Device DAX is the device-centric analogue of Filesystem DAX
(CONFIG_FS_DAX). It allows memory ranges to be allocated and mapped
without need of an intervening file system. Device DAX is strict,
precise and predictable. Specifically this interface:
1/ Guarantees fault granularity with respect to a given page size (pte,
pmd, or pud) set at configuration time.
2/ Enforces deterministic behavior by being strict about what fault
scenarios are supported.
For example, by forcing MADV_DONTFORK semantics and omitting MAP_PRIVATE
support device-dax guarantees that a mapping always behaves/performs the
same once established. It is the "what you see is what you get" access
mechanism to differentiated memory vs filesystem DAX which has
filesystem specific implementation semantics.
Persistent memory is the first target, but the mechanism is also
targeted for exclusive allocations of performance differentiated memory
ranges.
This commit is limited to the base device driver infrastructure to
associate a dax device with pmem range.
Cc: Jeff Moyer <jmoyer@redhat.com>
Cc: Christoph Hellwig <hch@lst.de>
Cc: Andrew Morton <akpm@linux-foundation.org>
Cc: Dave Hansen <dave.hansen@linux.intel.com>
Cc: Ross Zwisler <ross.zwisler@linux.intel.com>
Reviewed-by: Johannes Thumshirn <jthumshirn@suse.de>
Signed-off-by: Dan Williams <dan.j.williams@intel.com>
'libnvdimm' is the first driver sub-system in the kernel to implement
mocking for unit test coverage. The nfit_test module gets built as an
external module and arranges for external module replacements of nfit,
libnvdimm, nd_pmem, and nd_blk. These replacements use the linker
--wrap option to redirect calls to ioremap() + request_mem_region() to
custom defined unit test resources. The end result is a fully
functional nvdimm_bus, as far as userspace is concerned, but with the
capability to perform otherwise destructive tests on emulated resources.
Q: Why not use QEMU for this emulation?
QEMU is not suitable for unit testing. QEMU's role is to faithfully
emulate the platform. A unit test's role is to unfaithfully implement
the platform with the goal of triggering bugs in the corners of the
sub-system implementation. As bugs are discovered in platforms, or the
sub-system itself, the unit tests are extended to backstop a fix with a
reproducer unit test.
Another problem with QEMU is that it would require coordination of 3
software projects instead of 2 (kernel + libndctl [1]) to maintain and
execute the tests. The chances for bit rot and the difficulty of
getting the tests running goes up non-linearly the more components
involved.
Q: Why submit this to the kernel tree instead of external modules in
libndctl?
Simple, to alleviate the same risk that out-of-tree external modules
face. Updates to drivers/nvdimm/ can be immediately evaluated to see if
they have any impact on tools/testing/nvdimm/.
Q: What are the negative implications of merging this?
It is a unique maintenance burden because the purpose of mocking an
interface to enable a unit test is to purposefully short circuit the
semantics of a routine to enable testing. For example
__wrap_ioremap_cache() fakes the pmem driver into "ioremap()'ing" a test
resource buffer allocated by dma_alloc_coherent(). The future
maintenance burden hits when someone changes the semantics of
ioremap_cache() and wonders what the implications are for the unit test.
[1]: https://github.com/pmem/ndctl
Cc: <linux-acpi@vger.kernel.org>
Cc: Lv Zheng <lv.zheng@intel.com>
Cc: Robert Moore <robert.moore@intel.com>
Cc: Rafael J. Wysocki <rafael.j.wysocki@intel.com>
Cc: Christoph Hellwig <hch@lst.de>
Signed-off-by: Dan Williams <dan.j.williams@intel.com>
Dan Williams