linux-kernel - Re: [PATCHv5 00/13] Linear Address Masking enabling

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Date:   Mon, 18 Jul 2022 19:39:22 +0200
From:   Alexander Potapenko <glider@...gle.com>
To:     "Kirill A. Shutemov" <kirill.shutemov@...ux.intel.com>
Cc:     Dave Hansen <dave.hansen@...ux.intel.com>,
        Andy Lutomirski <luto@...nel.org>,
        Peter Zijlstra <peterz@...radead.org>,
        "the arch/x86 maintainers" <x86@...nel.org>,
        Kostya Serebryany <kcc@...gle.com>,
        Andrey Ryabinin <ryabinin.a.a@...il.com>,
        Andrey Konovalov <andreyknvl@...il.com>,
        Taras Madan <tarasmadan@...gle.com>,
        Dmitry Vyukov <dvyukov@...gle.com>,
        "H . J . Lu" <hjl.tools@...il.com>,
        Andi Kleen <ak@...ux.intel.com>,
        Rick Edgecombe <rick.p.edgecombe@...el.com>,
        Linux Memory Management List <linux-mm@...ck.org>,
        LKML <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCHv5 00/13] Linear Address Masking enabling

On Wed, Jul 13, 2022 at 1:13 AM Kirill A. Shutemov
<kirill.shutemov@...ux.intel.com> wrote:
>
> Linear Address Masking[1] (LAM) modifies the checking that is applied to
> 64-bit linear addresses, allowing software to use of the untranslated
> address bits for metadata.
>
> The patchset brings support for LAM for userspace addresses.
>
> LAM_U48 enabling is controversial since it competes for bits with
> 5-level paging. Its enabling isolated into an optional last patch that
> can be applied at maintainer's discretion.

I believe having optional patches will put unnecessary burden on
distro maintainers.
Soon after landing U48 support other changes will start piling on top
of it, and it will be impossible to maintain a kernel with this patch
removed.
It also won't make any difference for the upstream, where this patch
will be always present.

We'd better decide now whether we need U48 or not, and either keep it
or delete it.