aboutsummaryrefslogtreecommitdiffstats
path: root/Documentation
diff options
context:
space:
mode:
Diffstat (limited to 'Documentation')
-rw-r--r--Documentation/ABI/testing/debugfs-kmemtrace71
-rw-r--r--Documentation/ftrace.txt74
-rw-r--r--Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt10
-rw-r--r--Documentation/sysrq.txt2
-rw-r--r--Documentation/tracers/mmiotrace.txt6
-rw-r--r--Documentation/vm/kmemtrace.txt126
6 files changed, 285 insertions, 4 deletions
diff --git a/Documentation/ABI/testing/debugfs-kmemtrace b/Documentation/ABI/testing/debugfs-kmemtrace
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..5e6a92a02d85
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Documentation/ABI/testing/debugfs-kmemtrace
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
1What: /sys/kernel/debug/kmemtrace/
2Date: July 2008
3Contact: Eduard - Gabriel Munteanu <eduard.munteanu@linux360.ro>
4Description:
5
6In kmemtrace-enabled kernels, the following files are created:
7
8/sys/kernel/debug/kmemtrace/
9 cpu<n> (0400) Per-CPU tracing data, see below. (binary)
10 total_overruns (0400) Total number of bytes which were dropped from
11 cpu<n> files because of full buffer condition,
12 non-binary. (text)
13 abi_version (0400) Kernel's kmemtrace ABI version. (text)
14
15Each per-CPU file should be read according to the relay interface. That is,
16the reader should set affinity to that specific CPU and, as currently done by
17the userspace application (though there are other methods), use poll() with
18an infinite timeout before every read(). Otherwise, erroneous data may be
19read. The binary data has the following _core_ format:
20
21 Event ID (1 byte) Unsigned integer, one of:
22 0 - represents an allocation (KMEMTRACE_EVENT_ALLOC)
23 1 - represents a freeing of previously allocated memory
24 (KMEMTRACE_EVENT_FREE)
25 Type ID (1 byte) Unsigned integer, one of:
26 0 - this is a kmalloc() / kfree()
27 1 - this is a kmem_cache_alloc() / kmem_cache_free()
28 2 - this is a __get_free_pages() et al.
29 Event size (2 bytes) Unsigned integer representing the
30 size of this event. Used to extend
31 kmemtrace. Discard the bytes you
32 don't know about.
33 Sequence number (4 bytes) Signed integer used to reorder data
34 logged on SMP machines. Wraparound
35 must be taken into account, although
36 it is unlikely.
37 Caller address (8 bytes) Return address to the caller.
38 Pointer to mem (8 bytes) Pointer to target memory area. Can be
39 NULL, but not all such calls might be
40 recorded.
41
42In case of KMEMTRACE_EVENT_ALLOC events, the next fields follow:
43
44 Requested bytes (8 bytes) Total number of requested bytes,
45 unsigned, must not be zero.
46 Allocated bytes (8 bytes) Total number of actually allocated
47 bytes, unsigned, must not be lower
48 than requested bytes.
49 Requested flags (4 bytes) GFP flags supplied by the caller.
50 Target CPU (4 bytes) Signed integer, valid for event id 1.
51 If equal to -1, target CPU is the same
52 as origin CPU, but the reverse might
53 not be true.
54
55The data is made available in the same endianness the machine has.
56
57Other event ids and type ids may be defined and added. Other fields may be
58added by increasing event size, but see below for details.
59Every modification to the ABI, including new id definitions, are followed
60by bumping the ABI version by one.
61
62Adding new data to the packet (features) is done at the end of the mandatory
63data:
64 Feature size (2 byte)
65 Feature ID (1 byte)
66 Feature data (Feature size - 3 bytes)
67
68
69Users:
70 kmemtrace-user - git://repo.or.cz/kmemtrace-user.git
71
diff --git a/Documentation/ftrace.txt b/Documentation/ftrace.txt
index 803b1318b13d..758fb42a1b68 100644
--- a/Documentation/ftrace.txt
+++ b/Documentation/ftrace.txt
@@ -165,6 +165,8 @@ Here is the list of current tracers that may be configured.
165 nop - This is not a tracer. To remove all tracers from tracing 165 nop - This is not a tracer. To remove all tracers from tracing
166 simply echo "nop" into current_tracer. 166 simply echo "nop" into current_tracer.
167 167
168 hw-branch-tracer - traces branches on all cpu's in a circular buffer.
169
168 170
169Examples of using the tracer 171Examples of using the tracer
170---------------------------- 172----------------------------
@@ -1152,6 +1154,78 @@ int main (int argc, char **argv)
1152 return 0; 1154 return 0;
1153} 1155}
1154 1156
1157
1158hw-branch-tracer (x86 only)
1159---------------------------
1160
1161This tracer uses the x86 last branch tracing hardware feature to
1162collect a branch trace on all cpus with relatively low overhead.
1163
1164The tracer uses a fixed-size circular buffer per cpu and only
1165traces ring 0 branches. The trace file dumps that buffer in the
1166following format:
1167
1168# tracer: hw-branch-tracer
1169#
1170# CPU# TO <- FROM
1171 0 scheduler_tick+0xb5/0x1bf <- task_tick_idle+0x5/0x6
1172 2 run_posix_cpu_timers+0x2b/0x72a <- run_posix_cpu_timers+0x25/0x72a
1173 0 scheduler_tick+0x139/0x1bf <- scheduler_tick+0xed/0x1bf
1174 0 scheduler_tick+0x17c/0x1bf <- scheduler_tick+0x148/0x1bf
1175 2 run_posix_cpu_timers+0x9e/0x72a <- run_posix_cpu_timers+0x5e/0x72a
1176 0 scheduler_tick+0x1b6/0x1bf <- scheduler_tick+0x1aa/0x1bf
1177
1178
1179The tracer may be used to dump the trace for the oops'ing cpu on a
1180kernel oops into the system log. To enable this, ftrace_dump_on_oops
1181must be set. To set ftrace_dump_on_oops, one can either use the sysctl
1182function or set it via the proc system interface.
1183
1184 sysctl kernel.ftrace_dump_on_oops=1
1185
1186or
1187
1188 echo 1 > /proc/sys/kernel/ftrace_dump_on_oops
1189
1190
1191Here's an example of such a dump after a null pointer dereference in a
1192kernel module:
1193
1194[57848.105921] BUG: unable to handle kernel NULL pointer dereference at 0000000000000000
1195[57848.106019] IP: [<ffffffffa0000006>] open+0x6/0x14 [oops]
1196[57848.106019] PGD 2354e9067 PUD 2375e7067 PMD 0
1197[57848.106019] Oops: 0002 [#1] SMP
1198[57848.106019] last sysfs file: /sys/devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1e.0/0000:20:05.0/local_cpus
1199[57848.106019] Dumping ftrace buffer:
1200[57848.106019] ---------------------------------
1201[...]
1202[57848.106019] 0 chrdev_open+0xe6/0x165 <- cdev_put+0x23/0x24
1203[57848.106019] 0 chrdev_open+0x117/0x165 <- chrdev_open+0xfa/0x165
1204[57848.106019] 0 chrdev_open+0x120/0x165 <- chrdev_open+0x11c/0x165
1205[57848.106019] 0 chrdev_open+0x134/0x165 <- chrdev_open+0x12b/0x165
1206[57848.106019] 0 open+0x0/0x14 [oops] <- chrdev_open+0x144/0x165
1207[57848.106019] 0 page_fault+0x0/0x30 <- open+0x6/0x14 [oops]
1208[57848.106019] 0 error_entry+0x0/0x5b <- page_fault+0x4/0x30
1209[57848.106019] 0 error_kernelspace+0x0/0x31 <- error_entry+0x59/0x5b
1210[57848.106019] 0 error_sti+0x0/0x1 <- error_kernelspace+0x2d/0x31
1211[57848.106019] 0 page_fault+0x9/0x30 <- error_sti+0x0/0x1
1212[57848.106019] 0 do_page_fault+0x0/0x881 <- page_fault+0x1a/0x30
1213[...]
1214[57848.106019] 0 do_page_fault+0x66b/0x881 <- is_prefetch+0x1ee/0x1f2
1215[57848.106019] 0 do_page_fault+0x6e0/0x881 <- do_page_fault+0x67a/0x881
1216[57848.106019] 0 oops_begin+0x0/0x96 <- do_page_fault+0x6e0/0x881
1217[57848.106019] 0 trace_hw_branch_oops+0x0/0x2d <- oops_begin+0x9/0x96
1218[...]
1219[57848.106019] 0 ds_suspend_bts+0x2a/0xe3 <- ds_suspend_bts+0x1a/0xe3
1220[57848.106019] ---------------------------------
1221[57848.106019] CPU 0
1222[57848.106019] Modules linked in: oops
1223[57848.106019] Pid: 5542, comm: cat Tainted: G W 2.6.28 #23
1224[57848.106019] RIP: 0010:[<ffffffffa0000006>] [<ffffffffa0000006>] open+0x6/0x14 [oops]
1225[57848.106019] RSP: 0018:ffff880235457d48 EFLAGS: 00010246
1226[...]
1227
1228
1155dynamic ftrace 1229dynamic ftrace
1156-------------- 1230--------------
1157 1231
diff --git a/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt b/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt
index d8362cf9909e..6390ffb520fd 100644
--- a/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt
+++ b/Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ parameter is applicable:
49 ISAPNP ISA PnP code is enabled. 49 ISAPNP ISA PnP code is enabled.
50 ISDN Appropriate ISDN support is enabled. 50 ISDN Appropriate ISDN support is enabled.
51 JOY Appropriate joystick support is enabled. 51 JOY Appropriate joystick support is enabled.
52 KMEMTRACE kmemtrace is enabled.
52 LIBATA Libata driver is enabled 53 LIBATA Libata driver is enabled
53 LP Printer support is enabled. 54 LP Printer support is enabled.
54 LOOP Loopback device support is enabled. 55 LOOP Loopback device support is enabled.
@@ -1043,6 +1044,15 @@ and is between 256 and 4096 characters. It is defined in the file
1043 use the HighMem zone if it exists, and the Normal 1044 use the HighMem zone if it exists, and the Normal
1044 zone if it does not. 1045 zone if it does not.
1045 1046
1047 kmemtrace.enable= [KNL,KMEMTRACE] Format: { yes | no }
1048 Controls whether kmemtrace is enabled
1049 at boot-time.
1050
1051 kmemtrace.subbufs=n [KNL,KMEMTRACE] Overrides the number of
1052 subbufs kmemtrace's relay channel has. Set this
1053 higher than default (KMEMTRACE_N_SUBBUFS in code) if
1054 you experience buffer overruns.
1055
1046 movablecore=nn[KMG] [KNL,X86-32,IA-64,PPC,X86-64] This parameter 1056 movablecore=nn[KMG] [KNL,X86-32,IA-64,PPC,X86-64] This parameter
1047 is similar to kernelcore except it specifies the 1057 is similar to kernelcore except it specifies the
1048 amount of memory used for migratable allocations. 1058 amount of memory used for migratable allocations.
diff --git a/Documentation/sysrq.txt b/Documentation/sysrq.txt
index 9e592c718afb..535aeb936dbc 100644
--- a/Documentation/sysrq.txt
+++ b/Documentation/sysrq.txt
@@ -113,6 +113,8 @@ On all - write a character to /proc/sysrq-trigger. e.g.:
113 113
114'x' - Used by xmon interface on ppc/powerpc platforms. 114'x' - Used by xmon interface on ppc/powerpc platforms.
115 115
116'z' - Dump the ftrace buffer
117
116'0'-'9' - Sets the console log level, controlling which kernel messages 118'0'-'9' - Sets the console log level, controlling which kernel messages
117 will be printed to your console. ('0', for example would make 119 will be printed to your console. ('0', for example would make
118 it so that only emergency messages like PANICs or OOPSes would 120 it so that only emergency messages like PANICs or OOPSes would
diff --git a/Documentation/tracers/mmiotrace.txt b/Documentation/tracers/mmiotrace.txt
index cde23b4a12a1..5731c67abc55 100644
--- a/Documentation/tracers/mmiotrace.txt
+++ b/Documentation/tracers/mmiotrace.txt
@@ -78,12 +78,10 @@ to view your kernel log and look for "mmiotrace has lost events" warning. If
78events were lost, the trace is incomplete. You should enlarge the buffers and 78events were lost, the trace is incomplete. You should enlarge the buffers and
79try again. Buffers are enlarged by first seeing how large the current buffers 79try again. Buffers are enlarged by first seeing how large the current buffers
80are: 80are:
81$ cat /debug/tracing/trace_entries 81$ cat /debug/tracing/buffer_size_kb
82gives you a number. Approximately double this number and write it back, for 82gives you a number. Approximately double this number and write it back, for
83instance: 83instance:
84$ echo 0 > /debug/tracing/tracing_enabled 84$ echo 128000 > /debug/tracing/buffer_size_kb
85$ echo 128000 > /debug/tracing/trace_entries
86$ echo 1 > /debug/tracing/tracing_enabled
87Then start again from the top. 85Then start again from the top.
88 86
89If you are doing a trace for a driver project, e.g. Nouveau, you should also 87If you are doing a trace for a driver project, e.g. Nouveau, you should also
diff --git a/Documentation/vm/kmemtrace.txt b/Documentation/vm/kmemtrace.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..a956d9b7f943
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Documentation/vm/kmemtrace.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,126 @@
1 kmemtrace - Kernel Memory Tracer
2
3 by Eduard - Gabriel Munteanu
4 <eduard.munteanu@linux360.ro>
5
6I. Introduction
7===============
8
9kmemtrace helps kernel developers figure out two things:
101) how different allocators (SLAB, SLUB etc.) perform
112) how kernel code allocates memory and how much
12
13To do this, we trace every allocation and export information to the userspace
14through the relay interface. We export things such as the number of requested
15bytes, the number of bytes actually allocated (i.e. including internal
16fragmentation), whether this is a slab allocation or a plain kmalloc() and so
17on.
18
19The actual analysis is performed by a userspace tool (see section III for
20details on where to get it from). It logs the data exported by the kernel,
21processes it and (as of writing this) can provide the following information:
22- the total amount of memory allocated and fragmentation per call-site
23- the amount of memory allocated and fragmentation per allocation
24- total memory allocated and fragmentation in the collected dataset
25- number of cross-CPU allocation and frees (makes sense in NUMA environments)
26
27Moreover, it can potentially find inconsistent and erroneous behavior in
28kernel code, such as using slab free functions on kmalloc'ed memory or
29allocating less memory than requested (but not truly failed allocations).
30
31kmemtrace also makes provisions for tracing on some arch and analysing the
32data on another.
33
34II. Design and goals
35====================
36
37kmemtrace was designed to handle rather large amounts of data. Thus, it uses
38the relay interface to export whatever is logged to userspace, which then
39stores it. Analysis and reporting is done asynchronously, that is, after the
40data is collected and stored. By design, it allows one to log and analyse
41on different machines and different arches.
42
43As of writing this, the ABI is not considered stable, though it might not
44change much. However, no guarantees are made about compatibility yet. When
45deemed stable, the ABI should still allow easy extension while maintaining
46backward compatibility. This is described further in Documentation/ABI.
47
48Summary of design goals:
49 - allow logging and analysis to be done across different machines
50 - be fast and anticipate usage in high-load environments (*)
51 - be reasonably extensible
52 - make it possible for GNU/Linux distributions to have kmemtrace
53 included in their repositories
54
55(*) - one of the reasons Pekka Enberg's original userspace data analysis
56 tool's code was rewritten from Perl to C (although this is more than a
57 simple conversion)
58
59
60III. Quick usage guide
61======================
62
631) Get a kernel that supports kmemtrace and build it accordingly (i.e. enable
64CONFIG_KMEMTRACE).
65
662) Get the userspace tool and build it:
67$ git-clone git://repo.or.cz/kmemtrace-user.git # current repository
68$ cd kmemtrace-user/
69$ ./autogen.sh
70$ ./configure
71$ make
72
733) Boot the kmemtrace-enabled kernel if you haven't, preferably in the
74'single' runlevel (so that relay buffers don't fill up easily), and run
75kmemtrace:
76# '$' does not mean user, but root here.
77$ mount -t debugfs none /sys/kernel/debug
78$ mount -t proc none /proc
79$ cd path/to/kmemtrace-user/
80$ ./kmemtraced
81Wait a bit, then stop it with CTRL+C.
82$ cat /sys/kernel/debug/kmemtrace/total_overruns # Check if we didn't
83 # overrun, should
84 # be zero.
85$ (Optionally) [Run kmemtrace_check separately on each cpu[0-9]*.out file to
86 check its correctness]
87$ ./kmemtrace-report
88
89Now you should have a nice and short summary of how the allocator performs.
90
91IV. FAQ and known issues
92========================
93
94Q: 'cat /sys/kernel/debug/kmemtrace/total_overruns' is non-zero, how do I fix
95this? Should I worry?
96A: If it's non-zero, this affects kmemtrace's accuracy, depending on how
97large the number is. You can fix it by supplying a higher
98'kmemtrace.subbufs=N' kernel parameter.
99---
100
101Q: kmemtrace_check reports errors, how do I fix this? Should I worry?
102A: This is a bug and should be reported. It can occur for a variety of
103reasons:
104 - possible bugs in relay code
105 - possible misuse of relay by kmemtrace
106 - timestamps being collected unorderly
107Or you may fix it yourself and send us a patch.
108---
109
110Q: kmemtrace_report shows many errors, how do I fix this? Should I worry?
111A: This is a known issue and I'm working on it. These might be true errors
112in kernel code, which may have inconsistent behavior (e.g. allocating memory
113with kmem_cache_alloc() and freeing it with kfree()). Pekka Enberg pointed
114out this behavior may work with SLAB, but may fail with other allocators.
115
116It may also be due to lack of tracing in some unusual allocator functions.
117
118We don't want bug reports regarding this issue yet.
119---
120
121V. See also
122===========
123
124Documentation/kernel-parameters.txt
125Documentation/ABI/testing/debugfs-kmemtrace
126