Re: [PATCH v2 00/12] device-core: Enable device_lock() lockdep validation

From: Waiman Long
Date: Wed Apr 13 2022 - 10:02:51 EST


On 4/13/22 02:01, Dan Williams wrote:
Changes since v1 [1]:
- Improve the clarity of the cover letter and changelogs of the
major patches (Patch2 and Patch12) (Pierre, Kevin, and Dave)
- Fix device_lock_interruptible() false negative deadlock detection
(Kevin)
- Fix off-by-one error in the device_set_lock_class() enable case (Kevin)
- Spelling fixes in Patch2 changelog (Pierre)
- Compilation fixes when both CONFIG_CXL_BUS=n and
CONFIG_LIBNVDIMM=n. (0day robot)

[1]: https://lore.kernel.org/all/164610292916.2682974.12924748003366352335.stgit@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx/

---

The device_lock() is why the lockdep_set_novalidate_class() API exists.
The lock is taken in too many disparate contexts, and lockdep by design
assumes that all device_lock() acquisitions are identical. The lack of
lockdep coverage leads to deadlock scenarios landing upstream. To
mitigate that problem the lockdep_mutex was added [2].

The lockdep_mutex lets a subsystem mirror device_lock() acquisitions
without lockdep_set_novalidate_class() to gain some limited lockdep
coverage. The mirroring approach is limited to taking the device_lock()
after-the-fact in a subsystem's 'struct bus_type' operations and fails
to cover device_lock() acquisition in the driver-core. It also can only
track the needs of one subsystem at a time so, for example the kernel
needs to be recompiled between CONFIG_PROVE_NVDIMM_LOCKING and
CONFIG_PROVE_CXL_LOCKING depending on which subsystem is being
regression tested. Obviously that also means that intra-subsystem
locking dependencies can not be validated.

Instead of using a fake lockdep_mutex, maybe you can just use a unique lockdep key for each subsystem and call lockdep_set_class() in the device_initialize() if such key is present or lockdep_set_novalidate_class() otherwise. The unique key can be passed either as a parameter to device_initialize() or as part of the device structure. It is certainly less cumbersome that having a fake lockdep_mutex array in the device structure.

Cheers,
Longman