Re: [PATCH net-next v1] net: phy: realtek: improve firmware write speed
From: Nicolai Buchwitz
Date: Fri Sep 11 2026 - 03:35:41 EST
Hi Javen
On 11.9.2026 07:51, Javen wrote:
On Thu, Sep 10, 2026 at 10:49:26AM +0800, javen wrote:
From: Javen Xu <javen_xu@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Firmware execution routine unconditionally uses phy_modify_mmd() for
all OP_WRITE entries which introduces an unnecessary read transaction
when updating an entire 16-bit register. So we optimize this by
checking bitmask boundaries. Use phy_write_mmd() directly to speed up
firmware loading process.
For optimisations, it is normal to include some benchmark numbers to show
how big a change it made. Is the added complexity worth the change?
I traced the actual MDC/MDIO hardware transactions during firmware loading process. Here are the benchmark numbers:
- Unpatched : about 28,000 MDIO transactions.
- Patched: about 9,600 MDIO transactions.
This results in a 65% reduction in MDIO traffic.
Can you please add these numbers to the commit?
The patch itself looks fine and also compiles cleanly on my machine.
So with the number added, I'd be happy to R-b.
Thanks,
Javen
Andrew
Thanks,
Nicolai