Re: [PATCH v2 0/2] perf trace: Fix support for the new BPF feature in clang 12

From: Namhyung Kim
Date: Tue Oct 15 2024 - 14:35:57 EST


On Thu, Oct 10, 2024 at 07:14:00PM -0700, Howard Chu wrote:
> Changes in v2:
> - Resolved a clang-16 build error pointed out by Namhyung Kim
> <namhyung@xxxxxxxxxx>
>
> The new augmentation feature in perf trace, along with the protocol
> change (from payload to payload->value), breaks the clang 12 build.
>
> perf trace actually builds for any clang version newer than clang 16.
> However, as pointed out by Namhyung Kim <namhyung@xxxxxxxxxx> and Ian
> Rogers <irogers@xxxxxxxxxx>, clang 16, which was released in 2023, is
> still too new for most users. Additionally, as James Clark
> <james.clark@xxxxxxxxxx> noted, some commonly used distributions do not
> yet support clang 16. Therefore, breaking BPF features between clang 12
> and clang 15 is not a good approach.
>
> This patch series rewrites the BPF program in a way that allows it to
> pass the BPF verifier, even when the BPF bytecode is generated by older
> versions of clang.
>
> However, I have only tested it till clang 14, as older versions are not
> supported by my distribution.
>
> Howard Chu (2):
> perf build: Change the clang check back to 12.0.1
> perf trace: Rewrite BPF code to pass the verifier

Tested with clang 16. And I think it's better to change the order of
the commits so it can fix the problem first and then check the version.

Thanks,
Namhyung

>
> tools/perf/Makefile.config | 4 +-
> .../bpf_skel/augmented_raw_syscalls.bpf.c | 122 ++++++++++--------
> 2 files changed, 69 insertions(+), 57 deletions(-)
>
> --
> 2.43.0
>