Message-Id: <1252957702.20020.53.camel@gandalf.stny.rr.com>
Date:	Mon, 14 Sep 2009 15:48:22 -0400
From:	Steven Rostedt <rostedt@...dmis.org>
To:	Mike Frysinger <vapier@...too.org>
Cc:	Frederic Weisbecker <fweisbec@...il.com>,
	linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH v4] ftrace: document basic ftracer/ftracer graph needs

Sorry, I really should have reviewed this earlier, but it fell into the
wrong mbox.

On Sat, 2009-06-13 at 23:05 -0400, Mike Frysinger wrote:
> While implementing ftracer and ftracer graph support, I found the exact
> arch implementation details to be a bit lacking (and my x86 foo ain't
> great).  So after pounding out support for the Blackfin arch, start
> documenting the requirements/details.
> 
> Signed-off-by: Mike Frysinger <vapier@...too.org>
> ---
> v4
> 	- fix HAVE_FUNCTION_TRACER typo in header
> 	- add some more details about ABI state around mcount/return_to_handler
> 
>  Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt |  233 +++++++++++++++++++++++++
>  Documentation/trace/ftrace.txt                |    6 +
>  kernel/trace/Kconfig                          |   16 ++-
>  3 files changed, 252 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)
>  create mode 100644 Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
> 
> diff --git a/Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt b/Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt

Can you rename this to function-tracer-design.txt

ftrace != function tracer, although we pushed it that way in the
beginning. But now it is a much broader scope of tracing, and we don't
want to confuse people anymore. This is a function tracing design
document, and does not get into other aspects of ftrace.

> new file mode 100644
> index 0000000..6dbd5af
> --- /dev/null
> +++ b/Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
> @@ -0,0 +1,233 @@
> +		ftrace guts

 s/ftrace/function tracer/

> +		===========
> +
> +Introduction
> +------------
> +
> +Here we will cover the architecture pieces that the common ftrace code relies

s/ftrace/function tracing/

> +on for proper functioning.  Things are broken down into increasing complexity
> +so that you can start at the top and get at least basic functionality.
> +
> +Note that this focuses on architecture implementation details only.  If you
> +want more explanation of a feature in terms of common code, review the common
> +ftrace.txt file.
> +
> +
> +Prerequisites
> +-------------
> +
> +Ftrace relies on these features being implemented:
> + STACKTRACE_SUPPORT - implement save_stack_trace()
> + TRACE_IRQFLAGS_SUPPORT - implement include/asm/irqflags.h

FYI but you can include it too. We force the use of TRACE_IRQFLAGS and
STACKTRACE because we don't want to write a bunch of exceptions to
implement some nice options of ftrace (and yes it's ftrace this time).
You can see that PPC32 is the exception for IRQFLAGS because it has
issues with tracing interrupts off in assembly. Once that is solved, it
will have it enabled again.

> +
> +
> +HAVE_FUNCTION_TRACER
> +--------------------
> +
> +You will need to implement the mcount and the ftrace_stub functions.
> +
> +The exact mcount symbol name will depend on your toolchain.  Some call it
> +"mcount", "_mcount", or even "__mcount".  You can probably figure it out by
> +running something like:
> +	$ echo 'main(){}' | gcc -x c -S -o - - -pg | grep mcount
> +	        call    mcount

nice!

> +We'll make the assumption below that the symbol is "mcount" just to keep things
> +nice and simple in the examples.
> +
> +Keep in mind that the ABI that is in effect inside of the mcount function is
> +*highly* architecture/toolchain specific.  We cannot help you in this regard,
> +sorry.  Dig up some old documentation and/or find someone more familiar than
> +you to bang ideas off of.  Typically, register usage (argument/scratch/etc...)
> +is a major issue at this point, especially in relation to the location of the
> +mcount call (before/after function prologue).  You might also want to look at
> +how glibc has implemented the mcount function for your architecture.  It might
> +be (semi-)relevant.
> +
> +The mcount function should check the function pointer ftrace_trace_function
> +to see if it is set to ftrace_stub.  If it is, there is nothing for you to do,
> +so return immediately.  If it isn't, then call that function in the same way
> +the mcount function normally calls __mcount_internal -- the first argument is
> +the "frompc" while the second argument is the "selfpc" (adjusted to remove the
> +size of the mcount call that is embedded in the function).
> +
> +For example, if the function foo() calls bar(), when the bar() function calls
> +mcount(), the arguments mcount() will pass to the tracer are:
> +	"frompc" - the address bar() will use to return to foo()
> +	"selfpc" - the address bar() (with _mcount() size adjustment)
> +
> +Also keep in mind that this mcount function will be called *a lot*, so
> +optimizing for the default case of no tracer will help the smooth running of
> +your system when tracing is disabled.  So the start of the mcount function is
> +typically the bare min with checking things before returning.  That also means
> +the code flow should usually kept linear (i.e. no branching in the nop case).
> +This is of course an optimization and not a hard requirement.
> +
> +Here is some pseudo code that should help (these functions should actually be
> +implemented in assembly):
> +
> +void ftrace_stub(void)
> +{
> +	return;
> +}
> +
> +void mcount(void)
> +{
> +	/* save any bare state needed in order to do initial checking */
> +
> +	extern void (*ftrace_trace_function)(unsigned long, unsigned long);
> +	if (ftrace_trace_function != ftrace_stub)
> +		goto do_trace;
> +
> +	/* restore any bare state */
> +
> +	return;
> +
> +do_trace:
> +
> +	/* save all state needed by the ABI (see paragraph above) */
> +
> +	unsigned long frompc = ...;
> +	unsigned long selfpc = <return address> - MCOUNT_INSN_SIZE;
> +	ftrace_trace_function(frompc, selfpc);
> +
> +	/* restore all state needed by the ABI */
> +}
> +
> +Don't forget to export mcount for modules !
> +extern void mcount(void);
> +EXPORT_SYMBOL(mcount);
> +
> +
> +HAVE_FUNCTION_TRACE_MCOUNT_TEST
> +-------------------------------
> +
> +This is an optional optimization for the normal case when tracing is turned off
> +in the system.  If you do not enable this Kconfig option, the common ftrace
> +code will take care of doing the checking for you.
> +
> +To support this feature, you only need to check the function_trace_stop
> +variable in the mcount function.  If it is non-zero, there is no tracing to be
> +done at all, so you can return.
> +
> +This additional pseudo code would simply be:
> +void mcount(void)
> +{
> +	/* save any bare state needed in order to do initial checking */
> +
> ++	if (function_trace_stop)
> ++		return;
> +
> +	extern void (*ftrace_trace_function)(unsigned long, unsigned long);
> +	if (ftrace_trace_function != ftrace_stub)
> +...
> +
> +
> +HAVE_FUNCTION_GRAPH_TRACER
> +--------------------------
> +
> +Deep breath ... time to do some real work.  Here you will need to update the
> +mcount function to check ftrace graph function pointers, as well as implement
> +some functions to save (hijack) and restore the return address.
> +
> +The mcount function should check the function pointers ftrace_graph_return
> +(compare to ftrace_stub) and ftrace_graph_entry (compare to
> +ftrace_graph_entry_stub).  If either of those are not set to the relevant stub
> +function, call the arch-specific function ftrace_graph_caller which in turn
> +calls the arch-specific function prepare_ftrace_return.  Neither of these
> +function names are strictly required, but you should use them anyways to stay
> +consistent across the architecture ports -- easier to compare & contrast
> +things.
> +
> +The arguments to prepare_ftrace_return are slightly different than what are
> +passed to ftrace_trace_function.  The second argument "selfpc" is the same,
> +but the first argument should be a pointer to the "frompc".  Typically this is
> +located on the stack.  This allows the function to hijack the return address
> +temporarily to have it point to the arch-specific function return_to_handler.
> +That function will simply call the common ftrace_return_to_handler function and
> +that will return the original return address with which, you can return to the
> +original call site.
> +
> +Here is the updated mcount pseudo code:
> +void mcount(void)
> +{
> +...
> +	if (ftrace_trace_function != ftrace_stub)
> +		goto do_trace;
> +
> ++#ifdef CONFIG_FUNCTION_GRAPH_TRACER
> ++	extern void (*ftrace_graph_return)(...);
> ++	extern void (*ftrace_graph_entry)(...);
> ++	if (ftrace_graph_return != ftrace_stub ||
> ++	    ftrace_graph_entry != ftrace_graph_entry_stub)
> ++		ftrace_graph_caller();
> ++#endif
> +
> +	/* restore any bare state */
> +...
> +
> +Here is the pseudo code for the new ftrace_graph_caller assembly function:
> +#ifdef CONFIG_FUNCTION_GRAPH_TRACER
> +void ftrace_graph_caller(void)
> +{
> +	/* save all state needed by the ABI */
> +
> +	unsigned long *frompc = &...;
> +	unsigned long selfpc = <return address> - MCOUNT_INSN_SIZE;
> +	prepare_ftrace_return(frompc, selfpc);
> +
> +	/* restore all state needed by the ABI */
> +}
> +#endif
> +
> +For information on how to implement prepare_ftrace_return(), simply look at
> +the x86 version.  The only architecture-specific piece in it is the setup of
> +the fault recovery table (the asm(...) code).  The rest should be the same
> +across architectures.
> +
> +Here is the pseudo code for the new return_to_handler assembly function.  Note
> +that the ABI that applies here is different from what applies to the mcount
> +code.  Since you are returning from a function (after the epilogue), you might
> +be able to skimp on things saved/restored (usually just registers used to pass
> +return values).
> +
> +#ifdef CONFIG_FUNCTION_GRAPH_TRACER
> +void return_to_handler(void)
> +{
> +	/* save all state needed by the ABI (see paragraph above) */
> +
> +	void (*original_return_point)(void) = ftrace_return_to_handler();
> +
> +	/* restore all state needed by the ABI */
> +
> +	/* this is usually either a return or a jump */
> +	original_return_point();
> +}
> +#endif
> +
> +
> +HAVE_FTRACE_NMI_ENTER
> +---------------------
> +
> +If you can't trace NMI functions, then skip this option.
> +
> +<details to be filled>

I guess I could fill this out later.

> +
> +
> +HAVE_FTRACE_SYSCALLS
> +---------------------
> +
> +<details to be filled>

This would be for Frederic.

> +
> +
> +HAVE_FTRACE_MCOUNT_RECORD
> +-------------------------
> +
> +See scripts/recordmcount.pl for more info.
> +
> +<details to be filled>

I could do this too.

> +
> +
> +HAVE_DYNAMIC_FTRACE
> +---------------------
> +
> +<details to be filled>

This is the fun part. I'll write up something (need to do it anyway).
I'll try to get to it when I'm back from Dresden in October.

> diff --git a/Documentation/trace/ftrace.txt b/Documentation/trace/ftrace.txt
> index fd9a3e6..95a39fb 100644
> --- a/Documentation/trace/ftrace.txt
> +++ b/Documentation/trace/ftrace.txt
> @@ -27,6 +27,12 @@ disabled, and more (ftrace allows for tracer plugins, which
>  means that the list of tracers can always grow).
>  
> 
> +Implementation Details
> +----------------------
> +
> +See ftrace-implementation.txt for details for arch porters and such.

Might want to specify that this is for the function tracer.

> +
> +
>  The File System
>  ---------------
>  
> diff --git a/kernel/trace/Kconfig b/kernel/trace/Kconfig
> index 417d198..8cbff89 100644
> --- a/kernel/trace/Kconfig
> +++ b/kernel/trace/Kconfig
> @@ -11,31 +11,41 @@ config NOP_TRACER
>  
>  config HAVE_FTRACE_NMI_ENTER
>  	bool
> +	help
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config HAVE_FUNCTION_TRACER
>  	bool
> +	help
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config HAVE_FUNCTION_GRAPH_TRACER
>  	bool
> +	help
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config HAVE_FUNCTION_TRACE_MCOUNT_TEST
>  	bool
>  	help
> -	 This gets selected when the arch tests the function_trace_stop
> -	 variable at the mcount call site. Otherwise, this variable
> -	 is tested by the called function.
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config HAVE_DYNAMIC_FTRACE
>  	bool
> +	help
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config HAVE_FTRACE_MCOUNT_RECORD
>  	bool
> +	help
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config HAVE_HW_BRANCH_TRACER
>  	bool
>  
>  config HAVE_FTRACE_SYSCALLS
>  	bool
> +	help
> +	  See Documentation/trace/ftrace-implementation.txt
>  
>  config TRACER_MAX_TRACE
>  	bool

Other than this, it looks good.

Could you make a v5, and send it to me. I promise that I wont slip it in
the done folder again ;-)

-- Steve


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