Re: [Patch v4 1/3] lib: Restrict cpumask_local_spread to houskeeping CPUs

[Nitesh Narayan Lal]

On 2/4/21 2:06 PM, Marcelo Tosatti wrote:
> On Thu, Feb 04, 2021 at 01:47:38PM -0500, Nitesh Narayan Lal wrote:

[...]

>>>>> Nitesh, is there anything preventing this from being fixed
>>>>> in userspace ? (as Thomas suggested previously).
>>>> Everything with is not managed can be steered by user space.
>>> Yes, but it seems to be racy (that is, there is a window where the 
>>> interrupt can be delivered to an isolated CPU).
>>>
>>> ethtool ->
>>> xgbe_set_channels ->
>>> xgbe_full_restart_dev ->
>>> xgbe_alloc_memory ->
>>> xgbe_alloc_channels ->
>>> cpumask_local_spread
>>>
>>> Also ifconfig eth0 down / ifconfig eth0 up leads
>>> to cpumask_spread_local.
>> There's always that possibility.
> Then there is a window where isolation can be broken.
>
>> We have to ensure that we move the IRQs by a tuned daemon or some other
>> userspace script every time there is a net-dev change (eg. device comes up,
>> creates VFs, etc).
> Again, race window open can result in interrupt to isolated CPU.


Yes, and if I am not mistaken then that always has been a problem with
these userspace solutions.

>
>>> How about adding a new flag for isolcpus instead?
>>>
>> Do you mean a flag based on which we can switch the affinity mask to
>> housekeeping for all the devices at the time of IRQ distribution?
> Yes a new flag for isolcpus. HK_FLAG_IRQ_SPREAD or some better name.
>
>

Does sounds like a nice idea to explore, lets see what Thomas thinks about it.

-- 
Thanks
Nitesh