[PATCH v2] watchdog: starfive: fix runtime PM usage counter leak in pm_start

From: Manush Prajwal

Date: Sun Aug 23 2026 - 11:45:07 EST


starfive_wdt_pm_start() calls pm_runtime_get_sync() and returns its
error code directly on failure. Per Documentation/power/runtime_pm.rst,
pm_runtime_get_sync() does not drop the usage counter on error, so the
caller is expected to release the reference itself. The early return
here skips that, leaking a runtime PM usage count on wdd->parent on
every failed resume, which prevents the device from being suspended
correctly afterwards.

Fix it by calling pm_runtime_put_noidle() before returning, mirroring
the same balance the counterpart starfive_wdt_pm_stop() already
maintains with pm_runtime_put_sync().

v1 only balanced the pm_runtime_get_sync() failure path. As Guenter
Roeck and the Sashiko AI review both pointed out, the same leak
remains if the subsequent starfive_wdt_start() call fails: the
runtime PM reference acquired by pm_runtime_get_sync() would still be
held while returning an error, again leaving the device unable to
suspend. Drop the reference on that failure path too.

Signed-off-by: manushprajwal <manushprajwal555@xxxxxxxxx>
---
v2: Also drop the pm_runtime reference when starfive_wdt_start() fails,
not just when pm_runtime_get_sync() fails, per Guenter Roeck and
the Sashiko AI review on v1.

drivers/watchdog/starfive-wdt.c | 11 +++++++++--
1 file changed, 9 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)

diff --git a/drivers/watchdog/starfive-wdt.c b/drivers/watchdog/starfive-wdt.c
index af55adc4a..b1c2d3e4f 100644
--- a/drivers/watchdog/starfive-wdt.c
+++ b/drivers/watchdog/starfive-wdt.c
@@ -373,8 +373,15 @@ static int starfive_wdt_pm_start(struct watchdog_device *wdd)
struct starfive_wdt *wdt = watchdog_get_drvdata(wdd);
int ret = pm_runtime_get_sync(wdd->parent);

- if (ret < 0)
+ if (ret < 0) {
+ pm_runtime_put_noidle(wdd->parent);
return ret;
+ }

- return starfive_wdt_start(wdt);
+ ret = starfive_wdt_start(wdt);
+ if (ret)
+ pm_runtime_put_noidle(wdd->parent);
+
+ return ret;
}
--
2.46.2.windows.1