@@ -1605,6 +1629,48 @@ int timer_delete_sync(struct timer_list
 }
 EXPORT_SYMBOL(timer_delete_sync);
 
+/**
+ * timer_shutdown_sync - Shutdown a timer and prevent rearming
+ * @timer: The timer to be shutdown
+ *
+ * When the function returns it is guaranteed that:
+ *   - @timer is not queued
+ *   - The callback function of @timer is not running
+ *   - @timer cannot be enqueued again. Any attempt to rearm
+ *     @timer is silently ignored.
+ *
+ * See timer_delete_sync() for synchronization rules.
+ *
+ * This function is useful for final teardown of an infrastructure where
+ * the timer is subject to a circular dependency problem.
+ *
+ * A common pattern for this is a timer and a workqueue where the timer can
+ * schedule work and work can arm the timer. On shutdown the workqueue must
+ * be destroyed and the timer must be prevented from rearming. Unless the
+ * code has conditionals like 'if (mything->in_shutdown)' to prevent that
+ * there is no way to get this correct with timer_delete_sync().
+ *
+ * timer_shutdown_sync() is solving the problem. The correct ordering of
+ * calls in this case is:
+ *
+ *	timer_shutdown_sync(&mything->timer);
+ *	workqueue_destroy(&mything->workqueue);
+ *
+ * After this 'mything' can be safely freed.
+ *
+ * This obviously requires that the timer is not required to be functional
+ * for the rest of the shutdown operation.