The BPF program loading process performed by libbpf is quite complex
and consists of the following steps:
"open" phase:
- parse elf file and remember relocations, sections
- collect externs and ksyms including their btf_ids in prog's BTF
- patch BTF datasec (since llvm couldn't do it)
- init maps (old style map_def, BTF based, global data map, kconfig map)
- collect relocations against progs and maps
"load" phase:
- probe kernel features
- load vmlinux BTF
- resolve externs (kconfig and ksym)
- load program BTF
- init struct_ops
- create maps
- apply CO-RE relocations
- patch ld_imm64 insns with src_reg=PSEUDO_MAP, PSEUDO_MAP_VALUE, PSEUDO_BTF_ID
- reposition subprograms and adjust call insns
- sanitize and load progs
During this process libbpf does sys_bpf() calls to load BTF, create maps,
populate maps and finally load programs.
Instead of actually doing the syscalls generate a trace of what libbpf
would have done and represent it as the "loader program".
The "loader program" consists of single map with:
- union bpf_attr(s)
- BTF bytes
- map value bytes
- insns bytes
and single bpf program that passes bpf_attr(s) and data into bpf_sys_bpf() helper.
Executing such "loader program" via bpf_prog_test_run() command will
replay the sequence of syscalls that libbpf would have done which will result
the same maps created and programs loaded as specified in the elf file.
The "loader program" removes libelf and majority of libbpf dependency from
program loading process.
kconfig, typeless ksym, struct_ops and CO-RE are not supported yet.
The order of relocate_data and relocate_calls had to change, so that
bpf_gen__prog_load() can see all relocations for a given program with
correct insn_idx-es.
Signed-off-by: Alexei Starovoitov <ast@kernel.org>
Signed-off-by: Daniel Borkmann <daniel@iogearbox.net>
Acked-by: Andrii Nakryiko <andrii@kernel.org>
Link: https://lore.kernel.org/bpf/20210514003623.28033-15-alexei.starovoitov@gmail.com
Alexei Starovoitov