RE: [EXTERNAL] Re: [PATCH net v2 1/4] octeon_ep: fix race conditions in ndo_get_stats64

[Shinas Rasheed]

Hi Eric,

> On Wed, Dec 18, 2024 at 4:25 PM Shinas Rasheed <srasheed@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
> 
> > Hi Eric,
> >
> > This patch is not a workaround. In some setups, we were seeing races with
> regards
> > to resource freeing between ndo_stop() and ndo_get_stats(). Hence to sync
> with the view of
> > resources, a synchronize_net() is called in ndo_stop(). Please let me know if
> you see anything wrong here.
> 
> We do not add a synchronize_net() without a very strong explanation
> (details, not a weak sentence in the changelog).
> 
> Where is the opposite barrier in your patch ?
> 
> I am saying you do not need this, unless you can show evidence.
> 
> If your ndo_get_stats() needs to call netif_running(), this would be
> the fix IMO.

The synchronize_net() is supposed to sync all previous calls of ndo_get_stats() and wait for their completion before closing the device.
Again this seems to be the v2 of this patch. In the v3, I have provided the warn log as well in the commit message for reference, in answer to
the changelog comment for more clarification.

As I stated, this is needed because ndo_stop() races with ndo_get_stats(), and a 'lock' or a similar mechanism seems required to alleviate this.
Fixes in the same vein seem to be common, as I do see other drivers utilizing a lock mechanism while retrieving statistics to resolve the same 
(ie; race with resource destruction in ndo_stop()). So, just to state, I'm not trying to do anything new
here.

Can we please comment further on the v3 of this patch? https://lore.kernel.org/all/20241218115111.2407958-1-srasheed@xxxxxxxxxxx/

Thanks a lot for your time and comments