Message-Id: <20250520-rt-and-cpu-controller-doc-v2-3-70a2b6a1b703@sony.com>
Date: Tue, 20 May 2025 23:07:47 +0900
From: Shashank Balaji via B4 Relay <devnull+shashank.mahadasyam.sony.com@...nel.org>
To: Tejun Heo <tj@...nel.org>, Johannes Weiner <hannes@...xchg.org>, 
 Michal Koutný <mkoutny@...e.com>, 
 Jonathan Corbet <corbet@....net>
Cc: cgroups@...r.kernel.org, linux-doc@...r.kernel.org, 
 linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org, Shinya Takumi <shinya.takumi@...y.com>, 
 Shashank Balaji <shashank.mahadasyam@...y.com>
Subject: [PATCH v2 3/3] cgroup, docs: cpu controller interaction with
 various scheduling policies

From: Shashank Balaji <shashank.mahadasyam@...y.com>

The cpu controller interface files account for or affect processes
differently based on their scheduling policy, and the underlying
scheduler used (fair-class vs. BPF scheduler). Document these
differences

Signed-off-by: Shashank Balaji <shashank.mahadasyam@...y.com>
---
 Documentation/admin-guide/cgroup-v2.rst | 98 +++++++++++++++++++++++++--------
 1 file changed, 75 insertions(+), 23 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/cgroup-v2.rst b/Documentation/admin-guide/cgroup-v2.rst
index 3b3685736fe9b12e96a273248dfb4a8c62a4b698..0f79bf42a3e3b2fcbe6409f9e182ba9de1fbb79c 100644
--- a/Documentation/admin-guide/cgroup-v2.rst
+++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/cgroup-v2.rst
@@ -1095,19 +1095,50 @@ realtime processes irrespective of CONFIG_RT_GROUP_SCHED.
 CPU Interface Files
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
-All time durations are in microseconds.
+The interaction of a process with the cpu controller depends on its scheduling
+policy. We have the following scheduling policies: ``SCHED_IDLE``, ``SCHED_BATCH``,
+``SCHED_OTHER``, ``SCHED_EXT`` (if ``CONFIG_SCHED_CLASS_EXT`` is enabled), ``SCHED_FIFO``,
+``SCHED_RR``, and ``SCHED_DEADLINE``. ``SCHED_{IDLE,BATCH,OTHER,EXT}`` can be scheduled
+either by the fair-class scheduler or by a BPF scheduler::
+
+    CONFIG_SCHED_CLASS_EXT
+    ├─ Disabled
+    |   └─ SCHED_{IDLE,BATCH,OTHER} -> fair-class scheduler
+    └─ Enabled
+        ├─ BPF scheduler disabled
+        |   └─ SCHED_{IDLE,BATCH,OTHER,EXT} -> fair-class scheduler
+        ├─ BPF scheduler without SCX_OPS_SWITCH_PARTIAL enabled
+        |   └─ SCHED_{IDLE,BATCH,OTHER,EXT} -> BPF scheduler
+        └─ BPF scheduler with SCX_OPS_SWITCH_PARTIAL enabled
+            ├─ SCHED_{IDLE,BATCH,OTHER} -> fair-class scheduler
+            └─ SCHED_EXT -> BPF scheduler
+
+For more details on ``SCHED_EXT``, check out :ref:`Documentation/scheduler/sched-ext.rst. <sched-ext>`
+From the point of view of the cpu controller, processes can be categorized as
+follows:
+
+* Processes under the fair-class scheduler
+* Processes under a BPF scheduler with the ``cgroup_set_weight`` callback
+* Everything else: ``SCHED_{FIFO,RR,DEADLINE}`` and processes under a BPF scheduler
+  without the ``cgroup_set_weight`` callback
+
+Note that the ``cgroup_*`` family of callbacks require ``CONFIG_EXT_GROUP_SCHED``
+to be enabled. For each of the following interface files, the above categories
+will be referred to. All time durations are in microseconds.
 
   cpu.stat
 	A read-only flat-keyed file.
 	This file exists whether the controller is enabled or not.
 
-	It always reports the following three stats:
+	It always reports the following three stats, which account for all the
+	processes in the cgroup:
 
 	- usage_usec
 	- user_usec
 	- system_usec
 
-	and the following five when the controller is enabled:
+	and the following five when the controller is enabled, which account for
+	only the processes under the fair-class scheduler:
 
 	- nr_periods
 	- nr_throttled
@@ -1125,6 +1156,10 @@ All time durations are in microseconds.
 	If the cgroup has been configured to be SCHED_IDLE (cpu.idle = 1),
 	then the weight will show as a 0.
 
+	This file affects only processes under the fair-class scheduler and a BPF
+	scheduler with the ``cgroup_set_weight`` callback depending on what the
+	callback actually does.
+
   cpu.weight.nice
 	A read-write single value file which exists on non-root
 	cgroups.  The default is "0".
@@ -1137,6 +1172,10 @@ All time durations are in microseconds.
 	granularity is coarser for the nice values, the read value is
 	the closest approximation of the current weight.
 
+	This file affects only processes under the fair-class scheduler and a BPF
+	scheduler with the ``cgroup_set_weight`` callback depending on what the
+	callback actually does.
+
   cpu.max
 	A read-write two value file which exists on non-root cgroups.
 	The default is "max 100000".
@@ -1149,43 +1188,56 @@ All time durations are in microseconds.
 	$PERIOD duration.  "max" for $MAX indicates no limit.  If only
 	one number is written, $MAX is updated.
 
+	This file affects only processes under the fair-class scheduler.
+
   cpu.max.burst
 	A read-write single value file which exists on non-root
 	cgroups.  The default is "0".
 
 	The burst in the range [0, $MAX].
 
+	This file affects only processes under the fair-class scheduler.
+
   cpu.pressure
 	A read-write nested-keyed file.
 
-	Shows pressure stall information for CPU. See
-	:ref:`Documentation/accounting/psi.rst <psi>` for details.
+	Shows pressure stall information for CPU, including the contribution of
+	realtime processes. See :ref:`Documentation/accounting/psi.rst <psi>`
+	for details.
+
+	This file accounts for all the processes in the cgroup.
 
   cpu.uclamp.min
-        A read-write single value file which exists on non-root cgroups.
-        The default is "0", i.e. no utilization boosting.
+	A read-write single value file which exists on non-root cgroups.
+	The default is "0", i.e. no utilization boosting.
 
-        The requested minimum utilization (protection) as a percentage
-        rational number, e.g. 12.34 for 12.34%.
+	The requested minimum utilization (protection) as a percentage
+	rational number, e.g. 12.34 for 12.34%.
 
-        This interface allows reading and setting minimum utilization clamp
-        values similar to the sched_setattr(2). This minimum utilization
-        value is used to clamp the task specific minimum utilization clamp.
+	This interface allows reading and setting minimum utilization clamp
+	values similar to the sched_setattr(2). This minimum utilization
+	value is used to clamp the task specific minimum utilization clamp,
+	including those of realtime processes.
 
-        The requested minimum utilization (protection) is always capped by
-        the current value for the maximum utilization (limit), i.e.
-        `cpu.uclamp.max`.
+	The requested minimum utilization (protection) is always capped by
+	the current value for the maximum utilization (limit), i.e.
+	`cpu.uclamp.max`.
+
+	This file affects all the processes in the cgroup.
 
   cpu.uclamp.max
-        A read-write single value file which exists on non-root cgroups.
-        The default is "max". i.e. no utilization capping
+	A read-write single value file which exists on non-root cgroups.
+	The default is "max". i.e. no utilization capping
 
-        The requested maximum utilization (limit) as a percentage rational
-        number, e.g. 98.76 for 98.76%.
+	The requested maximum utilization (limit) as a percentage rational
+	number, e.g. 98.76 for 98.76%.
 
-        This interface allows reading and setting maximum utilization clamp
-        values similar to the sched_setattr(2). This maximum utilization
-        value is used to clamp the task specific maximum utilization clamp.
+	This interface allows reading and setting maximum utilization clamp
+	values similar to the sched_setattr(2). This maximum utilization
+	value is used to clamp the task specific maximum utilization clamp,
+	including those of realtime processes.
+
+	This file affects all the processes in the cgroup.
 
   cpu.idle
 	A read-write single value file which exists on non-root cgroups.
@@ -1197,7 +1249,7 @@ All time durations are in microseconds.
 	own relative priorities, but the cgroup itself will be treated as
 	very low priority relative to its peers.
 
-
+	This file affects only processes under the fair-class scheduler.
 
 Memory
 ------

-- 
2.43.0

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