Re: [PATCH v6 1/7] Documentation: DT: arm: add support for sockets defining package boundaries

[Russell King - ARM Linux admin]

On Thu, May 30, 2019 at 12:51:03PM +0100, Morten Rasmussen wrote:
> On Wed, May 29, 2019 at 07:39:17PM -0400, Andrew F. Davis wrote:
> > On 5/29/19 5:13 PM, Atish Patra wrote:
> > >From: Sudeep Holla <sudeep.holla@xxxxxxx>
> > >
> > >The current ARM DT topology description provides the operating system
> > >with a topological view of the system that is based on leaf nodes
> > >representing either cores or threads (in an SMT system) and a
> > >hierarchical set of cluster nodes that creates a hierarchical topology
> > >view of how those cores and threads are grouped.
> > >
> > >However this hierarchical representation of clusters does not allow to
> > >describe what topology level actually represents the physical package or
> > >the socket boundary, which is a key piece of information to be used by
> > >an operating system to optimize resource allocation and scheduling.
> > >
> > 
> > Are physical package descriptions really needed? What does "socket" imply
> > that a higher layer "cluster" node grouping does not? It doesn't imply a
> > different NUMA distance and the definition of "socket" is already not well
> > defined, is a dual chiplet processor not just a fancy dual "socket" or are
> > dual "sockets" on a server board "slotket" card, will we need new names for
> > those too..
> 
> Socket (or package) just implies what you suggest, a grouping of CPUs
> based on the physical socket (or package). Some resources might be
> associated with packages and more importantly socket information is
> exposed to user-space. At the moment clusters are being exposed to
> user-space as sockets which is less than ideal for some topologies.

Please point out a 32-bit ARM system that has multiple "socket"s.

As far as I'm aware, all 32-bit systems do not have socketed CPUs
(modern ARM CPUs are part of a larger SoC), and the CPUs are always
in one package.

Even the test systems I've seen do not have socketed CPUs.

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