Re: [PATCH 0/6] pmem, dax: I/O path enhancements

[Ross Zwisler]

On Fri, 2015-08-07 at 09:47 -0700, Dan Williams wrote:
> On Thu, Aug 6, 2015 at 10:43 AM, Ross Zwisler
> <ross.zwisler@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> > Patch 5 adds support for the "read flush" _DSM flag, allowing us to change the
> > ND BLK aperture mapping from write-combining to write-back via memremap_pmem().
> >
> > Patch 6 updates the DAX I/O path so that all operations that store data (I/O
> > writes, zeroing blocks, punching holes, etc.) properly synchronize the stores
> > to media using the PMEM API.  This ensures that the data DAX is writing is
> > durable on media before the operation completes.
> >
> > Patches 1-4 are cleanup patches and additions to the PMEM API that make
> > patches 5 and 6 possible.
> >
> > Regarding the choice to add both flush_cache_pmem() and wb_cache_pmem() to the
> > PMEM API, I had initially implemented flush_cache_pmem() as a generic function
> > flush_io_cache_range() in the spirit of flush_cache_range(), etc., in
> > cacheflush.h.  I eventually moved it into the PMEM API because a) it has a
> > common and consistent use of the __pmem annotation, b) it has a clear fallback
> > method for architectures that don't support it, as opposed to APIs in
> > cacheflush.h which would need to be added individually to all other
> > architectures.  It can be argued that the flush API could apply to other uses
> > beyond PMEM such as flushing cache lines associated with other types of
> > sliding MMIO windows.  At this point I'm inclined to have it as part of the
> > PMEM API, and then take on the effort of making it a general cache flusing API
> > if other users come along.
> 
> I'm not convinced.  There are already existing users for invalidating
> a cpu cache and they currently jump through hoops to have cross-arch
> flushing, see drm_clflush_pages().  What the NFIT-BLK driver brings to
> the table is just one more instance where the cpu cache needs to be
> invalidated, and for something so fundamental it is time we had a
> cross arch generic helper.

Fair enough.  I'll move back to the flush_io_cache_range() solution.


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