Re: [RFC PATCH 0/2] mm/gup: fix gup_fast with dynamic page table folding

[Gerald Schaefer]

On Wed, 2 Sep 2020 14:24:37 +0200
Gerald Schaefer <gerald.schaefer@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> On Tue, 1 Sep 2020 16:22:22 -0700
> John Hubbard <jhubbard@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> 
> > On 9/1/20 10:40 AM, Gerald Schaefer wrote:
> > > On Mon, 31 Aug 2020 12:15:53 -0700
> > > Andrew Morton <akpm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> > ...
> > > diff --git a/include/linux/pgtable.h b/include/linux/pgtable.h
> > > index e8cbc2e795d5..43dacbce823f 100644
> > > --- a/include/linux/pgtable.h
> > > +++ b/include/linux/pgtable.h
> > > @@ -681,6 +681,38 @@ static inline int arch_unmap_one(struct mm_struct *mm,
> > >   })
> > >   #endif
> > >   
> > > +/*
> > > + * With dynamic page table levels on s390, the static pXd_addr_end() functions
> > > + * will not return corresponding dynamic boundaries. This is no problem as long
> > > + * as only pXd pointers are passed down during page table walk, because
> > > + * pXd_offset() will simply return the given pointer for folded levels, and the
> > > + * pointer iteration over a range simply happens at the correct page table
> > > + * level.
> > > + * It is however a problem with gup_fast, or other places walking the page
> > > + * tables w/o locks using READ_ONCE(), and passing down the pXd values instead
> > > + * of pointers. In this case, the pointer given to pXd_offset() is a pointer to
> > > + * a stack variable, which cannot be used for pointer iteration at the correct
> > > + * level. Instead, the iteration then has to happen by going up to pgd level
> > > + * again. To allow this, provide pXd_addr_end_folded() functions with an
> > > + * additional pXd value parameter, which can be used on s390 to determine the
> > > + * folding level and return the corresponding boundary.
> > 
> > Ah OK, I finally see what you have in mind. And as Jason noted, if we just
> > pass an additional parameter to pXd_addr_end() that's going to be
> > cleaner. And doing so puts this in line with other page table
> > abstractions that also carry more information than some architectures
> > need. For example, on x86, set_pte_at() ignores the first two
> > parameters:
> > 
> > #define set_pte_at(mm, addr, ptep, pte)	native_set_pte_at(mm, addr, ptep, pte)
> > 
> > static inline void native_set_pte_at(struct mm_struct *mm, unsigned long addr,
> > 				     pte_t *ptep , pte_t pte)
> > {
> > 	native_set_pte(ptep, pte);
> > }
> > 
> > This type of abstraction has worked out very well, IMHO.
> 
> Yes, it certainly feels like the right way to do it, and it would
> not affect other archs in a functional way. It would however introduce
> a subtle change for s390 behavior on _all_ page table walkers, not
> just the READ_ONCE gup_fast path, i.e. it changes the level at which
> the pointer iteration is done. Of course, that *should* not have any
> functional issues, or else it would also be broken in gup_fast, but
> in this area we often were wrong with should / could assumptions...

Hmm, not so sure about that "not affect other archs", that might also
be one of those *should*s. Consider this change to mm/mlock.c from
our current internal generalization work, for example:

diff --git a/mm/mlock.c b/mm/mlock.c
index 93ca2bf30b4f..dbde97f317d4 100644
--- a/mm/mlock.c
+++ b/mm/mlock.c
@@ -374,8 +374,12 @@ static unsigned long __munlock_pagevec_fill(struct pagevec *pvec,
 			struct vm_area_struct *vma, struct zone *zone,
 			unsigned long start, unsigned long end)
 {
-	pte_t *pte;
 	spinlock_t *ptl;
+	pte_t *pte;
+	pmd_t *pmd;
+	pud_t *pud;
+	p4d_t *p4d;
+	pgd_t *pgd;
 
 	/*
 	 * Initialize pte walk starting at the already pinned page where we
@@ -384,10 +388,14 @@ static unsigned long __munlock_pagevec_fill(struct pagevec *pvec,
 	 */
 	pte = get_locked_pte(vma->vm_mm, start,	&ptl);
 	/* Make sure we do not cross the page table boundary */
-	end = pgd_addr_end(start, end);
-	end = p4d_addr_end(start, end);
-	end = pud_addr_end(start, end);
-	end = pmd_addr_end(start, end);
+	pgd = pgd_offset(vma->vm_mm, start);
+	end = pgd_addr_end(*pgd, start, end);
+	p4d = p4d_offset(pgd, start);
+	end = p4d_addr_end(*p4d, start, end);
+	pud = pud_offset(p4d, start);
+	end = pud_addr_end(*pud, start, end);
+	pmd = pmd_offset(pud, start);
+	end = pmd_addr_end(*pmd, start, end);
 
 	/* The page next to the pinned page is the first we will try to get */
 	start += PAGE_SIZE;

I guess we *could* assume that all the extra pXd_offset() calls and
also the de-referencing would be optimized out by the compiler for other
archs, but it is one example where my gut tells me that this might not
be so trivial and w/o unwanted effects after all.

Anyway, stay tuned, we will send a v2 of this RFC with going the
"modify pXd_addr_end" approach, including the minimal gup-specific
patch plus on top the generalization work. Then we might get a better
picture of this.