linux-kernel - Re: [Patch1/4]: fake numa for x86

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Message-Id: <1164737207.14257.7.camel@galaxy.corp.google.com>
Date:	Tue, 28 Nov 2006 10:06:47 -0800
From:	Rohit Seth <rohitseth@...gle.com>
To:	Mel Gorman <mel@....ul.ie>
Cc:	Andi Kleen <ak@...e.de>,
	linux-kernel <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
	David Rientjes <rientjes@...washington.edu>,
	Paul Menage <menage@...gle.com>, Andrew Morton <akpm@...l.org>
Subject: Re: [Patch1/4]: fake numa for x86_64 patch

On Tue, 2006-11-28 at 13:24 +0000, Mel Gorman wrote:
> On Mon, 27 Nov 2006, Rohit Seth wrote:
> 
> > Hi Mel,
> >
> > On Mon, 2006-11-27 at 13:18 +0000, Mel Gorman wrote:
> >> On Wed, 22 Nov 2006, Rohit Seth wrote:
> >>
> >>> This patch provides a IO hole size in a given address range.
> >>>
> >>
> >> Hi,
> >>
> >> This patch reintroduces a function that doubles up what
> >> absent_pages_in_range(start_pfn, end_pfn). I recognise you do this because
> >> you are interested in hole sizes before add_active_range() is called.
> >
> > Right.
> >
> >>
> >> However, what is not clear is why these patches are so specific to x86_64.
> >>
> >
> > Specifically in the fake numa case, we want to make sure that we don't
> > carve fake nodes that only have IO holes in it.  Unlike the real NUMA
> > case, here we don't have SRAT etc. to know the memory layout beforehand.
> >
> >
> >> It looks possible to do the work of functions like split_nodes_equal() in
> >> an architecture-independent manner using early_node_map rather than
> >> dealing with the arch-specific nodes array. That would open the
> >> possibility of providing fake nodes on more than one architecture in the
> >> future.
> >
> > The functions like splti_nodes_equal etc. can be abstracted out to arch
> > independent part.  I think the only API it needs from arch dependent
> > part is to find out how much real RAM is present in range without have
> > to first do add_active_range.
> >
> 
> That is a problem because the ranges must be registered with 
> add_active_range() to work out how much real RAM is present.
> 

Right.  And that is why I need e820_hole_size functionality. BTW, what
is the concern in having that function?

> > Though as a first step, let us fix the x86_64 (as it doesn't boot when
> > you have sizeable chunk of IO hole and nodes > 4).
> >
> 
> Ok.
> 
> > I'm also not sure if other archs actually want to have this
> > functionality.
> >
> 
> It's possible that the containers people are interested in the possibility 
> of setting up fake nodes as part of a memory controller.
> 
That is precisely why I'm doing it :-)

> >> What I think can be done is that you register memory as normal and then
> >> split up the nodes into fake nodes. This would remove the need for having
> >> e820_hole_size() reintroduced.
> >
> > Are you saying first let the system find out real numa topology and then
> > build fake numa on top of it?
> >
> 
> Yes, there is nothing stopping you altering the early_node_map[] before 
> free_area_init_node() initialises the node_mem_map. If you do hit a 
> problem, it'll be because x86_64 allocates it's own node_mem_map with 
> CONFIG_FLAT_NODE_MEM_MAP is set. Is that set when setting up fake nodes?
> 

I thought they both (real numa + fake numa) operate on same data
structures. I'll have to double check.

-rohit

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