13 +169,13 @@

#define SCALE_PRIO(x, prio) \
max(x * (MAX_PRIO - prio) / (MAX_USER_PRIO/2), MIN_TIMESLICE)
+#define PRIO_TO_TS(sp) \
+ ((sp) < NICE_TO_PRIO(0) ? SCALE_PRIO(DEF_TIMESLICE*4, (sp)) : \
+ SCALE_PRIO(DEF_TIMESLICE, (sp)))

static unsigned int task_timeslice(task_t *p)
{
- if (p->static_prio < NICE_TO_PRIO(0))
- return SCALE_PRIO(DEF_TIMESLICE*4, p->static_prio);
- else
- return SCALE_PRIO(DEF_TIMESLICE, p->static_prio);
+ return PRIO_TO_TS(p->static_prio);
}
#define task_hot(p, now, sd) ((long long) ((now) - (p)->last_ran) \
< (long long) (sd)->cache_hot_time)
@@ -680,11 +680,9 @@ static int effective_prio(task_t *p)
*/

/*
- * Priority weight for load balancing ranges from 1/20 (nice==19) to 459/20 (RT
- * priority of 100).
+ * Priority weight for load balancing ranges (based on time slice allocations).
*/
-#define NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(nice) \
- ((nice >= 0) ? (20 - (nice)) : (20 + (nice) * (nice)))
+#define NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(nice) PRIO_TO_TS(NICE_TO_PRIO(nice))
#define LOAD_WEIGHT(lp) \
(((lp) * SCHED_LOAD_SCALE) / NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(0))
#define NICE_TO_LOAD_WEIGHT(nice) LOAD_WEIGHT(NICE_TO_LOAD_PRIO(nice))