[PATCH RFC 10/15] x86: add an arch helper function to invalidate all cache for nvdimm

Mark Rutland mark.rutland at arm.com
Wed Aug 10 11:09:27 PDT 2022


On Wed, Aug 10, 2022 at 10:31:12AM -0400, Eliot Moss wrote:
> On 8/10/2022 10:15 AM, Mark Rutland wrote:
> > On Tue, Aug 09, 2022 at 02:47:06PM -0700, Dave Jiang wrote:
> > > 
> > > On 8/3/2022 10:37 AM, Jonathan Cameron wrote:
> > > > On Tue, 19 Jul 2022 12:07:03 -0700
> > > > Dave Jiang <dave.jiang at intel.com> wrote:
> > > > 
> > > > > On 7/17/2022 10:30 PM, Davidlohr Bueso wrote:
> > > > > > On Fri, 15 Jul 2022, Dave Jiang wrote:
> > > > > > > The original implementation to flush all cache after unlocking the
> > > > > > > nvdimm
> > > > > > > resides in drivers/acpi/nfit/intel.c. This is a temporary stop gap until
> > > > > > > nvdimm with security operations arrives on other archs. With support CXL
> > > > > > > pmem supporting security operations, specifically "unlock" dimm, the
> > > > > > > need
> > > > > > > for an arch supported helper function to invalidate all CPU cache for
> > > > > > > nvdimm has arrived. Remove original implementation from acpi/nfit and
> > > > > > > add
> > > > > > > cross arch support for this operation.
> > > > > > > 
> > > > > > > Add CONFIG_ARCH_HAS_NVDIMM_INVAL_CACHE Kconfig and allow x86_64 to
> > > > > > > opt in
> > > > > > > and provide the support via wbinvd_on_all_cpus() call.
> > > > > > So the 8.2.9.5.5 bits will also need wbinvd - and I guess arm64 will need
> > > > > > its own semantics (iirc there was a flush all call in the past). Cc'ing
> > > > > > Jonathan as well.
> > > > > > 
> > > > > > Anyway, I think this call should not be defined in any place other
> > > > > > than core
> > > > > > kernel headers, and not in pat/nvdimm. I was trying to make it fit in
> > > > > > smp.h,
> > > > > > for example, but conviniently we might be able to hijack
> > > > > > flush_cache_all()
> > > > > > for our purposes as of course neither x86-64 arm64 uses it :)
> > > > > > 
> > > > > > And I see this as safe (wrt not adding a big hammer on unaware
> > > > > > drivers) as
> > > > > > the 32bit archs that define the call are mostly contained thin their
> > > > > > arch/,
> > > > > > and the few in drivers/ are still specific to those archs.
> > > > > > 
> > > > > > Maybe something like the below.
> > > > > Ok. I'll replace my version with yours.
> > > > Careful with flush_cache_all(). The stub version in
> > > > include/asm-generic/cacheflush.h has a comment above it that would
> > > > need updating at very least (I think).
> > > > Note there 'was' a flush_cache_all() for ARM64, but:
> > > > https://patchwork.kernel.org/project/linux-arm-kernel/patch/1429521875-16893-1-git-send-email-mark.rutland@arm.com/
> > > 
> > > 
> > > flush_and_invalidate_cache_all() instead given it calls wbinvd on x86? I
> > > think other archs, at least ARM, those are separate instructions aren't
> > > they?
> > 
> > On arm and arm64 there is no way to perform maintenance on *all* caches; it has
> > to be done in cacheline increments by address. It's not realistic to do that
> > for the entire address space, so we need to know the relevant address ranges
> > (as per the commit referenced above).
> > 
> > So we probably need to think a bit harder about the geenric interface, since
> > "all" isn't possible to implement. :/
> 
> Can you not do flushing by set and way on each cache,
> probably working outwards from L1?

Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, that doeesn't work. For better or
worse, the *only* way which is guaranteed to work is to do this by address.

If you look at the latest ARM ARM (ARM DDI 0487H.a):

  https://developer.arm.com/documentation/ddi0487/ha/

... on page D4-4754, in the block "Example code for cache maintenance
instructions", there's note with a treatise on this.

The gist is that:

* Set/Way ops are only guaranteed to affect the caches local to the CPU
  issuing them, and are not guaranteed to affect caches owned by other CPUs.

* Set/Way ops are not guaranteed to affect system-level caches, which are
  fairly popular these days (whereas VA ops are required to affect those).

* Set/Way ops race with the natural behaviour of caches (so e.g. a line could
  bounce between layers of cache, or between caches in the system, and avoid
  being operated upon).

So unless you're on a single CPU system, with translation disabled, and you
*know* that there are no system-level caches, you can't rely upon Set/Way ops
to do anything useful.

They're really there for firmware to use for IMPLEMENTATION DEFINED power-up
and power-down sequences, and aren'y useful to portable code.

Thanks,
Mark.



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