Re: [RFC v2 5/6] x86: learning and patching indirect branch targets

[Andy Lutomirski]

On Sun, Dec 30, 2018 at 11:20 PM Nadav Amit <namit@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> During runtime, we collect the targets of indirect branch targets and
> patch them in. Patching is done asynchronously, by modifying each of the
> relpoline code-paths separately while diverting code execution to the
> other path during patching. Preemption is disabled while the code runs,
> and we wait for preemption to occur on each core to ensure no core is
> executing the patched code.
>
> To make use of relpolines, a worker goes over the experienced indirect
> calls targets and sorts them according to frequency. The target that
> was encountered most times is patched in.
>
> Periodically, the indirect branches are set back into learning mode to
> see whether the targets have changed. The current policy might be too
> aggressive.
>

Can you put, in a comment somewhere, a clear description of the actual
optpoline assembly sequence?  I'm finding this code very hard to
follow as is.  Something like:

/*
 * An optpoline is:
 *
* cmp something, something else
* je somewhere
* [repeats of the above]
* RETPOLINE (i.e. call some thunk)
*/

And please make it correct.

Your comment says that preemption is disabled, but it's not obvious to
me where this happens.

Also, you define REX_B and don't use it.  Are there other cases of that?