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authorLinus Torvalds <torvalds@linux-foundation.org>2023-06-27 11:33:47 -0700
committerLinus Torvalds <torvalds@linux-foundation.org>2023-06-27 11:33:47 -0700
commita3540495324af9b7fa95b62da2ccbf7cdb4e3622 (patch)
tree82062f3a1a9894c165f18f63a81ad561af32244a
parentdedbf31ac8a57eaa29b6e4f9745dadffa83dd947 (diff)
parenta1e72bb00a48687a1dc1c2e549eaf4ba09e802be (diff)
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Merge tag 'docs-6.5' of git://git.lwn.net/linux
Pull documentation updates from Jonathan Corbet: "It's been a relatively calm cycle in docsland. We do have: - Some initial page-table documentation from Linus (the other Linus) - Regression-handling documentation improvements from Thorsten - Addition of kerneldoc documentation for the ERR_PTR() and related macros from James Seo ... and the usual collection of fixes and updates" * tag 'docs-6.5' of git://git.lwn.net/linux: docs: consolidate storage interfaces Documentation: update git configuration for Link: tag Documentation: KVM: make corrections to vcpu-requests.rst Documentation: KVM: make corrections to ppc-pv.rst Documentation: KVM: make corrections to locking.rst Documentation: KVM: make corrections to halt-polling.rst Documentation: virt: correct location of haltpoll module params Documentation/mm: Initial page table documentation docs: crypto: async-tx-api: fix typo in struct name docs/doc-guide: Clarify how to write tables docs: handling-regressions: rework section about fixing procedures docs: process: fix a typoed cross-reference docs: submitting-patches: Discuss interleaved replies MAINTAINERS: direct process doc changes to a dedicated ML Documentation: core-api: Add error pointer functions to kernel-api err.h: Add missing kerneldocs for error pointer functions Documentation: conf.py: Add __force to c_id_attributes docs: clarify KVM related kernel parameters' descriptions docs: consolidate human interface subsystems docs: admin-guide: Add information about intel_pstate active mode
-rw-r--r--Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt63
-rw-r--r--Documentation/conf.py1
-rw-r--r--Documentation/core-api/kernel-api.rst6
-rw-r--r--Documentation/crypto/async-tx-api.rst2
-rw-r--r--Documentation/doc-guide/sphinx.rst11
-rw-r--r--Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst2
-rw-r--r--Documentation/mm/page_tables.rst149
-rw-r--r--Documentation/process/2.Process.rst7
-rw-r--r--Documentation/process/handling-regressions.rst208
-rw-r--r--Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst25
-rw-r--r--Documentation/subsystem-apis.rst34
-rw-r--r--Documentation/virt/guest-halt-polling.rst2
-rw-r--r--Documentation/virt/kvm/halt-polling.rst10
-rw-r--r--Documentation/virt/kvm/locking.rst18
-rw-r--r--Documentation/virt/kvm/ppc-pv.rst8
-rw-r--r--Documentation/virt/kvm/vcpu-requests.rst6
-rw-r--r--MAINTAINERS6
-rw-r--r--include/linux/err.h48
18 files changed, 462 insertions, 144 deletions
diff --git a/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt b/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt
index 2836780618a8..e7b4e64e3fd3 100644
--- a/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt
+++ b/Documentation/admin-guide/kernel-parameters.txt
@@ -2112,6 +2112,16 @@
disable
Do not enable intel_pstate as the default
scaling driver for the supported processors
+ active
+ Use intel_pstate driver to bypass the scaling
+ governors layer of cpufreq and provides it own
+ algorithms for p-state selection. There are two
+ P-state selection algorithms provided by
+ intel_pstate in the active mode: powersave and
+ performance. The way they both operate depends
+ on whether or not the hardware managed P-states
+ (HWP) feature has been enabled in the processor
+ and possibly on the processor model.
passive
Use intel_pstate as a scaling driver, but configure it
to work with generic cpufreq governors (instead of
@@ -2546,12 +2556,13 @@
If the value is 0 (the default), KVM will pick a period based
on the ratio, such that a page is zapped after 1 hour on average.
- kvm-amd.nested= [KVM,AMD] Allow nested virtualization in KVM/SVM.
- Default is 1 (enabled)
+ kvm-amd.nested= [KVM,AMD] Control nested virtualization feature in
+ KVM/SVM. Default is 1 (enabled).
- kvm-amd.npt= [KVM,AMD] Disable nested paging (virtualized MMU)
- for all guests.
- Default is 1 (enabled) if in 64-bit or 32-bit PAE mode.
+ kvm-amd.npt= [KVM,AMD] Control KVM's use of Nested Page Tables,
+ a.k.a. Two-Dimensional Page Tables. Default is 1
+ (enabled). Disable by KVM if hardware lacks support
+ for NPT.
kvm-arm.mode=
[KVM,ARM] Select one of KVM/arm64's modes of operation.
@@ -2597,30 +2608,33 @@
Format: <integer>
Default: 5
- kvm-intel.ept= [KVM,Intel] Disable extended page tables
- (virtualized MMU) support on capable Intel chips.
- Default is 1 (enabled)
+ kvm-intel.ept= [KVM,Intel] Control KVM's use of Extended Page Tables,
+ a.k.a. Two-Dimensional Page Tables. Default is 1
+ (enabled). Disable by KVM if hardware lacks support
+ for EPT.
kvm-intel.emulate_invalid_guest_state=
- [KVM,Intel] Disable emulation of invalid guest state.
- Ignored if kvm-intel.enable_unrestricted_guest=1, as
- guest state is never invalid for unrestricted guests.
- This param doesn't apply to nested guests (L2), as KVM
- never emulates invalid L2 guest state.
- Default is 1 (enabled)
+ [KVM,Intel] Control whether to emulate invalid guest
+ state. Ignored if kvm-intel.enable_unrestricted_guest=1,
+ as guest state is never invalid for unrestricted
+ guests. This param doesn't apply to nested guests (L2),
+ as KVM never emulates invalid L2 guest state.
+ Default is 1 (enabled).
kvm-intel.flexpriority=
- [KVM,Intel] Disable FlexPriority feature (TPR shadow).
- Default is 1 (enabled)
+ [KVM,Intel] Control KVM's use of FlexPriority feature
+ (TPR shadow). Default is 1 (enabled). Disalbe by KVM if
+ hardware lacks support for it.
kvm-intel.nested=
- [KVM,Intel] Enable VMX nesting (nVMX).
- Default is 0 (disabled)
+ [KVM,Intel] Control nested virtualization feature in
+ KVM/VMX. Default is 1 (enabled).
kvm-intel.unrestricted_guest=
- [KVM,Intel] Disable unrestricted guest feature
- (virtualized real and unpaged mode) on capable
- Intel chips. Default is 1 (enabled)
+ [KVM,Intel] Control KVM's use of unrestricted guest
+ feature (virtualized real and unpaged mode). Default
+ is 1 (enabled). Disable by KVM if EPT is disabled or
+ hardware lacks support for it.
kvm-intel.vmentry_l1d_flush=[KVM,Intel] Mitigation for L1 Terminal Fault
CVE-2018-3620.
@@ -2634,9 +2648,10 @@
Default is cond (do L1 cache flush in specific instances)
- kvm-intel.vpid= [KVM,Intel] Disable Virtual Processor Identification
- feature (tagged TLBs) on capable Intel chips.
- Default is 1 (enabled)
+ kvm-intel.vpid= [KVM,Intel] Control KVM's use of Virtual Processor
+ Identification feature (tagged TLBs). Default is 1
+ (enabled). Disable by KVM if hardware lacks support
+ for it.
l1d_flush= [X86,INTEL]
Control mitigation for L1D based snooping vulnerability.
diff --git a/Documentation/conf.py b/Documentation/conf.py
index 37314afd1ac8..d4fdf6a3875a 100644
--- a/Documentation/conf.py
+++ b/Documentation/conf.py
@@ -74,6 +74,7 @@ if major >= 3:
"__percpu",
"__rcu",
"__user",
+ "__force",
# include/linux/compiler_attributes.h:
"__alias",
diff --git a/Documentation/core-api/kernel-api.rst b/Documentation/core-api/kernel-api.rst
index 712e59ad32fa..f2bcc5a7ea43 100644
--- a/Documentation/core-api/kernel-api.rst
+++ b/Documentation/core-api/kernel-api.rst
@@ -96,6 +96,12 @@ Command-line Parsing
.. kernel-doc:: lib/cmdline.c
:export:
+Error Pointers
+--------------
+
+.. kernel-doc:: include/linux/err.h
+ :internal:
+
Sorting
-------
diff --git a/Documentation/crypto/async-tx-api.rst b/Documentation/crypto/async-tx-api.rst
index bfc773991bdc..27c146b54d71 100644
--- a/Documentation/crypto/async-tx-api.rst
+++ b/Documentation/crypto/async-tx-api.rst
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ features surfaced as a result:
::
struct dma_async_tx_descriptor *
- async_<operation>(<op specific parameters>, struct async_submit ctl *submit)
+ async_<operation>(<op specific parameters>, struct async_submit_ctl *submit)
3.2 Supported operations
------------------------
diff --git a/Documentation/doc-guide/sphinx.rst b/Documentation/doc-guide/sphinx.rst
index 23edb427e76f..cd8ad7904491 100644
--- a/Documentation/doc-guide/sphinx.rst
+++ b/Documentation/doc-guide/sphinx.rst
@@ -313,9 +313,18 @@ the documentation build system will automatically turn a reference to
function name exists. If you see ``c:func:`` use in a kernel document,
please feel free to remove it.
+Tables
+------
+
+ReStructuredText provides several options for table syntax. Kernel style for
+tables is to prefer *simple table* syntax or *grid table* syntax. See the
+`reStructuredText user reference for table syntax`_ for more details.
+
+.. _reStructuredText user reference for table syntax:
+ https://docutils.sourceforge.io/docs/user/rst/quickref.html#tables
list tables
------------
+~~~~~~~~~~~
The list-table formats can be useful for tables that are not easily laid
out in the usual Sphinx ASCII-art formats. These formats are nearly
diff --git a/Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst b/Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst
index 80ae5030a590..ec0ddfb9cdd3 100644
--- a/Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst
+++ b/Documentation/maintainer/configure-git.rst
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ by adding the following hook into your git:
$ cat >.git/hooks/applypatch-msg <<'EOF'
#!/bin/sh
. git-sh-setup
- perl -pi -e 's|^Message-Id:\s*<?([^>]+)>?$|Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/$1|g;' "$1"
+ perl -pi -e 's|^Message-I[dD]:\s*<?([^>]+)>?$|Link: https://lore.kernel.org/r/$1|g;' "$1"
test -x "$GIT_DIR/hooks/commit-msg" &&
exec "$GIT_DIR/hooks/commit-msg" ${1+"$@"}
:
diff --git a/Documentation/mm/page_tables.rst b/Documentation/mm/page_tables.rst
index 96939571d7bc..7840c1891751 100644
--- a/Documentation/mm/page_tables.rst
+++ b/Documentation/mm/page_tables.rst
@@ -3,3 +3,152 @@
===========
Page Tables
===========
+
+Paged virtual memory was invented along with virtual memory as a concept in
+1962 on the Ferranti Atlas Computer which was the first computer with paged
+virtual memory. The feature migrated to newer computers and became a de facto
+feature of all Unix-like systems as time went by. In 1985 the feature was
+included in the Intel 80386, which was the CPU Linux 1.0 was developed on.
+
+Page tables map virtual addresses as seen by the CPU into physical addresses
+as seen on the external memory bus.
+
+Linux defines page tables as a hierarchy which is currently five levels in
+height. The architecture code for each supported architecture will then
+map this to the restrictions of the hardware.
+
+The physical address corresponding to the virtual address is often referenced
+by the underlying physical page frame. The **page frame number** or **pfn**
+is the physical address of the page (as seen on the external memory bus)
+divided by `PAGE_SIZE`.
+
+Physical memory address 0 will be *pfn 0* and the highest pfn will be
+the last page of physical memory the external address bus of the CPU can
+address.
+
+With a page granularity of 4KB and a address range of 32 bits, pfn 0 is at
+address 0x00000000, pfn 1 is at address 0x00001000, pfn 2 is at 0x00002000
+and so on until we reach pfn 0xfffff at 0xfffff000. With 16KB pages pfs are
+at 0x00004000, 0x00008000 ... 0xffffc000 and pfn goes from 0 to 0x3fffff.
+
+As you can see, with 4KB pages the page base address uses bits 12-31 of the
+address, and this is why `PAGE_SHIFT` in this case is defined as 12 and
+`PAGE_SIZE` is usually defined in terms of the page shift as `(1 << PAGE_SHIFT)`
+
+Over time a deeper hierarchy has been developed in response to increasing memory
+sizes. When Linux was created, 4KB pages and a single page table called
+`swapper_pg_dir` with 1024 entries was used, covering 4MB which coincided with
+the fact that Torvald's first computer had 4MB of physical memory. Entries in
+this single table were referred to as *PTE*:s - page table entries.
+
+The software page table hierarchy reflects the fact that page table hardware has
+become hierarchical and that in turn is done to save page table memory and
+speed up mapping.
+
+One could of course imagine a single, linear page table with enormous amounts
+of entries, breaking down the whole memory into single pages. Such a page table
+would be very sparse, because large portions of the virtual memory usually
+remains unused. By using hierarchical page tables large holes in the virtual
+address space does not waste valuable page table memory, because it will suffice
+to mark large areas as unmapped at a higher level in the page table hierarchy.
+
+Additionally, on modern CPUs, a higher level page table entry can point directly
+to a physical memory range, which allows mapping a contiguous range of several
+megabytes or even gigabytes in a single high-level page table entry, taking
+shortcuts in mapping virtual memory to physical memory: there is no need to
+traverse deeper in the hierarchy when you find a large mapped range like this.
+
+The page table hierarchy has now developed into this::
+
+ +-----+
+ | PGD |
+ +-----+
+ |
+ | +-----+
+ +-->| P4D |
+ +-----+
+ |
+ | +-----+
+ +-->| PUD |
+ +-----+
+ |
+ | +-----+
+ +-->| PMD |
+ +-----+
+ |
+ | +-----+
+ +-->| PTE |
+ +-----+
+
+
+Symbols on the different levels of the page table hierarchy have the following
+meaning beginning from the bottom:
+
+- **pte**, `pte_t`, `pteval_t` = **Page Table Entry** - mentioned earlier.
+ The *pte* is an array of `PTRS_PER_PTE` elements of the `pteval_t` type, each
+ mapping a single page of virtual memory to a single page of physical memory.
+ The architecture defines the size and contents of `pteval_t`.
+
+ A typical example is that the `pteval_t` is a 32- or 64-bit value with the
+ upper bits being a **pfn** (page frame number), and the lower bits being some
+ architecture-specific bits such as memory protection.
+
+ The **entry** part of the name is a bit confusing because while in Linux 1.0
+ this did refer to a single page table entry in the single top level page
+ table, it was retrofitted to be an array of mapping elements when two-level
+ page tables were first introduced, so the *pte* is the lowermost page
+ *table*, not a page table *entry*.
+
+- **pmd**, `pmd_t`, `pmdval_t` = **Page Middle Directory**, the hierarchy right
+ above the *pte*, with `PTRS_PER_PMD` references to the *pte*:s.
+
+- **pud**, `pud_t`, `pudval_t` = **Page Upper Directory** was introduced after
+ the other levels to handle 4-level page tables. It is potentially unused,
+ or *folded* as we will discuss later.
+
+- **p4d**, `p4d_t`, `p4dval_t` = **Page Level 4 Directory** was introduced to
+ handle 5-level page tables after the *pud* was introduced. Now it was clear
+ that we needed to replace *pgd*, *pmd*, *pud* etc with a figure indicating the
+ directory level and that we cannot go on with ad hoc names any more. This
+ is only used on systems which actually have 5 levels of page tables, otherwise
+ it is folded.
+
+- **pgd**, `pgd_t`, `pgdval_t` = **Page Global Directory** - the Linux kernel
+ main page table handling the PGD for the kernel memory is still found in
+ `swapper_pg_dir`, but each userspace process in the system also has its own
+ memory context and thus its own *pgd*, found in `struct mm_struct` which
+ in turn is referenced to in each `struct task_struct`. So tasks have memory
+ context in the form of a `struct mm_struct` and this in turn has a
+ `struct pgt_t *pgd` pointer to the corresponding page global directory.
+
+To repeat: each level in the page table hierarchy is a *array of pointers*, so
+the **pgd** contains `PTRS_PER_PGD` pointers to the next level below, **p4d**
+contains `PTRS_PER_P4D` pointers to **pud** items and so on. The number of
+pointers on each level is architecture-defined.::
+
+ PMD
+ --> +-----+ PTE
+ | ptr |-------> +-----+
+ | ptr |- | ptr |-------> PAGE
+ | ptr | \ | ptr |
+ | ptr | \ ...
+ | ... | \
+ | ptr | \ PTE
+ +-----+ +----> +-----+
+ | ptr |-------> PAGE
+ | ptr |
+ ...
+
+
+Page Table Folding
+==================
+
+If the architecture does not use all the page table levels, they can be *folded*
+which means skipped, and all operations performed on page tables will be
+compile-time augmented to just skip a level when accessing the next lower
+level.
+
+Page table handling code that wishes to be architecture-neutral, such as the
+virtual memory manager, will need to be written so that it traverses all of the
+currently five levels. This style should also be preferred for
+architecture-specific code, so as to be robust to future changes.
diff --git a/Documentation/process/2.Process.rst b/Documentation/process/2.Process.rst
index 6a919cffcbfd..613a01da4717 100644
--- a/Documentation/process/2.Process.rst
+++ b/Documentation/process/2.Process.rst
@@ -434,9 +434,10 @@ There are a few hints which can help with linux-kernel survival:
questions. Some developers can get impatient with people who clearly
have not done their homework.
-- Avoid top-posting (the practice of putting your answer above the quoted
- text you are responding to). It makes your response harder to read and
- makes a poor impression.
+- Use interleaved ("inline") replies, which makes your response easier to
+ read. (i.e. avoid top-posting -- the practice of putting your answer above
+ the quoted text you are responding to.) For more details, see
+ :ref:`Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst <interleaved_replies>`.
- Ask on the correct mailing list. Linux-kernel may be the general meeting
point, but it is not the best place to find developers from all
diff --git a/Documentation/process/handling-regressions.rst b/Documentation/process/handling-regressions.rst
index abb741b1aeee..5d3c3de3f4ec 100644
--- a/Documentation/process/handling-regressions.rst
+++ b/Documentation/process/handling-regressions.rst
@@ -129,88 +129,132 @@ tools and scripts used by other kernel developers or Linux distributions; one of
these tools is regzbot, which heavily relies on the "Link:" tags to associate
reports for regression with changes resolving them.
-Prioritize work on fixing regressions
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-You should fix any reported regression as quickly as possible, to provide
-affected users with a solution in a timely manner and prevent more users from
-running into the issue; nevertheless developers need to take enough time and
-care to ensure regression fixes do not cause additional damage.
-
-In the end though, developers should give their best to prevent users from
-running into situations where a regression leaves them only three options: "run
-a kernel with a regression that seriously impacts usage", "continue running an
-outdated and thus potentially insecure kernel version for more than two weeks
-after a regression's culprit was identified", and "downgrade to a still
-supported kernel series that lack required features".
-
-How to realize this depends a lot on the situation. Here are a few rules of
-thumb for you, in order or importance:
-
- * Prioritize work on handling regression reports and fixing regression over all
- other Linux kernel work, unless the latter concerns acute security issues or
- bugs causing data loss or damage.
-
- * Always consider reverting the culprit commits and reapplying them later
- together with necessary fixes, as this might be the least dangerous and
- quickest way to fix a regression.
-
- * Developers should handle regressions in all supported kernel series, but are
- free to delegate the work to the stable team, if the issue probably at no
- point in time occurred with mainline.
-
- * Try to resolve any regressions introduced in the current development before
- its end. If you fear a fix might be too risky to apply only days before a new
- mainline release, let Linus decide: submit the fix separately to him as soon
- as possible with the explanation of the situation. He then can make a call
- and postpone the release if necessary, for example if multiple such changes
- show up in his inbox.
-
- * Address regressions in stable, longterm, or proper mainline releases with
- more urgency than regressions in mainline pre-releases. That changes after
- the release of the fifth pre-release, aka "-rc5": mainline then becomes as
- important, to ensure all the improvements and fixes are ideally tested
- together for at least one week before Linus releases a new mainline version.
-
- * Fix regressions within two or three days, if they are critical for some
- reason -- for example, if the issue is likely to affect many users of the
- kernel series in question on all or certain architectures. Note, this
- includes mainline, as issues like compile errors otherwise might prevent many
- testers or continuous integration systems from testing the series.
-
- * Aim to fix regressions within one week after the culprit was identified, if
- the issue was introduced in either:
-
- * a recent stable/longterm release
-
- * the development cycle of the latest proper mainline release
-
- In the latter case (say Linux v5.14), try to address regressions even
- quicker, if the stable series for the predecessor (v5.13) will be abandoned
- soon or already was stamped "End-of-Life" (EOL) -- this usually happens about
- three to four weeks after a new mainline release.
-
- * Try to fix all other regressions within two weeks after the culprit was
- found. Two or three additional weeks are acceptable for performance
- regressions and other issues which are annoying, but don't prevent anyone
- from running Linux (unless it's an issue in the current development cycle,
- as those should ideally be addressed before the release). A few weeks in
- total are acceptable if a regression can only be fixed with a risky change
- and at the same time is affecting only a few users; as much time is
- also okay if the regression is already present in the second newest longterm
- kernel series.
-
-Note: The aforementioned time frames for resolving regressions are meant to
-include getting the fix tested, reviewed, and merged into mainline, ideally with
-the fix being in linux-next at least briefly. This leads to delays you need to
-account for.
-
-Subsystem maintainers are expected to assist in reaching those periods by doing
-timely reviews and quick handling of accepted patches. They thus might have to
-send git-pull requests earlier or more often than usual; depending on the fix,
-it might even be acceptable to skip testing in linux-next. Especially fixes for
-regressions in stable and longterm kernels need to be handled quickly, as fixes
-need to be merged in mainline before they can be backported to older series.
+Expectations and best practices for fixing regressions
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+
+As a Linux kernel developer, you are expected to give your best to prevent
+situations where a regression caused by a recent change of yours leaves users
+only these options:
+
+ * Run a kernel with a regression that impacts usage.
+
+ * Switch to an older or newer kernel series.
+
+ * Continue running an outdated and thus potentially insecure kernel for more
+ than three weeks after the regression's culprit was identified. Ideally it
+ should be less than two. And it ought to be just a few days, if the issue is
+ severe or affects many users -- either in general or in prevalent
+ environments.
+
+How to realize that in practice depends on various factors. Use the following
+rules of thumb as a guide.
+
+In general:
+
+ * Prioritize work on regressions over all other Linux kernel work, unless the
+ latter concerns a severe issue (e.g. acute security vulnerability, data loss,
+ bricked hardware, ...).
+
+ * Expedite fixing mainline regressions that recently made it into a proper
+ mainline, stable, or longterm release (either directly or via backport).
+
+ * Do not consider regressions from the current cycle as something that can wait
+ till the end of the cycle, as the issue might discourage or prevent users and
+ CI systems from testing mainline now or generally.
+
+ * Work with the required care to avoid additional or bigger damage, even if
+ resolving an issue then might take longer than outlined below.
+
+On timing once the culprit of a regression is known:
+
+ * Aim to mainline a fix within two or three days, if the issue is severe or
+ bothering many users -- either in general or in prevalent conditions like a
+ particular hardware environment, distribution, or stable/longterm series.
+
+ * Aim to mainline a fix by Sunday after the next, if the culprit made it
+ into a recent mainline, stable, or longterm release (either directly or via
+ backport); if the culprit became known early during a week and is simple to
+ resolve, try to mainline the fix within the same week.
+
+ * For other regressions, aim to mainline fixes before the hindmost Sunday
+ within the next three weeks. One or two Sundays later are acceptable, if the
+ regression is something people can live with easily for a while -- like a
+ mild performance regression.
+
+ * It's strongly discouraged to delay mainlining regression fixes till the next
+ merge window, except when the fix is extraordinarily risky or when the
+ culprit was mainlined more than a year ago.
+
+On procedure:
+
+ * Always consider reverting the culprit, as it's often the quickest and least
+ dangerous way to fix a regression. Don't worry about mainlining a fixed
+ variant later: that should be straight-forward, as most of the code went
+ through review once already.
+
+ * Try to resolve any regressions introduced in mainline during the past
+ twelve months before the current development cycle ends: Linus wants such
+ regressions to be handled like those from the current cycle, unless fixing
+ bears unusual risks.
+
+ * Consider CCing Linus on discussions or patch review, if a regression seems
+ tangly. Do the same in precarious or urgent cases -- especially if the
+ subsystem maintainer might be unavailable. Also CC the stable team, when you
+ know such a regression made it into a mainline, stable, or longterm release.
+
+ * For urgent regressions, consider asking Linus to pick up the fix straight
+ from the mailing list: he is totally fine with that for uncontroversial
+ fixes. Ideally though such requests should happen in accordance with the
+ subsystem maintainers or come directly from them.
+
+ * In case you are unsure if a fix is worth the risk applying just days before
+ a new mainline release, send Linus a mail with the usual lists and people in
+ CC; in it, summarize the situation while asking him to consider picking up
+ the fix straight from the list. He then himself can make the call and when
+ needed even postpone the release. Such requests again should ideally happen
+ in accordance with the subsystem maintainers or come directly from them.
+
+Regarding stable and longterm kernels:
+
+ * You are free to leave regressions to the stable team, if they at no point in
+ time occurred with mainline or were fixed there already.
+
+ * If a regression made it into a proper mainline release during the past
+ twelve months, ensure to tag the fix with "Cc: stable@vger.kernel.org", as a
+ "Fixes:" tag alone does not guarantee a backport. Please add the same tag,
+ in case you know the culprit was backported to stable or longterm kernels.
+
+ * When receiving reports about regressions in recent stable or longterm kernel
+ series, please evaluate at least briefly if the issue might happen in current
+ mainline as well -- and if that seems likely, take hold of the report. If in
+ doubt, ask the reporter to check mainline.
+
+ * Whenever you want to swiftly resolve a regression that recently also made it
+ into a proper mainline, stable, or longterm release, fix it quickly in
+ mainline; when appropriate thus involve Linus to fast-track the fix (see
+ above). That's because the stable team normally does neither revert nor fix
+ any changes that cause the same problems in mainline.
+
+ * In case of urgent regression fixes you might want to ensure prompt
+ backporting by dropping the stable team a note once the fix was mainlined;
+ this is especially advisable during merge windows and shortly thereafter, as
+ the fix otherwise might land at the end of a huge patch queue.
+
+On patch flow:
+
+ * Developers, when trying to reach the time periods mentioned above, remember
+ to account for the time it takes to get fixes tested, reviewed, and merged by
+ Linus, ideally with them being in linux-next at least briefly. Hence, if a
+ fix is urgent, make it obvious to ensure others handle it appropriately.
+
+ * Reviewers, you are kindly asked to assist developers in reaching the time
+ periods mentioned above by reviewing regression fixes in a timely manner.
+
+ * Subsystem maintainers, you likewise are encouraged to expedite the handling
+ of regression fixes. Thus evaluate if skipping linux-next is an option for
+ the particular fix. Also consider sending git pull requests more often than
+ usual when needed. And try to avoid holding onto regression fixes over
+ weekends -- especially when the fix is marked for backporting.
More aspects regarding regressions developers should be aware of
diff --git a/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst b/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
index 486875fd73c0..efac910e2659 100644
--- a/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
+++ b/Documentation/process/submitting-patches.rst
@@ -331,6 +331,31 @@ explaining difference against previous submission (see
See Documentation/process/email-clients.rst for recommendations on email
clients and mailing list etiquette.
+.. _interleaved_replies:
+
+Use trimmed interleaved replies in email discussions
+----------------------------------------------------
+Top-posting is strongly discouraged in Linux kernel development
+discussions. Interleaved (or "inline") replies make conversations much
+easier to follow. For more details see:
+https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posting_style#Interleaved_style
+
+As is frequently quoted on the mailing list::
+
+ A: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_post
+ Q: Were do I find info about this thing called top-posting?
+ A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
+ Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
+ A: Top-posting.
+ Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?
+
+Similarly, please trim all unneeded quotations that aren't relevant
+to your reply. This makes responses easier to find, and saves time and
+space. For more details see: http://daringfireball.net/2007/07/on_top ::
+
+ A: No.
+ Q: Should I include quotations after my reply?
+
.. _resend_reminders:
Don't get discouraged - or impatient
diff --git a/Documentation/subsystem-apis.rst b/Documentation/subsystem-apis.rst
index b51f38527e14..02d6dc3a49c8 100644
--- a/Documentation/subsystem-apis.rst
+++ b/Documentation/subsystem-apis.rst
@@ -10,6 +10,30 @@ is taken directly from the kernel source, with supplemental material added
as needed (or at least as we managed to add it — probably *not* all that is
needed).
+Human interfaces
+----------------
+
+.. toctree::
+ :maxdepth: 1
+
+ input/index
+ hid/index
+ sound/index
+ gpu/index
+ fb/index
+
+Storage interfaces
+------------------
+
+.. toctree::
+ :maxdepth: 1
+
+ filesystems/index
+ block/index
+ cdrom/index
+ scsi/index
+ target/index
+
**Fixme**: much more organizational work is needed here.
.. toctree::
@@ -19,12 +43,8 @@ needed).
core-api/index
locking/index
accounting/index
- block/index
- cdrom/index
cpu-freq/index
- fb/index
fpga/index
- hid/index
i2c/index
iio/index
isdn/index
@@ -34,25 +54,19 @@ needed).
networking/index
pcmcia/index
power/index
- target/index
timers/index
spi/index
w1/index
watchdog/index
virt/index
- input/index
hwmon/index
- gpu/index
accel/index
security/index
- sound/index
crypto/index
- filesystems/index
mm/index
bpf/index
usb/index
PCI/index
- scsi/index
misc-devices/index
scheduler/index
mhi/index
diff --git a/Documentation/virt/guest-halt-polling.rst b/Documentation/virt/guest-halt-polling.rst
index b4e747942417..922291ddc40c 100644
--- a/Documentation/virt/guest-halt-polling.rst
+++ b/Documentation/virt/guest-halt-polling.rst
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ high once achieves global guest_halt_poll_ns value).
Default: Y
-The module parameters can be set from the debugfs files in::
+The module parameters can be set from the sysfs files in::
/sys/module/haltpoll/parameters/
diff --git a/Documentation/virt/kvm/halt-polling.rst b/Documentation/virt/kvm/halt-polling.rst
index 3fae39b1a5ba..4f1a1b23d99c 100644
--- a/