Dmitry Ilvokhin f7e2cb6d49 locking/qspinlock: Add contended_release tracepoint
Unlike mutex and rw_semaphore, qspinlock has no owner field, so "perf
lock contention --lock-owner" cannot attribute a contended spinlock to
its holder. The waiter-side contention_begin event records that a
spinlock is contended, but not by whom. Firing contended_release in the
holder's context at unlock is the only way to capture the holder of a
contended spinlock.

Combine the contention check, trace call and release in an out-of-line
queued_spin_release_traced() so the compiler need not preserve the lock
pointer in a callee-saved register across the call.

The check in queued_spin_unlock() is paid on every unlock, even while
the tracepoint is disabled: a static-branch NOP on x86_64, and a few
more instructions to manage a stack frame elsewhere. Gate it behind
CONFIG_QUEUED_SPINLOCKS_TRACE_CONTENDED_RELEASE (default n) so nobody
pays for a tracepoint they do not use. Sleeping locks fire
contended_release regardless.

On x86 this generic path is used only with PARAVIRT_SPINLOCKS=n (e.g.
defconfig). PARAVIRT_SPINLOCKS=y kernels keep the paravirt static_call
unlock and are wired up separately.

All below are with the QUEUED_SPINLOCKS_TRACE_CONTENDED_RELEASE option
enabled.

_raw_spin_unlock(), x86_64 defconfig, GCC 11, tracepoint compiled in but
disabled. The unlock is the single 'movb'. The only instruction added to
the executed path is the 2-byte static-branch NOP. The CALL to the
traced helper and the JMP back are emitted out of line and are reached
only once the static branch is patched on:

          endbr64                            ; 4 bytes
          xchg   %ax,%ax                     ; 2 static-branch NOP
                                             ;   (added)
          movb   $0x0,(%rdi)                 ; 3 unlock (single store)
       A: decl   %gs:__preempt_count         ; 7
          je     B                           ; 2
          jmp    __x86_return_thunk          ; 5
          call   queued_spin_release_traced  ; 5 out of line, reached
                                             ;   only when the
                                             ;   tracepoint is on
          jmp    A                           ; 2 (added)
       B: call   __SCT__preempt_schedule     ; 5
          jmp    __x86_return_thunk          ; 5

Baseline is the same stream without the NOP and the out-of-line
CALL/JMP: 31 bytes vs 40 (+9 bytes).

Binary size impact on x86_64, defconfig: +680 bytes (+0.00%), since all
standard configs out-of-line unlock. Architectures with inlined unlock
(s390 (always), csky and loongarch (both when !PREEMPTION)) will see a
bigger increase in binary size.

On the same path (x86_64, PARAVIRT_SPINLOCKS=n) with the tracepoint
disabled, a _raw_spin_unlock()-heavy nginx workload [1] shows no
measurable difference between baseline and patched kernels in
throughput, latency, cycles, instructions, IPC, or L1 instruction-cache
misses (kernel and total): all deltas stay within run-to-run noise.

Unlike x86, on arm64 the frame setup code (STP, MOV and LDP) lands on
the executed path in addition to static-branch NOP. Binary size impact
on arm64, defconfig: +932 bytes (+0.00%).

The _raw_spin_unlock()-heavy nginx workload reflects the larger hot
path: L1 instruction-cache misses rise ~1.4% (kernel and total) and
instruction count ~0.4%, consistent with the per-unlock frame.
cpu_cycles, throughput and latency show no measurable change and are
within run-to-run noise.

Architectures with fully custom qspinlock implementations (e.g.
PowerPC) are not covered by this change.

[1]: https://lore.kernel.org/all/aiphFXe_TPNPxZ_n@shell.ilvokhin.com/

Signed-off-by: Dmitry Ilvokhin <d@ilvokhin.com>
Signed-off-by: Peter Zijlstra (Intel) <peterz@infradead.org>
Acked-by: Juergen Gross <jgross@suse.com>
Link: https://patch.msgid.link/0d998e22a0c595f670cfc6725bb683323aced5cb.1785778551.git.d@ilvokhin.com
2026-08-07 17:58:10 +02:00
2026-01-26 19:07:09 -08:00
2022-09-28 09:02:20 +02:00
2025-02-19 14:53:27 -07:00
2026-07-05 14:44:06 -10:00

Linux kernel
============

The Linux kernel is the core of any Linux operating system. It manages hardware,
system resources, and provides the fundamental services for all other software.

Quick Start
-----------

* Report a bug: See Documentation/admin-guide/reporting-issues.rst
* Get the latest kernel: https://kernel.org
* Build the kernel: See Documentation/admin-guide/quickly-build-trimmed-linux.rst
* Join the community: https://lore.kernel.org/

Essential Documentation
-----------------------

All users should be familiar with:

* Building requirements: Documentation/process/changes.rst
* Code of Conduct: Documentation/process/code-of-conduct.rst
* License: See COPYING

Documentation can be built with make htmldocs or viewed online at:
https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/


Who Are You?
============

Find your role below:

* New Kernel Developer - Getting started with kernel development
* Academic Researcher - Studying kernel internals and architecture
* Security Expert - Hardening and vulnerability analysis
* Backport/Maintenance Engineer - Maintaining stable kernels
* System Administrator - Configuring and troubleshooting
* Maintainer - Leading subsystems and reviewing patches
* Hardware Vendor - Writing drivers for new hardware
* Distribution Maintainer - Packaging kernels for distros
* AI Coding Assistant - LLMs and AI-powered development tools


For Specific Users
==================

New Kernel Developer
--------------------

Welcome! Start your kernel development journey here:

* Getting Started: Documentation/process/development-process.rst
* Your First Patch: Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
* Coding Style: Documentation/process/coding-style.rst
* Build System: Documentation/kbuild/index.rst
* Development Tools: Documentation/dev-tools/index.rst
* Kernel Hacking Guide: Documentation/kernel-hacking/hacking.rst
* Core APIs: Documentation/core-api/index.rst

Academic Researcher
-------------------

Explore the kernel's architecture and internals:

* Researcher Guidelines: Documentation/process/researcher-guidelines.rst
* Memory Management: Documentation/mm/index.rst
* Scheduler: Documentation/scheduler/index.rst
* Networking Stack: Documentation/networking/index.rst
* Filesystems: Documentation/filesystems/index.rst
* RCU (Read-Copy Update): Documentation/RCU/index.rst
* Locking Primitives: Documentation/locking/index.rst
* Power Management: Documentation/power/index.rst

Security Expert
---------------

Security documentation and hardening guides:

* Security Documentation: Documentation/security/index.rst
* LSM Development: Documentation/security/lsm-development.rst
* Self Protection: Documentation/security/self-protection.rst
* Reporting Vulnerabilities: Documentation/process/security-bugs.rst
* CVE Procedures: Documentation/process/cve.rst
* Embargoed Hardware Issues: Documentation/process/embargoed-hardware-issues.rst
* Security Features: Documentation/userspace-api/seccomp_filter.rst

Backport/Maintenance Engineer
-----------------------------

Maintain and stabilize kernel versions:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* Backporting Guide: Documentation/process/backporting.rst
* Applying Patches: Documentation/process/applying-patches.rst
* Subsystem Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git for Maintainers: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

System Administrator
--------------------

Configure, tune, and troubleshoot Linux systems:

* Admin Guide: Documentation/admin-guide/index.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Sysctl Tuning: Documentation/admin-guide/sysctl/index.rst
* Tracing/Debugging: Documentation/trace/index.rst
* Performance Security: Documentation/admin-guide/perf-security.rst
* Hardware Monitoring: Documentation/hwmon/index.rst

Maintainer
----------

Lead kernel subsystems and manage contributions:

* Maintainer Handbook: Documentation/maintainer/index.rst
* Pull Requests: Documentation/maintainer/pull-requests.rst
* Managing Patches: Documentation/maintainer/modifying-patches.rst
* Rebasing and Merging: Documentation/maintainer/rebasing-and-merging.rst
* Development Process: Documentation/process/maintainer-handbooks.rst
* Maintainer Entry Profile: Documentation/maintainer/maintainer-entry-profile.rst
* Git Configuration: Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst

Hardware Vendor
---------------

Write drivers and support new hardware:

* Driver API Guide: Documentation/driver-api/index.rst
* Driver Model: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/driver.rst
* Device Drivers: Documentation/driver-api/infrastructure.rst
* Bus Types: Documentation/driver-api/driver-model/bus.rst
* Device Tree Bindings: Documentation/devicetree/bindings/
* Power Management: Documentation/driver-api/pm/index.rst
* DMA API: Documentation/core-api/dma-api.rst

Distribution Maintainer
-----------------------

Package and distribute the kernel:

* Stable Kernel Rules: Documentation/process/stable-kernel-rules.rst
* ABI Documentation: Documentation/ABI/README
* Kernel Configuration: Documentation/kbuild/kconfig.rst
* Module Signing: Documentation/admin-guide/module-signing.rst
* Kernel Parameters: Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.rst
* Tainted Kernels: Documentation/admin-guide/tainted-kernels.rst

AI Coding Assistant
-------------------

CRITICAL: If you are an LLM or AI-powered coding assistant, you MUST read and
follow the AI coding assistants documentation before contributing to the Linux
kernel:

* Documentation/process/coding-assistants.rst

This documentation contains essential requirements about licensing, attribution,
and the Developer Certificate of Origin that all AI tools must comply with.


Communication and Support
=========================

* Mailing Lists: https://lore.kernel.org/
* IRC: #kernelnewbies on irc.oftc.net
* Bugzilla: https://bugzilla.kernel.org/
* MAINTAINERS file: Lists subsystem maintainers and mailing lists
* Email Clients: Documentation/process/email-clients.rst
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