linux-kernel - Re: [PATCH v4 5/9] mm: introduce copy-on-fork VMAs and make VM_MAYBE

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Message-ID: <dfba107a-21fd-4439-ad6f-bd8a976fb232@kernel.org>
Date: Wed, 19 Nov 2025 10:17:13 +0100
From: "David Hildenbrand (Red Hat)" <david@...nel.org>
To: Lorenzo Stoakes <lorenzo.stoakes@...cle.com>,
 Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>
Cc: Jonathan Corbet <corbet@....net>,
 "Liam R . Howlett" <Liam.Howlett@...cle.com>,
 Vlastimil Babka <vbabka@...e.cz>, Mike Rapoport <rppt@...nel.org>,
 Suren Baghdasaryan <surenb@...gle.com>, Michal Hocko <mhocko@...e.com>,
 Steven Rostedt <rostedt@...dmis.org>, Masami Hiramatsu
 <mhiramat@...nel.org>, Mathieu Desnoyers <mathieu.desnoyers@...icios.com>,
 Jann Horn <jannh@...gle.com>, Pedro Falcato <pfalcato@...e.de>,
 Zi Yan <ziy@...dia.com>, Baolin Wang <baolin.wang@...ux.alibaba.com>,
 Nico Pache <npache@...hat.com>, Ryan Roberts <ryan.roberts@....com>,
 Dev Jain <dev.jain@....com>, Barry Song <baohua@...nel.org>,
 Lance Yang <lance.yang@...ux.dev>, linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org,
 linux-fsdevel@...r.kernel.org, linux-doc@...r.kernel.org,
 linux-mm@...ck.org, linux-trace-kernel@...r.kernel.org,
 linux-kselftest@...r.kernel.org, Andrei Vagin <avagin@...il.com>
Subject: Re: [PATCH v4 5/9] mm: introduce copy-on-fork VMAs and make
 VM_MAYBE_GUARD one

On 18.11.25 11:17, Lorenzo Stoakes wrote:
> Gather all the VMA flags whose presence implies that page tables must be
> copied on fork into a single bitmap - VM_COPY_ON_FORK - and use this
> rather than specifying individual flags in vma_needs_copy().
> 
> We also add VM_MAYBE_GUARD to this list, as it being set on a VMA implies
> that there may be metadata contained in the page tables (that is - guard
> markers) which would will not and cannot be propagated upon fork.
> 
> This was already being done manually previously in vma_needs_copy(), but
> this makes it very explicit, alongside VM_PFNMAP, VM_MIXEDMAP and
> VM_UFFD_WP all of which imply the same.
> 
> Note that VM_STICKY flags ought generally to be marked VM_COPY_ON_FORK too
> - because equally a flag being VM_STICKY indicates that the VMA contains
> metadat that is not propagated by being faulted in - i.e.  that the VMA
> metadata does not fully describe the VMA alone, and thus we must propagate
> whatever metadata there is on a fork.
> 
> However, for maximum flexibility, we do not make this necessarily the case
> here.
> 
> Signed-off-by: Lorenzo Stoakes <lorenzo.stoakes@...cle.com>
> Reviewed-by: Pedro Falcato <pfalcato@...e.de>
> Reviewed-by: Vlastimil Babka <vbabka@...e.cz>
> ---

Acked-by: David Hildenbrand (Red Hat) <david@...nel.org>

-- 
Cheers

David