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Re: DAX mapping detection (was: Re: [PATCH] Fix region lost in /proc/self/smaps)

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  Re: DAX mapping detection (was: Re: [PATCH] Fix region lost in /proc/self/smaps) Dan Williams <dan.j.williams@intel.com> - 2016-09-09 17:50 +0200
    Re: DAX mapping detection (was: Re: [PATCH] Fix region lost in  /proc/self/smaps) Xiao Guangrong <guangrong.xiao@linux.intel.com> - 2016-09-12 08:10 +0200

#1480168 — Re: DAX mapping detection (was: Re: [PATCH] Fix region lost in /proc/self/smaps)

On Fri, Sep 9, 2016 at 1:55 AM, Xiao Guangrong
<guangrong.xiao@linux.intel.com> wrote:
[..]
>>
>> Whether a persistent memory mapping requires an msync/fsync is a
>> filesystem specific question.  This mincore proposal is separate from
>> that.  Consider device-DAX for volatile memory or mincore() called on
>> an anonymous memory range.  In those cases persistence and filesystem
>> metadata are not in the picture, but it would still be useful for
>> userspace to know "is there page cache backing this mapping?" or "what
>> is the TLB geometry of this mapping?".
>
>
> I got a question about msync/fsync which is beyond the topic of this thread
> :)
>
> Whether msync/fsync can make data persistent depends on ADR feature on
> memory
> controller, if it exists everything works well, otherwise, we need to have
> another
> interface that is why 'Flush hint table' in ACPI comes in. 'Flush hint
> table' is
> particularly useful for nvdimm virtualization if we use normal memory to
> emulate
> nvdimm with data persistent characteristic (the data will be flushed to a
> persistent storage, e.g, disk).
>
> Does current PMEM programming model fully supports 'Flush hint table'? Is
> userspace allowed to use these addresses?

If you publish flush hint addresses in the virtual NFIT the guest VM
will write to them whenever a REQ_FLUSH or REQ_FUA request is sent to
the virtual /dev/pmemX device.  Yes, seems straightforward to take a
VM exit on those events and flush simulated pmem to persistent
storage.

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#1480936 — Re: DAX mapping detection (was: Re: [PATCH] Fix region lost in /proc/self/smaps)

On 09/09/2016 11:40 PM, Dan Williams wrote:
> On Fri, Sep 9, 2016 at 1:55 AM, Xiao Guangrong
> <guangrong.xiao@linux.intel.com> wrote:
> [..]
>>>
>>> Whether a persistent memory mapping requires an msync/fsync is a
>>> filesystem specific question.  This mincore proposal is separate from
>>> that.  Consider device-DAX for volatile memory or mincore() called on
>>> an anonymous memory range.  In those cases persistence and filesystem
>>> metadata are not in the picture, but it would still be useful for
>>> userspace to know "is there page cache backing this mapping?" or "what
>>> is the TLB geometry of this mapping?".
>>
>>
>> I got a question about msync/fsync which is beyond the topic of this thread
>> :)
>>
>> Whether msync/fsync can make data persistent depends on ADR feature on
>> memory
>> controller, if it exists everything works well, otherwise, we need to have
>> another
>> interface that is why 'Flush hint table' in ACPI comes in. 'Flush hint
>> table' is
>> particularly useful for nvdimm virtualization if we use normal memory to
>> emulate
>> nvdimm with data persistent characteristic (the data will be flushed to a
>> persistent storage, e.g, disk).
>>
>> Does current PMEM programming model fully supports 'Flush hint table'? Is
>> userspace allowed to use these addresses?
>
> If you publish flush hint addresses in the virtual NFIT the guest VM
> will write to them whenever a REQ_FLUSH or REQ_FUA request is sent to
> the virtual /dev/pmemX device.  Yes, seems straightforward to take a
> VM exit on those events and flush simulated pmem to persistent
> storage.
>

Thank you, Dan!

However REQ_FLUSH or REQ_FUA is handled in kernel space, okay, after following
up the discussion in this thread, i understood that currently filesystems have
not supported the case that usespace itself make data be persistent without
kernel's involvement. So that works.

Hmm, Does device-DAX support this case (make data be persistent without
msync/fsync)? I guess no, but just want to confirm it. :)

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