netdev - Re: [PATCH 2/5] sky2: don't warn if page allocation fails

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Message-Id: <200806031616.33251.nickpiggin@yahoo.com.au>
Date:	Tue, 3 Jun 2008 16:16:32 +1000
From:	Nick Piggin <nickpiggin@...oo.com.au>
To:	Stephen Hemminger <stephen.hemminger@...tta.com>
Cc:	Jeff Garzik <jgarzik@...ox.com>,
	Stephen Hemminger <shemminger@...tta.com>,
	netdev@...r.kernel.org, LKML <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>,
	Andrew Morton <akpm@...ux-foundation.org>
Subject: Re: [PATCH 2/5] sky2: don't warn if page allocation fails

On Wednesday 28 May 2008 04:47, Stephen Hemminger wrote:
> On Thu, 22 May 2008 05:57:44 -0400
>
> Jeff Garzik <jgarzik@...ox.com> wrote:
> > >  	for (i = 0; i < sky2->rx_nfrags; i++) {
> > > -		struct page *page = alloc_page(GFP_ATOMIC);
> > > +		struct page *page = alloc_page(GFP_ATOMIC | __GFP_NOWARN);
> > >
> > >  		if (!page)
> > >  			goto free_partial;
> >
> > IMO it's inappropriate to add these warnings to net drivers that
> > properly check all return values.
> >
> > This approach is too maintenance intensive, and winds up fixing the same
> > problem over and over again -- a hint that the fix is in the wrong place.
> >
> > 	Jeff
>
> So the __GFP_NOWARN should go away and get replaced by GFP_WARN?

We actually still want to see the messages, regardless of what is causing
them, because they can indicate problems in the VM.

The best way is not to add __GFP_NOWARN at all, and just improve the
throttling/thresholding/reporting of the page allocation failure warnings.
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