RE: [Xen-devel] Xen-unstable Linux 3.14-rc3 and 3.13 Network troubles "bisected"

[Paul Durrant]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Sander Eikelenboom [mailto:linux@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
> Sent: 26 March 2014 11:11
> To: Paul Durrant
> Cc: Wei Liu; annie li; Zoltan Kiss; xen-devel@xxxxxxxxxxxxx; Ian Campbell; linux-
> kernel; netdev@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Xen-devel] Xen-unstable Linux 3.14-rc3 and 3.13 Network
> troubles "bisected"
> 
> Paul,
> 
> You have been awfully silent for this whole thread while this is a regression
> caused by a patch of you
> (ca2f09f2b2c6c25047cfc545d057c4edfcfe561c as clearly stated much earlier in
> this thread).
> 

Sorry, I've been distracted...

> The commit messages states:
>     "net_rx_action() is the place where we could do with an accurate
> predicition but,
>     since that has proven tricky to calculate, a cheap worse-case (but not too
> bad)
>     estimate is all we really need since the only thing we *must* prevent is
> xenvif_gop_skb()
>     consuming more slots than are available."
> 
> Your "worst-case" calculation stated in the commit message is clearly not the
> worst case,
> since it doesn't take calls to "get_next_rx_buffer" into account.
> 

It should be taking into account the behaviour of start_new_rx_buffer(), which should be true if a slot is full or a frag will overflow the current slot and doesn't require splitting. The code in net_rx_action() makes the assumption that each frag will require as many slots as its size requires, i.e. it assumes no packing of multiple frags into a single slot, so it should be a worst case. Did I miss something in that logic?

  Paul

> Problem is that a worst case calculation would probably be reverting to the
> old calculation,
> and the problems this patch was trying to solve would reappear, but
> introducing new regressions
> isn't very useful either. And since it seems such a tricky and fragile thing to
> determine, it would
> probably be best to be split into a distinct function with a comment to explain
> the rationale used.
> 
> Since this doesn't seem to progress very fast .. CC'ed some more folks .. you
> never know ..
> 
> --
> Sander
> 
> 
> Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 4:29:42 PM, you wrote:
> 
> 
> > Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 4:15:39 PM, you wrote:
> 
> >> On Sat, Mar 22, 2014 at 07:28:34PM +0100, Sander Eikelenboom wrote:
> >> [...]
> >>> > Yes there is only one frag .. but it seems to be much larger than
> PAGE_SIZE .. and xenvif_gop_frag_copy brakes that frag down into smaller
> bits .. hence the calculation in xenvif_rx_action determining the slots needed
> by doing:
> >>>
> >>> >                 for (i = 0; i < nr_frags; i++) {
> >>> >                         unsigned int size;
> >>> >                         size = skb_frag_size(&skb_shinfo(skb)->frags[i]);
> >>> >                         max_slots_needed += DIV_ROUND_UP(size, PAGE_SIZE);
> >>> >                 }
> >>>
> >>> > But the code in xenvif_gop_frag_copy .. seems to be needing one
> more slot (from the emperical test) .. and calling "get_next_rx_buffer"
> seems involved in that ..
> >>>
> >>> Hmm looked again .. and it seems this is it .. when your frags are large
> enough you have the chance of running into this.
> >>>
> 
> >> get_next_rx_buffer is guarded by start_new_rx_buffer. Do you see any
> >> problem with that implementation?
> > In general no, but "get_next_rx_buffer" up's cons .. and the calculations
> done in "xenvif_rx_action" for max_slots_needed to prevent the overrun
> > don't count in this possibility. So it's not the guarding of
> "start_new_rx_buffer" that is at fault. It's the ones early in
> "xenvif_rx_action".
> > The ones that were changed by Paul's patch from MAX_SKB_FRAGS to a
> calculated value that should be a "slim fit".
> 
> > The problem is in determining upfront in "xenvif_rx_action" when and how
> often the "get_next_rx_buffer" path will be taken.
> > Unless there are other non direct restrictions (from a size point of view) it
> can be called multiple times per frag per skb.
> 
> >>> Problem is .. i don't see an easy fix, the "one more slot" of the empirical
> test doesn't seem to be the worst case either (i think):
> >>>
> >>> - In my case the packets that hit this only have 1 frag, but i could have
> had more frags.
> >>>   I also think you can't rule out the possibility of doing the
> "get_next_rx_buffer" for multiple subsequent frags from one packet,
> >>>   so in the worst (and perhaps even from a single frag since it's looped
> over a split of it in what seems PAGE_SIZE pieces.)
> >>>   - So an exact calculation of how much slots we are going to need for
> hitting this "get_next_rx_buffer"  upfront in "xenvif_rx_action" seems
> unfeasible.
> >>>   - A worst case gamble seems impossible either .. if you take multiple
> frags * multiple times the "get_next_rx_buffer" ... you would probably be
> back at just
> >>>     setting the needed_slots to MAX_SKB_FRAGS.
> >>>
> >>> - Other thing would be checking for the available slots before doing the
> "get_next_rx_buffer" .. how ever .. we don't account for how many slots we
> still need to
> >>>   just process the remaining frags.
> >>>
> 
> >> We've done a worst case estimation for whole SKB (linear area + all
> >> frags) already, at the very first beginning. That's what
> >> max_slots_needed is for.
> 
> >>> - Just remove the whole "get_next_rx_buffer".. just tested it but it
> seems the "get_next_rx_buffer" is necessary ..  when i make
> start_new_rx_buffer always return false
> >>>   i hit the bug below :S
> >>>
> >>> So the questions are ... is the "get_next_rx_buffer" part really necessary
> ?
> >>>    - if not, what is the benefit of the "get_next_rx_buffer" and does that
> outweigh the additional cost of accounting
> >>>      of needed_slots for the frags that have yet to be processed ?
> >>>    - if yes, erhmmm what would be the best acceptable solution ..
> returning to using MAX_SKB_FRAGS ?
> >>>
> 
> >> I think you need to answer several questions first:
> >> 1. is max_slots_needed actually large enough to cover whole SKB?
> >         No it's not if, you end up calling "get_next_rx_buffer" one or multiple
> times when processing the SKB
> >         you have the chance of overrunning (or be saved because prod gets
> upped before you overrun).
> 
> >> 2. is the test of ring slot availability acurate?
> >         Seems to be.
> 
> >> 3. is the number of ring slots consumed larger than max_slots_needed? (I
> >>    guess the answer is yes)
> >         Yes that was the whole point.
> 
> >> 4. which step in the break-down procedure causes backend to overrun
> the
> >>    ring?
> >         The "get_next_rx_buffer" call .. that is not accounted for (which can be
> called
> >         multiple times per frag (unless some other none obvious size
> restriction limits this
> >         to one time per frag or one time per SKB).
> >         In my errorneous case it is called one time, but it would be nice if there
> would be some theoretical proof
> >         instead of just some emperical test.
> 
> 
> >> It doesn't matter how many frags your SKB has and how big a frag is. If
> >> every step is correct then you're fine. The code you're looking at
> >> (start_new_rx_buffer / get_next_rx_buffer and friend) needs to be
> >> carefully examined.
> 
> > Well it seems it only calls "get_next_rx_buffer" in some special cases ..
> (and that also what i'm seeing because it doesn't happen
> > continously.
> 
> > Question is shouldn't this max_needed_slots calc be reverted to what it
> was before 3.14 and take the time in 3.15 to figure out a
> > the theoretical max (if it can be calculated upfront) .. or another way to
> guarantee the code is able to process the whole SKB  ?
> 
> >> Wei.
> 
> 
> 
> 

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