From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.2 (2018-09-13) on inbox.vuxu.org X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-3.3 required=5.0 tests=MAILING_LIST_MULTI, RCVD_IN_DNSWL_MED,RCVD_IN_MSPIKE_H3,RCVD_IN_MSPIKE_WL,SPF_PASS autolearn=ham autolearn_force=no version=3.4.2 Received: (qmail 18716 invoked from network); 20 Apr 2020 01:34:26 -0000 Received-SPF: pass (mother.openwall.net: domain of lists.openwall.com designates 195.42.179.200 as permitted sender) receiver=inbox.vuxu.org; client-ip=195.42.179.200 envelope-from= Received: from mother.openwall.net (195.42.179.200) by inbox.vuxu.org with UTF8ESMTPZ; 20 Apr 2020 01:34:26 -0000 Received: (qmail 5579 invoked by uid 550); 20 Apr 2020 01:34:25 -0000 Mailing-List: contact musl-help@lists.openwall.com; run by ezmlm Precedence: bulk List-Post: List-Help: List-Unsubscribe: List-Subscribe: List-ID: Reply-To: musl@lists.openwall.com Received: (qmail 5561 invoked from network); 20 Apr 2020 01:34:24 -0000 Date: Sun, 19 Apr 2020 21:34:12 -0400 From: Rich Felker To: Nicholas Piggin Cc: Adhemerval Zanella , libc-alpha@sourceware.org, libc-dev@lists.llvm.org, linuxppc-dev@lists.ozlabs.org, musl@lists.openwall.com Message-ID: <20200420013412.GZ11469@brightrain.aerifal.cx> References: <1586931450.ub4c8cq8dj.astroid@bobo.none> <20200415225539.GL11469@brightrain.aerifal.cx> <20200416153756.GU11469@brightrain.aerifal.cx> <4b2a7a56-dd2b-1863-50e5-2f4cdbeef47c@linaro.org> <20200416175932.GZ11469@brightrain.aerifal.cx> <4f824a37-e660-8912-25aa-fde88d4b79f3@linaro.org> <20200416183151.GA11469@brightrain.aerifal.cx> <1587344003.daumxvs1kh.astroid@bobo.none> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: <1587344003.daumxvs1kh.astroid@bobo.none> User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.21 (2010-09-15) Subject: Re: [musl] Powerpc Linux 'scv' system call ABI proposal take 2 On Mon, Apr 20, 2020 at 11:10:25AM +1000, Nicholas Piggin wrote: > Excerpts from Rich Felker's message of April 17, 2020 4:31 am: > > Note that because lr is clobbered we need at least once normally > > call-clobbered register that's not syscall clobbered to save lr in. > > Otherwise stack frame setup is required to spill it. > > The kernel would like to use r9-r12 for itself. We could do with fewer > registers, but we have some delay establishing the stack (depends on a > load which depends on a mfspr), and entry code tends to be quite store > heavy whereas on the caller side you have r1 set up (modulo stack > updates), and the system call is a long delay during which time the > store queue has significant time to drain. > > My feeling is it would be better for kernel to have these scratch > registers. If your new kernel syscall mechanism requires the caller to make a whole stack frame it otherwise doesn't need and spill registers to it, it becomes a lot less attractive. Some of those 90 cycles saved are immediately lost on the userspace side, plus you either waste icache at the call point or require the syscall to go through a userspace-side helper function that performs the spill and restore. The right way to do this is to have the kernel preserve enough registers that userspace can avoid having any spills. It doesn't have to preserve everything, probably just enough to save lr. (BTW are syscall arg registers still preserved? If not, this is a major cost on the userspace side, since any call point that has to loop-and-retry (e.g. futex) now needs to make its own place to store the original values.) Rich