On Thu, Jan 10, 2019 at 02:07:18PM -0800, Suren Baghdasaryan wrote:

+/*
+ * psi_update_work represents slowpath accounting part while
+ * psi_group_change represents hotpath part.
+ * There are two potential races between these path:
+ * 1. Changes to group->polling when slowpath checks for new stall, then
+ *    hotpath records new stall and then slowpath resets group->polling
+ *    flag. This leads to the exit from the polling mode while monitored
+ *    states are still changing.
+ * 2. Slowpath overwriting an immediate update scheduled from the hotpath
+ *    with a regular update further in the future and missing the
+ *    immediate update.
+ * Both races are handled with a retry cycle in the slowpath:
+ *
+ *    HOTPATH:                         |    SLOWPATH:
+ *                                     |
+ * A) times[cpu] += delta              | E) delta = times[*]
+ * B) start_poll = (delta[poll_mask] &&|    if delta[poll_mask]:
+ *      cmpxchg(g->polling, 0, 1) == 0)| F)   polling_until = now +
+ *                                     |              grace_period
+ *                                     |    if now > polling_until:
+ *    if start_poll:                   |      if g->polling:
+ * C)   mod_delayed_work(1)            | G)     g->polling = polling = 0
+ *    else if !delayed_work_pending(): | H)     goto SLOWPATH
+ * D)   schedule_delayed_work(PSI_FREQ)|    else:
+ *                                     |      if !g->polling:
+ *                                     | I)     g->polling = polling = 1
+ *                                     | J) if delta && first_pass:
+ *                                     |      next_avg = calculate_averages()
+ *                                     |      if polling:
+ *                                     |        next_poll = poll_triggers()
+ *                                     |    if (delta && first_pass) || polling:
+ *                                     | K)   mod_delayed_work(
+ *                                     |          min(next_avg, next_poll))
+ *                                     |      if !polling:
+ *                                     |        first_pass = false
+ *                                     | L)     goto SLOWPATH
+ *
+ * Race #1 is represented by (EABGD) sequence in which case slowpath
+ * deactivates polling mode because it misses new monitored stall and hotpath
+ * doesn't activate it because at (B) g->polling is not yet reset by slowpath
+ * in (G). This race is handled by the (H) retry, which in the race described
+ * above results in the new sequence of (EABGDHEIK) that reactivates polling
+ * mode.
+ *
+ * Race #2 is represented by polling==false && (JABCK) sequence which
+ * overwrites immediate update scheduled at (C) with a later (next_avg) update
+ * scheduled at (K). This race is handled by the (L) retry which results in the
+ * new sequence of polling==false && (JABCKLEIK) that reactivates polling mode
+ * and reschedules next polling update (next_poll).
+ *
+ * Note that retries can't result in an infinite loop because retry #1 happens
+ * only during polling reactivation and retry #2 happens only on the first
+ * pass. Constant reactivations are impossible because polling will stay active
+ * for at least grace_period. Worst case scenario involves two retries (HEJKLE)
+ */

I'm having a fairly hard time with this. There's a distinct lack of
memory ordering, and a suspicious mixing of atomic ops (cmpxchg) and
regular loads and stores (without READ_ONCE/WRITE_ONCE even).

Please clarify.

(also, you look to have a whole bunch of line-breaks that are really not
needed; concattenated the line would not be over 80 chars).