Re: [Patch V1 1/7] x86/microcode/intel: Remove redundant microcode rev pr_info()s

From: Ashok Raj
Date: Fri Dec 02 2022 - 19:27:22 EST


On Fri, Dec 02, 2022 at 07:58:42PM +0100, Thomas Gleixner wrote:
> Ashok!
>
> On Tue, Nov 29 2022 at 13:08, Ashok Raj wrote:
> > There is a pr_info() to dump information about newly loaded microcode.
>
> There... Somewhere, right?

I'll make it clear, updated commit log below.

>
> > The code intends this pr_info() to be just once, but the check to ensure
> > is racy. Unfortunately this happens quite often in with this new change
> > resulting in multiple redundant prints on the console.
>
> -ENOPARSE. Can you try to express that in coherent sentences please?

:-)

>
> > microcode_init()->schedule_on_each_cpu(setup_online_cpu)->collect_cpu_info
> >
> > [ 33.688639] microcode: sig=0x50654, pf=0x80, revision=0x2006e05
> > [ 33.688659] microcode: sig=0x50654, pf=0x80, revision=0x2006e05
> > [ 33.688660] microcode: sig=0x50654, pf=0x80, revision=0x2006e05
> >
> > There is already a pr_info() in microcode/core.c as shown below:
> >
> > microcode: Reload completed, microcode revision: 0x2b000041 -> 0x2b000070
>
> There are quite some pr_info()'s in microcode/core.c...
>
> $function_name() prints the new and the previous microcode revision once
> when the load has completed:
>
> microcode: Reload completed, microcode revision: 0x2b000041 -> 0x2b000070
>
> Hmm?

Agreed!

>
> > The sig and pf aren't that useful to end user, they are available via
>
> The sig and pf ?!? Come on, you really can do better.
>
> > /proc/cpuinfo and this never changes between microcode loads.
> >
> > Remove the redundant pr_info() and the racy single print checks. This
> > removes the race entirely, zap the duplicated pr_info() spam and
> > simplify the code.
>
> The last sentence does not qualify as coherent either.
>
> Other than that. Nice cleanup.
>
Thanks!. I'll try to get better at the commit log stuff

Updated commit log looks like below. Hope it doesn't get a -ENOPARSE this
time. :-)

------------------------

This code in collect_cpu_info() simply checks with a static variable "prev",
but when multiple CPUs are running this in parallel it is racy and we notice
the pr_info() couple times. The original intend was to print this just once.

New sequence shown below:

microcode_init()->schedule_on_each_cpu(setup_online_cpu)->collect_cpu_info

Resulting multiple prints below:

[ 33.688639] microcode: sig=0x50654, pf=0x80, revision=0x2006e05
[ 33.688659] microcode: sig=0x50654, pf=0x80, revision=0x2006e05
[ 33.688660] microcode: sig=0x50654, pf=0x80, revision=0x2006e05

There is already a pr_info() in microcode_reload_late() that shows both the
old and new revisions as shown below.

microcode: Reload completed, microcode revision: 0x2b000041 -> 0x2b000070

The CPU signature (sig=0x50654) and Processor Flags (pf=0x80) above aren't
that useful to end user, they are available via /proc/cpuinfo and this never
changes between microcode loads.

Remove the redundant pr_info().